By Brian Campana

*****

I’m being completely honest, and it has nothing to do with money, but…

The Detroit Lions should not even consider Matthew Stafford for their first overall draft pick.  Call me a pessimist, remind me that I dwell on past discrepancies, but we swung for the fences with Joey Harrington, and we struck out.  But the problem is not with Stafford.  It’s not you honey, it’s me…

Matthew Stafford is going to be a great quarterback in the pros, maybe even a Pro Bowl selection one day, but the focus of the Lions needs to be almost entirely devoted to the defense.  The Lions defense gave up way too many points last season, simple as that.  The Lions were far and away the worst defense in the league, giving up a ridiculous 517 points. For those of you not disgusted by this, I will elaborate.  The Lions gave up 32.3 points PER GAME on average.  How is that for pressure on the offense?

Imagine, for a second, that you are Matthew Stafford.  You were selected first overall in the 2009 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions.  You look up at the scoreboard at the end of the first quarter and your jaw drops.  In the Lions first four games of 2008, they were finding themselves in trouble early.  They trailed the Falcons by a score of 21-0 early in the second quarter.  The Packers also put up a quick 21 points before the Lions really got going.  Even San Francisco and Chicago found themselves leading by scores of 21-3 and 17-0 in the first half.

But no pressure kid, you will be fine.  Oh, and your offensive line is terrible.  And you don’t have a polished NFL running back to keep defenses honest.  Stafford would simply drop to the ground and move into the fetal position just to avoid the four or five opposing players coming his way.  Detroit’s defense is terrible, and their offensive line is not much better.  But that is what the draft is all about, rebuilding.  And fortunately for the Lions, they have a lot of picks to work with.

The Lions have the pleasure of having the first overall pick.  However, this is bittersweet because how much “pleasure” can be found in being the worst team to ever lace up the spikes and take the football field?

*****

I’m being completely honest, and it has nothing to do with money, but…

I, along with other fellow Lions fans, do honestly believe that the offense (minus the quarterback spot) was not all that bad last season.  While there were a few guffaws made (sorry Dan, but you can’t run out of the end zone like that) the Lions did actually have a decent offense.

A few future faces of the franchise were in the spotlight last season, namely Calvin Johnson, one of the league’s premier receivers.  Calvin racked up 1331 yards and 12 touchdowns on only 78 receptions.  Only Larry Fitzgerald was more dominant.

Ernie Sims, the Lions’ first round draft pick in 2006, had another impressive season, notching 113 tackles.  Sims has averaged 124 tackles a season in his three years with the Lions.  Sims appears to be a foundation on this defense.  This is promising, one spot down, ten more to go.

Gosder Cherilus went through a rough first half of the season, but the fact that fellow rookie Kevin Smith found room to run on the right side leads me to believe that Cherilus may be legit.  Now I am not saying that Sims, Smith or Cherilus are or ever will necessarily be Pro Bowlers, but they can have solid careers in Detroit.

*****

I’m being completely honest, and it has nothing to do with money, but…

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?