NYLion

That's partially why I'm skeptical of the Ivey fit with Cade, because Casey doesn't know his head from his ass in terms of how to put his players in a position to succeed. He's the biggest deterrent to future Pistons success, Weaver needs to put loyalty and decide what's best for the team and go coach shopping this offseason.

Yeah but my only problem is that this development could be stunted because he won't be running the team next season with Cade back (presumably). He's being deployed as the floor general now but will likely be more off ball with Cade back so I'm unsure of the fit long term.

Donald is an extreme exception of a guy that size succeeding on the interior and that's mainly because of his freakish strength that Kancey doesn't have which is partially why he struggles against the run. Kancey also has arms that are 2 inches shorter. I'd look at him at 18 for sure but I think 6 is too rich.

He got T-Rex arms though

Based on what we know about Holmes and Campbell, the Lions won't dip heavily into free agency/trade market and will continue to build primarily through the draft. The one splurge I can see is possibly Wagner if he's willing to come here to bring in a high quality vet that seems like a culture fit but other than that, I don't see them in any of the top free agents or Ramsey.

I'd say that corner is the most likely pick at 6 unless Anderson falls (who knows with Carter). It's a draft where there's a clear top 2 (non-QBs) then a steep drop off to a whole bunch of prospects that are tightly clustered. Maybe the combine will clear some of this up but, as of right now, I can't see any non-QB prospect that stands out after Carter and Anderson so if all else is equal go for need which is CB in this case.

Yeah but they still played, Smith for 1 year and Favre and Rodgers for multiple years. I also don't expect Goff to be a diva like Favre or Rodgers and make a stink about it. Based on what I know about Goff and this management team/coaching staff, it's that if they draft a QB it would be after they have a sit down with Goff and explain why they're going that route so I don't see this being a toxic situation if that happens. The fact of the matter is that while Goff had a good season (very good), he's not an elite QB so the short of it is that everybody outside of the very elite QBs are replaceable especially when this QB is due for a significant raise in 2 years which could be a cap crippler if he continues to play well within this offense. Is Goff, a lets say top 10 but not top 5 QB worth $50m+/yr? Even guys like Daniel Jones are going to cash in because QBs get paid but how many of these guys are actually worth that? Not an easy decision either way but I can understand the allure of taking a high upside, cheap for the next 5 years, QB if they have reservations about opening up the vault for a good not great QB. Not the route I'd go but I think there's some merit to it from a financial aspect.

If Goff is a professional, he'll deal with it. Favre, who was a Hall of Famer, played out the string with the Packers after drafting Rodgers, same with Rodgers after Love was drafted and Smith when Mahomes was drafted before he was dealt a year later. Goff had a good year but his contract is also up in 2 years and he might command more than he's worth so he should recognize that this is a business decision if they drafted a QB knowing how valuable the 5 year rookie contract is. It's not like the rookie will replace him right away, he'll get 1 year minimum and more like 2 to either build his value for a trade or become the long term solution here. If he demanded a trade because they drafted a QB because he can't handle the heat, that would reflect poorly on him tbh. Personally, I wouldn't draft a QB high in this draft but if the Lions did I wouldn't expect Goff to pout and demand out.

"No Turds Allowed". I'm 99% sure that Carter is now off the Lions board.

Of course he's not going to duplicate what he did last season, he was pacing to be the all time sack leader, but I just think he should be accounted for when talking about key D-Line players for the Lions going into next season. You didn't even give him a mention in your post. Also, while I can understand being skeptical of him, he showed a wide array of pass rush moves that makes me think that he's not a fluke. It shouldn't deter the Lions from taking Anderson if he drops to 6 because BPA but Houston seems to be the real deal.

Will Anderson (pun intended) even be a better pass rusher than Houston? He obviously has the pedigree and Houston could be a fluke for all we know but it's hard to ignore that Houston had a historically good rookie season. Not saying that they shouldn't take Anderson if he's there, just more pointing out the severe lack of Houston mention in your post.

The Pistons aren't catching Charlotte. They might not even win 5 games the rest of the season. They're locked into 3rd because the Spurs and Rockets are historically bad.

1 playoff win in 65 years (Edit: 66 now). There will never, ever, be another futility record like this again in sports unless a team moves from its location then moves back like 50 years later. There are some 70+ year old Lions fans that have only witnessed one playoff victory. It's beyond comprehension really. Point being, winning one playoff game will feel like winning a Superbowl in this market. Lets get there first then dream bigger.

That's why I'd rather re-sign Chark and keep the 1st, he's that type of guy you mentioned. Chark will cost more next season but Higgins is likely to cost a good deal more the season after and probably 3 after that. The Lions can have an elite unit with Chark and still have #18 to add another starting player. It's just not worth it for a luxury IMO.

Jamo is going to get the reps and at a much cheaper rate. St. Brown and Jamo are their core receivers yet Higgins will be paid as a #1, not to mention giving up the draft capital to acquire him. I'd rather they just re-sign Chark (at a lesser rate than Higgins will get almost certainly) who started to develop synergy with their QB and keep the 1st.

