SideLion Report » 2011 » May » 04

NFC North Draft Review

Ross Husson — Wed, 04 May 2011 19:01:13 +0000

Chicago Bears

The Bears will improve their offensive line that struggled last year with the pick of Carimi. Carimi should be able to start right away at right tackle for Mike Martz and the Bear offense. Stephen Paea surprised a lot of people at the combine with his strength as he broke the record at bench press. He also has a chance to start at DT this year for Chicago.

1st: Gabe Carimi (OT – Wisconsin)
2nd: Stephen Paea (DT – Oregon State)
3rd: Christopher Conte (S – California)
5th: Nathan Enderle (QB – Idaho)
6th: J.T. Thomas (OLB – West Virginia)

Mel Kiper: B
Fox Sports: B
CBS Sports: C+
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Lions Continue to Follow Blueprint

Wed, 04 May 2011 17:00:46 +0000

Even though the Lions didn’t address any major “needs” in this weekend’s draft, they added a lot of talent to positions that you could consider strengths of the team. I think Mayhew foreshadowed this when he spoke with the media a couple of weeks ago by saying he believes the team has more needs than people think. In the second round he reinforced his statement earlier in the week. The Lions grabbed Titus Young. A speedy wide out that can stretch the field and take pressure off Calvin Johnson. They also drafted power back Mikel Leshoure. I honestly can’t remember the last downhill tough running back this team had. We’ve had some washed up options (i.e. T.J. Duckett) but no one in their youth.

I think unfair expectations were immediately set following the Fairley pick. I must admit I was an angry fan on Friday, especially after the Young pick (I was having horrible flashbacks to the Millen era). Having a few days to reflect and remove the emotion from the initial sticker shock helped place things in perspective. The truth is the Lions, although improved, are not even close yet to being a perennial playoff contender. The Lions should get better this year. Better could mean 8-8 or 9-7, while a playoff berth would be huge plus, it should not be an expectation. If this team made the playoffs last year and still had CB and Oline needs, then I think you would have seen the Lions be more aggressive in the draft targeting those positions. But the front office knows this team isn’t that close yet.

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The Worst of the 2011 NFL Draft

Zac Snyder — Wed, 04 May 2011 14:00:46 +0000

I took a look at what I thought were the “bests” of the 2011 NFL draft yesterday, here my five “worsts”:

5. Browns call the wrong guy
Don’t feel bad if you had a hard time keeping Cameron Jordan, a defensive end from Cal, and Jordan Cameron, a tight end from USC, straight, you aren’t alone. Cameron Jordan was drafted by the Saints with the 24th pick in the first round. He was at the Saints facility on Saturday when he received a call from the Cleveland Browns and had to explain to the Browns representative that he is not the guy they selected with the fifth pick in the fourth round. Oops. See the Shutdown Corner article for more on this strange story.

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