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Lions Select Matt Stafford: New Front Office, Same Problems
Published: April 25, 2009
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It’s now official, with the first overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions select quarterback Matthew Stafford from the University of Georgia.
The Lions will shell out the largest contract ever to a draft pick, with a six-year, $41.7 million deal, which could end up being worth as much as $78 million if he meets all of the team’s goals.
This contract is now the largest to any draft pick ever, exceeding the five-year, $57.5 million contract for Jake Long by the Dolphins and the six-year, $72 million contract of Matt Ryan by the Falcons.
All this sounds significant, but in the end, it is just another chapter in the book that is the Detroit Lions’ futility.
The Lions have made the move that will give them the most publicity, but it again, is the wrong choice for the team.
Stafford will be joining a team that has the offensive line skill of the average high school team. Instead of making the move that was best for the team, they made the popular move, and it will cost them more than $78 million.
This team has significant holes on it, and one of the more glaring ones is the quarterback position, but this year’s quarterback class is not exactly the draft class of 1983.
The major choices were all juniors at their respective colleges, and do not necessarily have the experience needed to run a NFL offense.
Stafford has a great arm, but while a junior at Georgia he didn’t necessarily have a stellar season worth the first overall pick.
The other major quarterback option is USC junior Mark Sanchez, whose stock continues to rise because of his experience at USC, his attention to detail and his ability to successfully run through his checkdowns.
However, the quarterback position is not where the Lions needed to spend their first pick. That position belonged to the offensive line and Jason Smith.
Smith, from Baylor, would have been an excellent and well-informed pick for the Lions. But then again, thinking the Lions are capable of a well-informed pick is like the oxymoron of “military intelligence.”
With the addition of Smith, the Lions O-line would have been solidified and would have provided the Lions current quarterbacks with the protection they would need to excel.
Following the drafting of Smith, the Lions should have next looked to the linebacker position. Wake Forest’s Aaron Curry was the best available, but he won’t fall to the Lions at number twenty.
Curry was the popular choice by people in Detroit. In fact, while the Lions were holding the press conference to reveal their new logo, there was a large crowd of fans outside of Ford Field chanting for the team to draft Curry with their first pick.
With the addition of Curry, the Lions would have had the best linebackers in the league. The corps currently includes Ernie Simms and Julian Peterson; the addition of Curry would have taken it to an entirely new level.
Curry has been evaluated as being able to step into a defense and perform to his abilities in his first season. This quick learning curve would have come in handy for the linebackers as they could easily bring Curry up to their levels.
Instead, the Lions could look to bring in another linebacker at number 20. Mel Kiper’s Big Board shows the Lions’ options at that point could come down to a choice between two excellent backers. USC’s Rey Maualuga and Ohio State’s James Laurinaitis.
Both Maualuga and Laurinaitis are exceptional linebackers, but Kiper has Maualuga going to the Lions at number 20. This may be a good decision, but Laurinaitis may be an even better one.
Laurinaitis has had intense experience at Ohio State, not discounting the experience Maualuga gained at USC, but the Big 10 is a different beast than the Pac-10.
The Big 10 consistently rolls out the most successful NFL linebackers, more than any other conference in Division I college football.
The Lions have made their bed in selecting Stafford, all that is left now is for the next fan walkout on a game or a new website popping up asking Lions owner William Clay Ford Sr. to fire Mayhew.
But perhaps, the typical Lions fan cynicism is unwarranted. Maybe this front office knows a bit more of what they are doing. But in the pits of their stomachs, Lions fans are seriously wondering if Stafford is the right man for the job.
