NFL Draft: Ranking Every Detroit Lions Draft of the Last Decade
With the 2011 NFL Draft close at hand, Detroit Lions fans are full of questions.
And not just the simple ones, like "who will they draft in the first round?"
No, the real question this year is whether the Lions' front office can continue its recent drafting success, despite having fewer and lower picks than ever before.
Sure, it's easy to pick a new franchise quarterback with the first overall pick and the Rookie of the Year with the second.
Now what can they do with the 13th?
To answer that question, let's take a look at the past decade of Lions drafts.
To put it more directly, let's look at every one of Matt Millen's drafts and both of Martin Mayhew's drafts and pit them against one another.
And yes, it IS too early to accurately judge either of Mayhew's drafts under the "three years" doctrine. Matthew Stafford's long term viability will have a major effect on the final score of the 2009 draft, but for now, we'll just call it on what we have seen so far and projected long term potential.
10. Mike Williams and the 2005 NFL Draft
1 of 10
The 2005 draft wasn't just atrocious because of the infamous Mike Williams pick.
It wasn't just because the next three picks after Williams were DeMarcus Ware, Shawne Merriman and Jammal Brown, who have 10 Pro Bowl appearances between them.
It wasn't just that Aaron Rodgers, Logan Mankins and Roddy White went later on in the first round.
And it's not just because Mike Williams resurfaced in 2010 as a good football player with another team after everyone had forgotten about him.
It's because the Lions pulled absolutely zero value out of any other round.
Shaun Cody is still hanging around the league in Houston making little to no impact.
Stanley Wilson stayed with the Lions until he became part of the Great Roster Flip of 2009.
Dan Orlovsky is in Houston studying the anatomy of a football field and what all the white lines mean.
Bill Swancutt has never been heard of.
Johnathan Goddard recorded one career tackle in the NFL and one career tackle in the AFL before he died in a motorcycle accident in 2008.
9. Charles Rogers and the 2003 NFL Draft
2 of 10
I've picked on Charles Rogers enough. We all know he was one of the bigger busts in NFL history, so let's move on.
Boss Bailey was the Lions' second-round pick, and had an effective rookie season before injury eliminated his 2004 season. He was never the same player after that.
The Denver Broncos signed Bailey to a five year contract in 2008. Bailey played six games of it, and hasn't been in football since.
Cory Redding might be the Lions' most successful pick in this draft. For starters, he's still playing in the NFL, a rarity among Millen draft picks. Redding has been a starter, and a downright manageable one, since he was drafted in the third round of the 2003 draft. He is currently with the Baltimore Ravens.
I will describe the remainder of the picks in the 2003 draft by giving you the year they exited the NFL.
Artose Pinner: 2008
Terrence Holt: 2009
James Davis: 2007
David Kircus: 2008
Ben Johnson: 2006 (never made a 53-man roster)
Blue Adams: 2008 (though made the All-NFL Europe team in 2005)
8. Ernie Sims and the 2006 NFL Draft
3 of 10
Ernie Sims was good for a while. For a time, he looked like Matt Millen's most successful draft pick.
But he never seemed to cross that threshold from "pretty good" to "star linebacker." That was made increasingly clear by his lack of impact in 2010 as a Philadelphia Eagle.
But regardless of your feelings on Sims, let's take a look at the remaining picks, shall we?
Daniel Bullocks: UFL
Brian Calhoun: CFL
Johnathan Scott: The only player other than Sims still in the NFL, Scott was actually a starting offensive lineman for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010. That's impressive, even when you factor in that offensive line was the team's biggest weakness.
Dee McCann: CFL free agent
Fred Matua: Bounced around to five different NFL teams before finally debuting in 2009...with the UFL's Florida Tuskers.
Anthony Cannon: CFL
When half your draft has to deport themselves to play football, it's probably a bad sign.
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7. Joey Harrington and the 2002 NFL Draft
4 of 10
Pictured: A microcosm of Joey Harrington's tenure with the Lions.
Not Pictured: Ford Field burning to the ground around him.
Harrington's career in Detroit is well documented, but it's hard to be too angry about the selection. After all, the other quarterbacks drafted in the first round were David Carr and Patrick Ramsey, so it's not like the Lions whiffed on taking a Hall of Famer.
Fun fact: Shaun Hill went undrafted in 2002 and was eventually signed by the Minnesota Vikings. I'll give you a minute to let that sink in.
Actually, the Lions' best selection in 2002 might have been Kalimba Edwards in the second round, the pass rushing DE who played six years with the Lions and led them in sacks twice. He spent 2010 as a free agent, but at least he was effective for a while.
Other 2002 selections:
Andre Goodman: He has been surprisingly decent. Though he played only four years with the Lions as a marginal player, he signed a five year contract worth more than $20 million with the Denver Broncos in 2009.
