September 17, 2011; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins running back Johnathan Franklin (23) is brought down by Texas Longhorns safety Kenny Vaccaro (4) during the first half at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The 2013 NFL Draft is flooded with pass rushers. At this point in the offseason there isn’t a quarterback that deserves to be drafted in the top ten, although it’s likely we see a quarterback or two slip into the back end of the top ten as that seems to happen every year (Ryan Tannehill). With the draft drawing closer and most Lions fans wanting to see the Lions address the secondary, I think most of us are curious to see which secondary players are options for the Lions in the first round. To this point, it’s looking like there is only one that warrants a top 10 pick and that’s Dee Milliner, cornerback from Alabama, and many think that drafting Milliner at five would be a reach. That may be but I believe there will be more than one secondary player drafted in the top ten in the 2013 draft, in fact, I believe there could be three.

Feb 1, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Christian Barrett poses in front of a mock NFL draft set during Play 60 Kids Day at the NFL Experience at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

To get a good idea of what might take place in this year’s draft we need to take a look at a few aspects of the 2012 draft and compare them to the 2013 draft.

Taking a look at how the 2012 draft played out for secondary players, Morris Claiborne, cornerback out out LSU, was off the board at six to the Dallas Cowboys, Mark Barron, safety from Alabama, was drafted the very next spot at seven by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Stephon Gilmore, cornerback from South Carolina found a home with the Buffalo Bills as the tenth overall pick bringing the total to three secondary players in the top 10.

Next we’ll take a look at the defensive line players. There were eight defensive lineman taken in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft. Looking at NFL.com’s mock drafts the three draft guru’s have 8-11 defensive lineman going in the first round. If we take a look at most of the mock drafts last season, not one had Mark Barron going in the top 10.

Next up are the quarterback prospects. In the 2012 draft we saw Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, and Ryan Tannehill go in the top ten, with Brandon Weedon going to the Browns at 22 overall, bringing the total to four. The experts at NFL.com currently have 1-3 quarterbacks being taken in the first round of this year’s draft. Finally, we’ll take a look at wide receivers, tight ends, and offensive lineman selected in the 2012 class compared to the projected first round picks in the 2013 class. The 2012 class saw 12 total players selected at wide receiver, tight end, and offensive line, while the 2013 draft class has 8-11 projected to go in the first round.

To some it all up, there are a lot of similarities when you compare the 2012 draft to the 2013, but the lack of talent in this year’s quarterback class will likely result in teams drafting 1-10 looking at the defensive side of the ball, especially with most wide receivers, tight ends, and offensive linemen being projected in the back end of the first round.

There were three secondary players selected in the top ten last year, and this year’s crop of prospects doesn’t feature a top quarterback. With five teams potentially needing help in the secondary (Eagles, Lions, Browns, Jets, and Titans) and the first round of the 2013 draft filled with pass rushing talent, how many secondary players could we see go in the top ten in this year’s draft? There are four big names that seem to be locks in the top ten at this point, Jarvis Jones, Damontre Moore, Bjoern Werner, and Luke Joeckel. Let’s not forget that there will undoubtedly be one quarterback that creeps up the boards into the top ten. That leaves five spots up for grabs in the top ten that could be filled by other positions, including those that play in the secondary.

I believe we will see a repeat of the 2012 draft which saw two cornerbacks and a safety taken in the top ten. Let’s not forget that the 2012 draft didn’t feature any mock drafts with Mark Barron or Stephon Gilmore going in the top ten at this point in the offseason. With a good showing at the combine, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw Dee Milliner, Xavier Rhodes, and Kenny Vaccaro ending up top ten selections come April. Each prospect has similar size and skill set as last year’s top three secondary players taken off the boards and there is definitely a need for playmakers in the secondary in the top ten.

Oct 15, 2011; Lawrence, KS, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Ryan Broyles (85) scores a touchdown on a 43-yard pass play against the Kansas Jayhawks during the fourth quarter at Memorial Stadium. Oklahoma defeated Kansas 47-17. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-US PRESSWIRE

So, I’m listening to one of my brothers screaming in my ear on the phone about how the Lions royally screwed up in drafting Ryan Broyles in the second round of last week’s draft. He was beside himself on how the Lions could do something so stupid as to draft a “luxury” pick when there were so many players available at other positions that could have helped us right away. His reaction, and the others I read about from fans and heard on sports talk radio, made it sound like the Lions set themselves back five years with that pick.

It’s the most controversial pick that the lions have made since they drafted Brandon Pettigrew in the 1st round of the 2009 draft. The fact that both players catch passes from Matthew Stafford is the only similarity between the situations. When Pettigrew was drafted, an awful lot of the Lion faithful had abandoned the Leos after they became the first team in NFL history to go 0-16. The fact is, most didn’t give a rat’s ass who the Lions picked. It was the Lions, after all. The ones that did care, all 43 of us, couldn’t understand taking a tight end so early in the draft when we needed practically everything on the team replaced.

