Detroit & the 2009 NFL Draft

The NFL draft is a month away and the Detroit Lions are on the clock. The Lions are once again rebuilding, a seemingly constant state, but this time the architect is different. Detroit finally woke up and dismissed their GM, Matt Millen, who, was clearly not the man for the job. So, maybe the Lions can finally start to put the right pieces together and build a competitive team.

The Lions have been busy making changes during the off-season. Gone are quarterbacks, Dan Orlovsky and Jon Kitna. Daunte Culpepper, the former 1st round pick, is the tentative starter. Time will tell if he can return to his former pro-bowl form. The other quarterbacks on the roster, the two Drews Stanton and Henson, have limited experience. With the top pick in this years draft, the Lions are looking at Matt Stafford. The former University of Georgia QB has all the tools to be a good NFL quarterback, including a rocket arm, but learning in Detroit could stunt anyone's growth.

Counting on Culpepper to mentor a young QB is asking a lot, he's never been a guy who reaches out to help a younger player. Another glaring need, is offensive line and this years draft has some good ones, including Jason Smith from Baylor and Eugene Monroe from Virginia. (yahoo.com/nfl/news/draft) The Lions also have another pick in the 1st round, pick #20 thanks to a steal of a trade with the Dallas Cowboys for Roy Williams.

The Lions may choose to pass on Stafford and select Jason Smith deciding to rebuild from the inside out. Detroit can conclude the quarterbacks coming out next year will be better then Stafford. Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow will all be in next years draft. So, maybe the Lions build a strong foundation before selecting the center piece for their team.

Whatever they decide to do with the first pick, this is an important draft for the Lions. With many holes to fill on both sides of the ball, they need to get right if they want to get back to respectability. The new regime seems ready to fix this broken team and has made some good free agent moves. Signing Bryant Johnson gives them help at the wide out position. Johnson is a good veteran receiver that should help Calvin Johnson. Right from the start, Calvin Johnson showed Lions fans just how good he could be, his speed and jumping ability are amazing. The problem with Johnson has been his inability to stay healthy. Let's hope that changes this year.

The good news for the Lions and their fans, is it can't get any worse. You can't loose more then 16 regular season games in a year, which is what Detroit managed to do in 2008. The Dolphins rebounded from 1-15 and I don't expect Detroit to loose every game this year. Time will tell how big the bounce back will be.

With the 1st pick in the 2009 draft, the Detroit Lions select their future and the rebuilding starts again.