Johnathan Taylor: Retired in 2005 to start a Master's Degree program at Montana State University.
John Owens: Has played for seven teams in nine seasons, currently with Oakland.
Chris Cash: Might have been good, but injuries derailed him. Is now coaching high school football.
John Staley: Decided to forego his senior season at BYU, thus shortening his football career by a year. Was cut from Lions training camp after a season-ending knee injury, never to play football again.
Matt Murphy: Bounced around the league until 2008. Career stats as a tight end: Three receptions, 34 yards.
Victor Rogers: Wishes he would have been drafted two spots later, so he would have at least been memorable as Mr. Irrelevant.
6. Roy Williams and the 2004 NFL Draft
5 of 10
Roy Williams is remembered in Detroit for two things.
One is being the only receiver drafted during Matt Millen's 2003-2005 binge of first round receivers to kinda sorta work out.
The other is being the bait that fleeced Jerry Jones out of half of the Cowboys' 2009 draft (aka Martin Mayhew's coming-out party).
So Williams' tenure in Detroit was good, and his departure from Detroit was good. All in all, nice pick.
The rest of the draft, however, was snakebitten.
Kevin Jones played just long enough to get everyone excited about his potential, then became an injury magnet.
Teddy Lehman notched 102 tackles in his rookie year, and 48 over the remainder of his career.
Keith Smith spent five mostly invisible years with the Lions and is currently a free agent.
Alex Lewis currently plays in the UFL.
Kelly Butler currently plays in the CFL.
5. Calvin Johnson and the 2007 NFL Draft
6 of 10
Calvin Johnson saves this draft.
As difficult as it is to say, Matt Millen deserves a little credit for the Johnson pick.
On one hand, it's true he was the no-brainer, "can't miss," once-in-a-generation talent that only Al Davis could screw up on taking.
On the other hand, Millen made that pick amongst nationwide mockery about his addiction to first round receivers. Millen drafting Johnson was an admission that he had screwed up previous drafts, and it turned out to be the right move.
Of course, then he turned around and managed to bomb the rest of the draft as badly as any before or since.
The Lions had three second round picks in 2007, and it doesn't seem they hit on any of them.
Drew Stanton has hung around for four years, but he doesn't seem to ever be on the depth chart. It often seems like they keep him in a glass case that reads "break in case of emergency, otherwise, call Daunte Culpepper."
The most trouble opponents have had with Ikaika Alama-Francis (now a Miami Dolphin) is pronouncing his name.
Gerald Alexander filled in for the injured Daniel Bullocks as a rookie starter in 2007 and performed admirably with 81 tackles and two interceptions. In three years since (with three different teams), he has a combined 40 tackles and two interceptions.
The rest of the draft doesn't seem to have fared any better.
A.J. Davis has spent his entire career on a practice squad somewhere.
Manuel Ramirez can be summed up by this excerpt from his Wikipedia page: "In October 2010, Ramirez was named the Detroit Lions' starting right guard. On January 4, 2011, Ramírez was signed to the Denver Broncos."
Johnny Baldwin's most telling career achievement is getting cut from a UFL team.
Ramzee Robinson has done well for himself to hang around the league until 2010 as a former Mr. Irrelevant, but is currently a free agent and may have trouble latching onto a team for 2011.
4. Gosder Cherilus and the 2008 NFL Draft
7 of 10
No matter how you feel about Gosder Cherilus, just remember that he moved the Lions past the "False Start" Foster era. He has shown steady improvement, and could plug the Lions' right tackle spot for years pending the results of his microfracture surgery.
Matt Millen's final draft had some of his better moments, although it's also recent, so there's still some time for some of these guys to bust out of the league.
In particular, Jordon Dizon, Kevin Smith and Andre Fluellen all have unstable futures with the Lions.
Smith was denied tender in a RFA year, which basically means he's gone.
Dizon suffered a season-ending injury in the 2010 preseason, but would likely have played a big role otherwise.
Fluellen is part of the most rock-solid position on the team (defensive line), but is unanimously considered its weakest link.
The real star of this draft is Cliff Avril, though. Given the direction Avril's career is going, he may turn out to be Millen's best draft pick ever, especially when you take into account the fact that he looks like a budding superstar from a low third round pick.
Jerome Felton was a fifth round pick in the 2008 draft, and his future is also in limbo. He's not much of a blocker or a pass-catcher, but the Lions would likely get more production out of him if they used him in more short-yardage situations.
Kenneth Moore is best known for fumbling two kick returns in one game and getting cut by the Indianapolis Colts the following week.
Landon Cohen was a preseason star for the Lions last year, but ended up cut in favor of Fluellen. He's still floating around and works out hard enough to catch on with someone next season.
Caleb Campbell hasn't produced much thus far, but that is neither Campbell's nor Millen's fault. That he caught back on with the Lions after being forced into (and completing) two more years of Army service after the 2008 draft is a testament to his commitment to the game. I don't know about the future of his career, but it's hard not to wish him well.
