To me, the Lions as a team are really just like their quarterback; average and overrated. Matthew Stafford is about a league-average quarterback, and he makes a ton of mistakes because he forces throws and trusts in his ability too much. That's not to say he is a bad player, but he gets bailed out a ton by Calvin Johnson. Megatron is so talented that he is basically carrying an offense with help from Stafford. The rest of the skill position players aren't that good, although Brandon Pettigrew and Kevin Smith are about average for their positions. Nate Burleson doesn't scare anybody, but he is about an average receiver as well.

The biggest problem on offense for the Lions is their offensive line. Their line doesn't stink, but it is too inconsistent and gets manhandled when facing a dominant player. The reason being is that they don't have a top 15 player at any position on the line and can't take on the elite players on the other side of the ball and win those respective one-on-one matchups. Their blocking is subpar for the most part, and they really don't get it done as a run blocking unit. However, they are actually an average bunch in pass protection.

The defensive line is amazing and is about seven-deep. I think that's all I need to say about that unit. Stephen Tulloch and Justin Durant have provided major upgrades at linebacker; a position of immense weakness last season. Tulloch and Durant are two of the best linebackers in the league against the run, but Durant is a classic two-down linebacker who is absolutely awful in pass coverage. Tulloch was almost as bad in coverage in 2010, but he has made an unprecedented 180 in coverage this season.

The biggest area of weakness on this roster lies within arguably the most important unit for a team; the secondary. Aside from the much-improved Chris Houston, nobody else in the secondary can cover. Guys like Eric Wright and Chris Harris are excellent in run-support, but only Houston can legitimately claim to be above-average in coverage. While he isn't the greatest corner in the world and was poor last year, he can now hold is own in coverage and is really just a good No. 2 corner. The Lions need some help in the secondary.

Really, the Lions are an average team who are about 7-9 or 8-8 talent wise. They have a decent passing offense, a subpar running game, a great pass rush, solid run defense, but poor coverage.

I was looking at some of the receiving statistics at Advanced NFL Stats, and there are a couple of players who have stat-lines that caught my eye for reasons still unclear. Steve Smith goes deep on 41.8% of his passes and has been thrown at 91 times, yet he has a 61.5% catch rate and averages 10.9 yards per target. Only one other player with at least 80 targets has a Deep% of over 40, and that's Chargers receiver Vincent Jackson (who is considerably taller). V-Jax (46.3 Deep%) averages 10.0 yards per target, but he only catches 52.5% of the balls thrown his way. Greg Jennings catches an astounding 70.7% of the passes thrown his way, averages 10.2 yards per target (82 targets), and has gone deep on 32.9% of his passes.

Fine then, call me a hater

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Joe Soriano - Category: NFL, Chargers, Vincent Jackson, Steve Smith, Greg Jennings, Lions, Brandon Pettigrew, Calvin Johnson, Chris Houston, Eric Wright, Justin Durant, Kevin Smith, Matthew Stafford, Nate Burleson, Stephen Tulloch, Chris Harris

Email this Post to a Friend

2011 NFL Draft Team Grades Part 2

May 3rd 2011 14:29

Detroit Lions B minus- Nick Fairley slipped, and the Lions knew that his value at the 13th pick was too good to pass up on. While he doesn't fill a need- the Lions are already beastly at D-Tackle with Suh, Corey Williams, and Sammie Lee Hill- Fairley was far too talented to not pick. Titus Young will definitely help out Matthew Stafford because Detroit's third receiver last year- Bryant Johnson- was horrendous. Mikel LeShoure will spell the end of Kevin Smith in Detroit.

Green Bay Packers B minus- Derek Sherrod was needed to bulk up the tackles, and Randall Cobb was a nice selection at the end of the second round. He's a playmaking receiver that will most likely replace James Jones. Cobb will probably handle returns, and he will also make an impact in the passing game because the Packers love their four receiver sets.To me, Davon House was the best pick the Packers made. Although they are already stocked at corner, House was a steal as a compensatory pick in the fourth round. House fits what Dom Capers does defensively, and he is another one of those really good press corners. D.J. Williams was a solid 5th round choice at tight end.

Houston Texans B I thought the Texans did a good job in the first round by making the safe choice and getting J.J. Watt. His pass rushing abilities will alleviate the pressure put on the corners to perform their pass coverage duties. Brooks Read is a huge upgrade over the Texans' other outside linebackers, and he will also make an early impact as a pass rusher. Brandon Harris was a solid pick, and he should be better than Kareem Jackson.

