The Lions' Real Draft vs My Dream Draft, Part Two: Picks 6-10

Sixth Pick: STRONG DISAGREEMENT

My Pick: Louis Murphy, Wide Receiver, Florida

My Logic: At this point, I felt the need to see if I can steal a good receiver opposite of Calvin Johnson. I believe that I have one in Murphy.

The Lions pick: Sammie Lee Hill, DT, Stillman College

Their logic: "uuhhh...well.... what had happened...? We waited too long to draft a reasonable DT, so we picked the first one we could get our hands on."

Note: CBSSPORTS.com labled Hill as,"Massive prospect that looks good in the gym, but only flashed as a playmaker against a lower level of competition."

In short, he's college football's equivalent of that bully who grabs the skinny nerds and give them atomic wedgies. But when he tries to pick on someone his own size...?

Better pick: Myself in a blowout. At 6'2", 203lbs, Murphy has the size to play in this league as a receiver. Hill on the other hand, as a DT, might not even get out the practice squad.

The Seventh Pick: No argument

My Pick: Coye Francies, CB, Oregon State

My Logic: Keep growing those corners. This defense cannot have enough corners over six foot tall. He was available, so why not?

The Lions pick: Aaron Brown, RB, TCU

Their logic: Kevin Smith can't carry the load by himself

Note: I got my head handed to me when I brought up drafting another running back by my fellow Lions fans. I'd back off that because as my mother once told me,"Never argue with drunks and fools." But Herm Edwards did bring up a very interesting point during the draft.

He mentioned that the NFL is no longer a "featured back" league; that it is now more like a "running back by committee" league.

It makes sense. Why burn out one running back, in trying to make him carry the entire load, when you can share the duties between two or more backs with all of them enjoying a long career?

Better pick: Lions. Brown will give Smith a breather from what looks to be a long season for the running backs.

The Eighth Pick: Agree

My pick: Anthony Parker, Offensive Guard, Tennessee.

My Logic: I'm looking towards the future of pass blocking in Detroit. Parker, along with Wood (if he fails to become center) should lead to a nice comfortable pocket for Stafford for years to come.

The Lions Picked: Lydon Murtha, OT, Nebraska

Their Logic: Their looking to run the ball now. That's why they went with Pettigrew so early. I think the Lions are going to try to start those two together.

Note: New OT to line up with new TE? You know what that means...

Jeff, as a Michigan fan, talking to a Michigan man...
YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR "BACK-CUZ"

Better pick: Me. The Lions only bright side on the offensive line last season was the running game. Protecting the QB comes first. Smith will still get his yards with the current line blocking for him. That and I have a bias for Jeff Backus.

The Ninth Pick: Disagree

My Pick: Myron Pryor, Defensive Tackle, Kentucky.

My Logic: I'm done. My objective was to find players that I believe can go on to become the leaders of the new Lions era. My goals for the 2010 and 11 drafts was to fill in the rest of the blanks.

Since I wanted the main theme to focus on defense, I'd taken who I believe was be the best remaining defensive player. Who knows, he just might make a difference.

The Lions Picked: Zack Follett, OLB, California

Their logic: Since they'd screwed up their focus on defense at the linebacker position, they took who they believed was the best remaining linebacker. Who knows, he just might make a difference.

Better pick: Me. I'm done; that was a luxury pick. Meanwhile, the real Lions are still working.

The Tenth Pick: YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING ME, RIGHT???

My Pick: Anthony Haygood, linebacker, Purdue

My Logic: With an extra pick, why not pick an undersized, yet hard-hitting linebacker, to play on special teams? He looks like the type that could time a good hit on a kick or punt returner. Hey, he just might surprise me and play as a linebacker. A very safe pick.

Their pick: Dan Gronkowski, TE, Maryland

Their logic: NONE!!! There is no logic in welcoming your FIRST ROUND draft pick by sending him a message that's best reserved for either aging veterans or players with attitude problems!!!

Note: This pick tells me right now that the Lions are already questioning Pettigrew. That pick showed total disrespect to Pettigrew, so don't be surprised if he tries to take the Lions to the cleaners when contract negotiations starts.

Better pick: Me. I'm not going to sign a first round TE to a long term contract, then draft another man in his position knowing that if the other man were to win out, I'll have to figure out a way to get rid of him (Pettigrew) without taking a hit to my cap. That pick was stupid.

It's all over with. Let's see the final score...

I WIN 6-3-1

Scoring breakdown

My best picks: Maualuga, Wood, Murphy, Parker, Pryor and Haygood

The Lions best picks: Brown, Williams and Levy

One tie- Stafford and Sanchez

Key to victory: Believe it or not, Colin Cowherd

On his ESPN show "The Herd" last week, Colin warned the public about "leaks." He told his listening audience that "there's no such thing as a leak." In short, if a leak comes out, it's usually done on purpose, by the front office of that team.

So, while the draft experts were predicting that the Seahawks were going to take Mark Sanchez, I started to ask myself, "Where did all of this talk come from?" It turned out to be a leak; so I started monitoring every Seahawk website and chat room.

Lo and behold, I'd discovered NO activity what so ever between Mark Sanchez and the Seattle Seahawks.

So why did the Seahawks (allegedy) leak out such a rumor? Here's a thought.

Ever since the start of the rumor of Sanchez going to Seattle, Sanchez's stock shot up like a bottle rocket. Teams were calling for Sanchez and all of a sudden that No. 4 pick had turned into gold.

So what did I do? I took the bait.

I traded down to Seattle for their fourth and 68th pick. I could have asked for more, but I didn't want to take the chance of them escalating the deal proposal.

And with that No. 1 pick, the Seahawks would have STILL picked the exact player I knew they were going for all along, Aaron Curry. Did you guys really think that the 'Hawks were going to get rid of Hasselbeck? Don't feel bad about it; it happens to the best of us.

But here's the fun part. With that trade, I'd managed to get the same number of picks that the real Lions had to trade down for. Most important, both Stafford and Sanchez would be still on the board when I'd made my first pick at No. 4.

By picking Sanchez over Stafford, I would had saved myself the trouble of spending $41 million dollars right off the bat. This leaves myself enough money and cap space to afford Wood, Maualuga, and any other big name player that remained on the board.

The real Lions, unfortunately, handcuffed themselves by giving Stafford too much money before the draft. It wasn't that they didn't want Maualuga or Larianaitis; they just simply couldn't afford them down the road.

So it was no surprise to me that as we headed towards the second half of the draft comparison, I started to pull away. I picked who I'd felt were the best remaining, while the real Lions had to scrape the bottom of the barrel.

To put the cherry on top, all but one of my picks (Kruger) were on the board for myself and the real Lions to pick; therefore, no excuses!!!

FINAL THOUGHT

It'd sucked for me to do that, but as a Lions fan, you can only put up with so many bad draft tactics before you have to say something.

If the "new" Lions truly want to go to the next level, the first step for them is to stop throwing so much money at No. 1 picks and free agents. It always has and always will affect the way they, or any other team, drafts.

The Lions' front office played this draft like they were desperate and the results sure look like it.

So, with that being said, I hope you enjoyed my presentation and I wish my fellow Lions fans good luck...We're going to need it!

So, who do you think had done better? Cast your vote at...http://bleacherreport.com/articles/162616-poll-sherman-dream-draft-versus-the-lions-real-draft