Yeah but the Lions have some big extensions coming up with St. Brown and Sewell and Decker's deal is up in 2 years so they'll need to fill that role as well. Jackson's new deal will be on the books soon as well. It would be fine for next season because his contract is cheap but would create big problems after that when his extension kicks in. I just think if they're going to splurge, it should be at a position of greater need. I don't have a problem with Higgins the player, he'd be a good fit anywhere, but I just don't think it's the right move at the right time.

Not interested. The Lions core receivers are Amon Ra and Jamo and the former needs to get paid in 2 years. Not only are you giving up the draft capital but you're also paying Higgins big money long term which could well prohibit the Lions from filling other more pressing needs and re-signing some key guys. I'd rather just re-sign Chark or use a draft pick on a receiver. I would have been more fine with this last year (when the Deebo rumors came out) but the Lions are in a different place now.

So... Wagner is an interesting option. He's still a top player but you worry at his age that he can fall off any moment and he'd probably be fairly pricey for a player his age but I think he'd be a real boon for this defense. Regardless, he's likely signing with a true contender but it's fun to talk about something like this being even a remote possibility which would have been a complete fantasy a year ago. The Lions have come a long way in a year.

Holmes is much more likely to trade up than trade down based on his history. He was heavily rumored to wanting to trade up for Sewell (I don't think it was Chase based on rumors), we know based on the behind the scenes stuff that he wanted to trade up for Levi, he did trade up for Barnes and traded up for Jamo. Holmes just seems like one of those GMs that prefers quality over quantity so with 5 picks in the top 81, I'd bet that he heavily pursues a trade up probably not from 6 but I could see him packing the two 2nds to move into the 1st round to take "his guy". I wouldn't mind that tbh especially if it's a high upside player even if it's not a position of big need.

I'm highly disinterested in another Ben Simmons (Amen) so I wouldn't even consider Amen although the Pistons could use a defensive stopper. Nick Smith doesn't stand out to me at all. He just looks like an inefficient chucker. I could see the Anthony Black intrigue because of the archetype and defensive versatility but I have a hard time taking a guy who will likely never be a lead scorer, in a league where scoring is king, in the top 5. I like Walker but he's mostly projection at this point, same with Whitmore. Guys that look the part and flash some high end skills but that are largely role players at the college level. Granted, they are younger. I don't know, I see Miller as having the highest floor of all these guys and a pretty high ceiling as well if his in between game continues to progress. At the very least, you're getting a 6'9" elite 3 point shooter that has the length to defend multiple positions. Those guys don't exactly grow on trees. I think he's Jabari Smith with more offensive potential.

So if you go by only numbers, who do you take ahead of him? Walker? No... Whitmore? No... the Thompson twins who play against far inferior competition?... No, George? No Who do you have in mind that you'd take ahead of him? I'm curious Also, those games against Houston and North Carolina were much earlier in the year. He's improved since then with his 2 point efficiency in particular. He also had a great game against Gonzaga and a good game against Memphis so there's been some ups and downs against tournament teams. He has loaded up against some lesser competition in SEC play though so we'll see how he does down the stretch. The age thing is overblown. He's 20 but he doesn't have much college experience.

More like 3-5 if indeed GMs aren't phased by this news. I just think some GMs might be concerned with the company he keeps, that he could put himself in this position again. To me, he's clearly the 3rd best prospect in this draft ignoring any perceived red flags.

He'll get drafted but I don't see how his draft stock doesn't take a hit. He was still involved one way or another and I'm sure that will scare some GMs from investing a high pick in him. Weaver is big on character guys so I bet he'll be off the Pistons board.

My question is, how the hell did this get swept under the rug for so long? It's not like Miller is a low profile athlete. I think Alabama/Nate Oats are in for a serious hurting as more details emerge. As far as Miller is concerned, bye bye draft stock. From a Pistons (much less important) perspective, this sucks because I saw him as a clear #3 for them so this now narrows the room for error when they inevitably drop in the lottery. I like Jarace Walker and Whitmore shows some flashes but it's slim pickings beyond the top 2 with Miller gone. The Thompson twins look like athletes with not much else to offer so no thanks on either of them.

Hock is a perfect example of why it's a bad idea to take a TE in the 1st round and he was dealt, not because he wasn't a solid player, but because he's not good enough to warrant a 2nd contract for this particular team and Holmes smartly traded him for some value rather than overpay him for a role that wouldn't be worth what he's making. Hock is actually an above average TE and was still a failed pick. As I said before, the Lions had 3 TE's that were much cheaper, provided better blocking and scored many more TDs (which is where the real mismatches are), all three of which were undrafted and drafted in the 5th round. Yeah they didn't have as many receptions between the 20s but they provided more of a balance for MUCH less money, plus the Lions got improved beans out of it. I'm not against taking a TE somewhere in the draft but very little interest in taking one in the first 3 rounds. There's just so many more avenues where draft capital is better spent (pretty much every other position really).