Looking back at the Detroit Lions top moments of 2020

Oct 27th: Traded for Everson Griffen

I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Lions’ fan base more unified on a player acquisition when the team traded for defensive end Everson Griffen. It scares me to think about how vocal they were in hopes of bringing him to the Motor City.

It started in free agency. I’ll admit, at the time, it didn’t make much sense. Former head coach Matt Patricia was committed to his 3-3-5 defense, which only requires one traditional defensive end. Detroit already had defensive ends Trey Flowers and Romeo Okwara rotating in that role.

All of a sudden, Okwara started to breakout. Forcing an eventual move to start using a 4-3 defense more often, with both Flowers and Okwara on the field at the same time.

I’m assuming former general manager Bob Quinn thought it would be a good idea to have Griffen come in for depth and/or rotation.

In hindsight, owner Sheila Ford dropped the ball here. It might have been better if she cut ties before the deadline rather than after. Perhaps the Lions could have shedded some players who aren’t likely to return next season.