Indianapolis Colts A minus- I thought the Colts did a great job in this draft. Anthony Castonzo and Benjamin Ijalana were huge upgrades on the O-Line, and Delonte Carter brings another body into the running game. Drake Nevis is a great one-gap DT that fits the Colts' scheme perfectly. Getting him in the third round was a steal. Bill Polian is such a beast.

Jacksonville Jaguars D plus- I really didn't like this draft for the Jags. While Blaine Gabbert is good, and William Rackley is solid; there was nothing else I liked in this draft for them.

Kansas City Chiefs A I thought Scott Pioli and the Chiefs turned in another really good draft. Jonathan Baldwin was a huge risk, but he'll finally give them a big-play receiver. Justin Houston will give the Chiefs a nice pass rusher next to Tamba Hali. Rodney Hudson gives the Chiefs O-Line depth and will be a solid starter once Casey Wiegmann retires. Wiegmann will also mentor Hudson. Allen Bailey gives the Chiefs depth, and he fits their system well. Jalil Brown will give the Chiefs a lot of depth at corner, and Ricky Stanzi will develop into a good backup.

Miami Dolphins F plus- Mike Pouncey will come in and be a solid starter, and Edmond Gates is a sleeper receiver. However, there was nothing else that I even remotely liked about the Dolphins' draft.

Minnesota Vikings A If you think a QB can be that guy for your team, then take him the first chance you get to. Bill Musgrave runs a strict West Coast Offense filled with PA's and bootlegs. Ponder will succeed there, and he's the best WCO QB prospect we've seen in the last few years. Kyle Rudolph gives the Vikings another tight end option. Christian Ballard was a steal in the fourth round, and he can play end or tackle although his true position is tackle. 6th rounder Brandon Fusco is one of my sleepers. The center out of Slippery Rock gives the Vikes another O-Lineman on a terrible line, and I think he has a chance to start and play well at the end of the year.

Gone From GB?

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

Email this Post to a Friend

3/5 NFL News: Discussions and Mike McCarthy Extended

March 5th 2011 15:30

Well, we all know that the discussions for a new CBA have been extended for seven days. Free agency is still frozen and teams cannot re-sign their own players. They can only talk to the agents of their own players, but no deals can be done. However, at least both sides are willing to talk and want to come to an agreement. The extension of talks actually happened because the owners were scared and didn't want the Players' Association to decertify, so they caved into the demands of at least extending talks.

Mike McCarthy was given an extended deal, which comes as no surprise after he led his team to Super Bowl victory in the midst of injuries to several key players. McCarthy did a nice job this year, and he was a better coach in 2010 than Bill Belichick. The AP can say whatever they want. Zach Miller and Michael Bush were tendered by Oakland. Miller is a mainstay for the Raiders, and he is pretty much their entire passing game. Although it wouldn't be big news if Reggae Bush wasn't retained, he still is important if Darren McFadden- who has an injury history- was to be injured. Bush is a capable backup.

Kevin Smith and Julian Peterson are two poor players that don't give the Lions much these days, and it's no surprise that they were not re-signed. Smith had a decent rookie year, but he has been terrible of late. Julian Peterson was one of the best pass rushing outside linebackers in his prime. Nowadays, he is just some old JAG.

Plaxico Burress' time in prison was decreased due to good behavior, and he will be released in early June. Burress was actually a hard worker, but the media just never cared to look at him in that way. He made one very stupid decision, and he has paid for it. I would take a chance on him because another Michael Vick like redemption story could blossom.

As expected, teams wanted AJ Hawk right after he was released by the Packers; but they didn't know that he was going to be re-signed again. Hawk and the Packers were never going to part ways. Hawk loves the team, and he was a huge leader for them last year. Hawk would have made 10 million dollars extra had he not been released, but Hawk doesn't care about the money. It has to do with him helping the team win another one. Unlike quite a few players out there, Hawk isn't narrow-minded. He cares about his organization. The only reason why the Pack released him was to save cash. Hawk just wants to play, money or not.

Anyway, there are rumblings that Nick Barnett is now expendable. The top run-stuffing interior linebacker missed a huge chunk of the season with a wrist injury last year. Barnett could get traded because of the emergence- and extension- of fellow ILB Desmond Bishop. Barnett could also be released if nobody wants to trade for him. I really think a team like the Lions should go hard after Barnett. That would be a huge addition for a team with their horrible core of LBs.