That was the first insight as to how Martin Mayhew was going to build this team. Surround the franchise with the best weapons possible. What good is having a gunslinger if has to walk around with one bullet? Granted, that was some bullet he had in Calvin Johnson, but a defense can stop any one player if they choose to. Greg Cosell is the producer of NFL films, he watches more NFL film than anyone on Earth. He had this reaction to the drafting of Ryan Broyles:

When you widen the lens, the bigger picture comes into focus. This team is built around arguably the best young passer in the NFL, Matthew Stafford. With that as the overriding principle, the offensive side of the ball can never be allowed to suffer due to neglect. If that happened, the Lions could not compete, no matter how much they fortify the defense. It’s a very similar philosophy to what Bill Polian employed with the Colts once he drafted Peyton Manning. You always make sure the offense has high-level players, especially at the receiver position. You take Broyles in the second round not only because is he a very good player, but also because he becomes another complementary piece that helps Stafford — and by extension the entire team — remain a playoff and Super Bowl contender. It’s the longer view, and the correct one.

This isn’t some hyped up overachiever who the Lions selected – he set an NCAA record with 349 receptions. “Most productive ever” should translate very well at the next level. He’s a monster in the slot position and will play quite a bit as a rookie. The Lions used the three-, four-, and five-reciver sets on 74.8% of the offensive snaps last season and there were only 10 attempts to receiver’s not named Megatron, Titus or Nate. Considering that Burlson is getting up there in age, this doesn’t look like a “luxury” pick to me.

The uproar over the Broyles pick tells me that the reason that so many people got upset is that they care about the Lions again. They lost it when they perceived the Lions to be taking a step backward. Come on now, you can finally admit it. You care about the Lions again.

Oct 15, 2011; Lawrence, KS, USA; Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Ryan Broyles (85) pulls in a pass for a first down under pressure from Kansas Jayhawks defensive back Tyler Patmon (33) during the first quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-US PRESSWIRE

I’ve never graded a draft before, and I don’t want to start this year for the simple reason I love them all. I’ve finally come around on the Ryan Broyles pick in the second round. It wasn’t the actual pick that bothered me, it was WHO was still on the board at that point that had me hurling obscenities into space. Peter Konz, who went the very next pick, or Lavonte David, who went a few picks after that, would have been excellent additions to the Lions. In Mayhew we trust.

The Broyles pick smells a lot like the Brandon Pettigrew pick in 2009. How’d that turn out? I was dead wrong on that one, and many more than I care to admit, and I’m probably dead wrong here also. Martin Mayhew and Coach Jim Schwartz have earned the benefit of a doubt by their excellent draft record since they took the reins of the Detroit Lions in 2009.

The more I thought about the Broyles pick the more I liked it. With a QB like Matthew Stafford around, you want to have a full complement of weapons. Nate Burlson is getting up there in age and that’s what the smart teams do, they have the replacement waiting in the wings. Plus, the Lions are only a twisted knee away from it being a position of need.

I wasn’t too crazy about the first pick either. It took me a day to warm up to taking Riley Rieff, (sounds like something from a Jimmy Buffet song), in the first round. I just had a bad impression of him from the combine. History lesson here for the future, don’t judge football players on how they look in shorts. He just looked slow to me, but I felt immensely better the next day when I read that he led the police on a 20 minute foot chase trough. A guy that big that can elude the police for 20 minutes is plenty fast enough. Fortunately, the incident was just an example of youthful indiscretion and he’s been a model citizen since.. Looks like he’ll be the next left tackle for the Detroit Lions after Jeff Backus moves on. I hope to see him manning the right side in his rookie year.

The biggest thing I took out of the draft was the run of corners and linebackers in the last six picks. It took Martin Mayhew a while, but he finally committed his board to the defensive side of the ball. I like the Chris Greenwood pick, local kid at that, and the Ronnell Lewis pick the best. You have to love a Player with the nickname “The Hammer”, which Lewis got from his head coach Bob Stoops. The other Oklahoma linebacker, Travis Lewis, is another guy who brings the wood. I always felt that the Lions linebackers are a bunch of nice guys. I hate nice guys in football (on the field, at least). I’d love to see “The Hammer” bring a mean streak to the Lions.

Ever since Mayhew took over after Matt Millen’s firing, having 7th round draft picks that contribute has become the norm around here. That’s what is so exciting about the Lions draftees. Any one of them could become a starter. Even if they don’t, I like their philosophy of drafting players who excelled on special teams. If you aren’t a starter, then you’d better be demon on special teams to keep getting a paycheck in this league. Nice to be part of team that knows what it’s doing for once.