Some were puzzled when the Lions traded S Gerald Alexander to Jacksonville for WR Dennis Northcutt. Hadn't the Lions already addressed their WR depth issues? Didn't they have kick-returner covered with the drafting of Derrick Williams?
MLive.com's Tom Kowalski thinks something else is afoot: Perhaps another offseason WR signee is falling out of favor -- Ronald Curry.
Northcutt should have an impact on Curry because now both players are vying for the slot receiver position.
Northcutt has been productive throughout his nine-year career and also gives the Lions a presence at punt returner. Curry, who was signed as an unrestricted free agent, hasn't shown much so far in the off-season workouts and there are concerns that his speed has diminished.
While Alexander was expendable, it's unlikely the Lions would've picked up Northcutt if they had been happy so far with Curry.
Discuss in The Den!
Northcutt trade could be ominous for Ronald Curry
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Gerald Alexander Was Really Good! For Real!
Friday, July 10, 2009
Color me skeptical.
We hear that the Lions’ willingness to part with Alexander was less an indictment of his talent and more a function of their young depth at the positionI kind of find it hard to believe that Detroit would part with a young player with that kind of talent in order to acquire a kick returner that is probably a bit too expensive, a bit too over the hill, is no lock to make the roster and is certainly in no way a long-term solution.
Assuming he shows no ill effects from his injury, Alexander should supplant veteran acquisition Marlon McCree as the first safety to come off the bench,This is probably true, however if he was showing no ill effects from his injury Alexander probably would never have been traded in the first place. Alexander may make Jacksonville's roster, he may even play a bit, but in no way would Detroit have been willing to give up Alexander so cheaply if he wasn't even a strong contender for dime back. I'm pretty sure Killer wrote that Alexander was poised to be cut. Discuss it Here in The Den
Lion Youth Movement? Not So Much.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Last year the Lions suffered a double-whammy of not only being the worst team in the league but also one of the five oldest overall. While Detroit did shed a number of the older veterans that were on the opening day '08 roster, they were in large part replaced by equally old veterans. Daunte Culpepper, Grady Jackson, Bryant Johnson, Larry Foote, Julian Peterson, Anthony Henry, and Philip Buchanon are all newcomers expected to start and as a group average 31 years old.
On opening day 2008 Detroit's starters averaged 27.9 years, the 8th oldest starting corps in the league, with eight starters at 30 years or older. Projecting out the 2009 opening day starters is a little tricky, but reasonable guesses can be made.B Johnson 28 Pettigrew 24 Backus 32 Cook 30 Raiola 31 Peterman 27 Cherilus 25 C Johnson 24 Culpepper 32 Felton 23 K Smith 22 Avril 23 Darby 33 Jackson 36 White 29 Sims 24 Foote 29 Peterson 31 Buchanon 29 Bullocks 26 Delmas 22 Henry 32The ages are as of 9/30/09. I'm sure some of The Den faithful might argue with Darby or possibly Cook, but it is equally likely a veteran player like Devries starts in place of Avril or that Kevin Carter supplants Darby so overall the average wouldn't be affected much either way.
The average age of the projected offensive starters right now is 27.1 years. Defensive starters 28.5 years for a composite 27.8 overall average, an overall decline in average age of 0.1 years. With this lineup Detroit would go from eight starters aged 30+ to seven.
It also isn't clear that the bench will be much younger than last year. Younger players such as Dan Orlovsky, Gerald Alexander, Shaun Cody, and Anthony Cannon were allowed to leave while older backups such as Eric Hicks (33), Terrelle Smith (31), Cody Spencer (28), Marquand Manuel (30), Ephraim Salaam (33), Jon Jansen (33), Ronald Curry (30), and Dennis Northcutt (31) acquired to replace them. While it is unlikely that all of these veterans make the team, it seems clear that Mayhew and Schwartz intend to rely heavily on greying veterans to bridge the gap to their rebuilding plan. It is very possible that this year's version of the Lions is even older than the '08 flavor that rapidly broke down and lost effectiveness.
Ongoing discussion Here in The Den
Tom K.: Lions would have cut Alexander anyway; safety looking weak after Delmas
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
MLive's Tom Kowalski seems to think the Lions trade of S Gerald Alexander for WR/KR Dennis Northcutt was worthwhile, if only because Alexander probably wasn't going to make the Lions' roster anyway, and if he did, he wouldn't have seen a lot of playing time.
The Lions checked the tape on Alexander to see if there was any noticeable decline in play before his neck injury last year. They "didn't see much difference in his production," and "didn't feel that Alexander had enough playmaking ability to be a factor in the defense," Killer says.
As it stands now, Louis Delmas is the only solid starter at S, according to Killer. Kalvin Pearson has been taking number-one reps opposite Delmas, but is viewed as more of a backup. Like Alexander, another former second-round pick at S has something to prove, 2006 draftee Daniel Bullocks.
My take? I'm beginning to understand the drafting of Delmas more and more. With offseason roster changes smoke clearing, it looks like safety is one of the weaker spots left on the team.
If Pearson and Bullocks don't have major bounce-back years; if Delmas isn't all that's advertised; or if Marquand Manual and/or Stuart Schweigert don't show up and make plays, things could get ugly -- again.
What's your take? Discuss it in The Den!
Salary Cap Forum Updated - PREMIUM
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Transaction Log Updated through June 26th (late evening)
Follow Detroit's salary cap with expert George Ketchman here. (Requires premium membership to RoarReport.com)
Killer: Bullocks has a lot to prove
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
A fairly nasty fly has been found in Lions' fans' collective optimism ointment. It's been widely presumed that rookie safety Louis Delmas will occupy a starting spot next to returning young veteran Daniel Bullocks--but apparently that's far from settled. Oh, Delmas can be pencilled in, alright, but it's Bullocks's job that's in question. While most who watched the games intently last year remembered seeing flashes of "the old Bullocks" early on, apparently that didn't last all season. Killer goes on to insinuate that Bullock's bad angles and bad tackling were the cause of the long runs we saw reeled off against the Lions by Carolina, Tennesee, and other teams.
This is disheartening. Between this, and the question marks around Gerald Alexander, safety has gone from a position where the Lions had two talented young starters, to having one talented young starter and a pile of questionably-useful veterans. Indeed, after spending three secound-round draft picks at safety in four years, the Lions still might have a hole back there.
Discuss it here, in The Den!
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