3. Jeff Backus and the 2001 NFL Draft
8 of 10
If Matt Millen had retired after the first three picks of his first NFL draft, he would be remembered much more fondly.
Those three picks: Jeff Backus, Dominic Raiola, Shaun Rogers.
Though only Rogers ever made a Pro Bowl and the other two are just about ready for replacement, these are all players who have retained starting roles in the NFL for a decade.
Sure, Backus is only decent. Raiola is too small. Rogers has attitude issues. But they have all performed well enough over the years to be active football players into their 30s, which is something that only a tiny percentage of players ever achieve.
Backus and Raiola have been rocks for the Lions, neither of them ever missing a game due to injury. It's also worth noting that they survived a number of coaching changes and accompanying roster purges, including the most recent one.
Of course, while both players have been solid, neither has been a star, which is why this draft remains third on the list. Rogers could have been a star, but lacked the mentality.
Scotty Anderson, a fifth round pick, posted some modest stats from 2001-2003, but didn't play in the NFL afterwards.
Jason Glenn never actually played for the Lions.
Mike McMahon created some buzz as the backup QB in Detroit after breaking up the Lions' winless season in Week 13. He went on to post lowly career stats: a 1-4 TD-INT ratio, 205 total passing yards, and a 45.7 completion percentage.
Wait, sorry. Those are his career UFL stats.
2. Ndamukong Suh and the 2010 NFL Draft
9 of 10
For most of the players selected in the 2010 NFL Draft, it's far, far too early to tell how good some of these players are.
For instance, Jason Fox. Fox spent almost the entire 2010 season inactive. The Lions' positional coaches worked with him, and by all accounts he improved immensely. He figures to step into a major role in 2011, but how will he fare?
Furthermore, are Jahvid Best's struggles in 2010 really just a result of injury? How high is his ceiling?
Is Amari Spievey a long-term solution at safety, or is the converted cornerback a failed experiment?
All of these players performed fairly well in 2010, and could be better in 2011. Their development is what will truly determine the quality of this year's draft.
Both of the Lions' seventh round picks, Willie Young or Tim Toone, have a chance to make noise in 2011 as well, which will help the overall perception of the draft.
Even with all those question marks, I can still place the Lions' 2010 draft higher than any in the Millen era because those player have actually shown flashes of great potential.
Oh, and there's also Ndamukong Suh, one of the most dominant rookie linemen the NFL has ever seen.
Suh won the Rookie of the Year award as a defensive tackle. He won it over a quarterback who was selected first overall and very nearly took a 1-15 team to the playoffs. That's how good he is.
Ultimately, this draft will be remembered as the one in which Detroit drafted Suh. I can't project the remainder of his career, but anyone can see what he did to opposing offenses in 2010 and tell you he's on the way to being a perennial Pro Bowler.
All we can do for now, though, is wonder what happens when he gets better.
1. Matthew Stafford and the 2009 NFL Draft
10 of 10
For argument's sake, let's say that Matthew Stafford is still a question mark. Neither an injury-addled bust nor a budding star, but rather a player on whom the jury is still out.
Granted, it will be devastating if Stafford busts. But even if he does, this is still a thoroughly fantastic draft.
Consider the picks made after Stafford.
Brandon Pettigrew led the Lions in receptions in 2010, and finished third among all NFL tight ends. This, while being thrown at by three different quarterbacks. Also a great blocker and likely future Pro Bowler.
Louis Delmas has been a leader on defense from day one, and was named a 2010 Pro Bowl alternate despite playing the entire season hobbled by a groin injury.
DeAndre Levy performed so well in his rookie season, the Lions were comfortable dealing away former first round pick Ernie Sims the following season.
Sammie Hill became a super-reserve player and has shown massive development in just two seasons. Is a likely future replacement for Corey Williams.
Zack Follett was one of the most notorious special teams coverage players of the 2009 season, and was poised to take over a starting role on the defense. Only a serious neck injury (or an extended lockout) is likely to stand in the way of him making an impact in 2011.
Dan Gronkowski didn't do much in Detroit, but a trade for him at the end of the 2010 training camp resulted in Detroit getting Alphonso Smith, a 2009 second round pick for Denver who made some big plays last season and could be a fixture for years in the secondary.
The only players who have failed to make a major impact for Detroit are Lydon Murtha, who was claimed by Miami off Detroit's practice squad; Derrick Williams, a third-round WR/KR who hasn't yet excelled at either; and Aaron Brown, a speedster who was effective in 2009 but found himself displaced by Jahvid Best in 2010.
This draft will still be gauged by how well Stafford works out, but it's one of the better ones either way. In fact, the difference between Stafford busting and Stafford being great is the difference between the 2009 draft being pretty good and one of the best in Lions history.
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