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The Detroit Lions draft class was yet another polarizing one. Or perhaps it’s just the loudest members of the fan base are also the most negative ones. I’ll be the first to say that I do not think this was … Continue reading
After the complete and utter disappointment of the Michigan football season, I could not bring myself to write anything recapping the season or talking up spring ball. It just did not seem like there was much of a point/nothing could be added to what happened. The results spoke for themselves. Expectations were not too high until after the win streak started…and then everyone’s hopes/expectations got raised, mine included. At the last second, the clock struck midnight and Michigan turned out to be exactly who we thought they were.
Having had the proper amount of time to reflect on it, the Detroit Lions had a little bit of a similar arc/season. The only difference is that expectations were high at the start and then as the year progressed, they showed us their true colors and just how bad the roster actually was. Feel free to disagree, but having had the time to digest it and process the season, this team was actually not good and the fact they missed the playoffs should not have been a surprise. I had high hopes going into the year with the new coaching staff and figured a few tweaks would help the Lions take the next step, but the overhaul that is needed and the actual roster were much further behind than I initially anticipated.
I have to say, I do not have a good feel for how the Lions are going to do this year. Matt Patricia has to overhaul the entire defense and there’s been a lot of turnover on the roster. I’m not a big Jim Bob Cooter fan, but he’s back and still calling plays. Hopefully Patricia will take the reins off a bit…it was understandably vanilla in the preseason, but they must be more aggressive and less predictable than last year. There is one thing that I’m 100% confident about and that is if Matthew Stafford gets hurt and misses significant time, the Lions will not win a game without him.
After the disappointment that was last season, it is tough to say that I’ve been really looking forward to this Michigan football season. It’s not often that I can say that, but the Outback Bowl left a really sour taste in my mouth and I was bitterly disappointed in the team’s performance and the coaching staff. Fortunately, it’s a new year with new players and quite a few new coaches. Jim McElwain and Ed Warriner are joining the offensive side of the ball with Sherrone Moore and Al Washington is going to work on the defensive side of the ball. McElwain is going to work with the wide receivers, Warriner with the offensive line and Moore with the tight ends. Suffice it to say that they are re-working the offense and the departure of Tim Drevno should mean they are going in a new direction. The offensive line is supposedly working on simpler calls and schemes which are supposed to work this time around. The most important new person at Michigan is obviously Shea Patterson. He is the real deal…but the offensive line still needs to protect him and the coaches need to gameplan better and call better plays to put players in a position to succeed. Will that happen this year? I hope so, but it’s far from a guarantee. This should not be considered a dig at Jim Harbaugh or Don Brown…but Pep Hamilton. The coaches have said they’ve simplified things on offense quite often this offseason, but we have not seen it work in a game yet. Harbaugh has the final say on all of the play calls and he is supposedly taking more ownership of calling plays this year (I don’t think he ever gave it up) so hopefully he can work some magic.
This year I tried to avoid including teams that had previously traded away their first round pick or second round pick from the losers section. The Texans and Rams are very clearly happy with Deshaun Watson and Jared Goff and do not care that they are missing their early picks and I cannot blame them.
(You can see the 2018 NFL Draft Winners here)
It feels like I’ve said this before, but I think there were quite a few teams that had good drafts. This draft may not have had an abundance of elite players but I thought the depth of it at a lot of positions was great and that led to some teams having an easy job to do. As always, we will not know who the true “winners” and “losers” of this particular NFL Draft are for another 2-3 years, but these were the drafts that I liked the most right off the bat.
(You can check out the 2018 NFL Draft Losers here)
The NFL Draft has come and gone and now that I’m back from vacation, it’s time to crank out a few posts. Bob Quinn certainly did not disappoint in terms of entertainment when it came to the NFL Draft. He said that he wanted to get more draft picks and after moving up in the 2nd Round and spending a pick to do so, he traded a future pick to get back into the 4th round. I did not love trading up to draft Kerryon Johnson because I felt he was still going to be there at pick #51…they obviously felt otherwise and did not want to risk it. On paper it may seem tough to trade a future 3rd to get back into the 4th, but that’s the way the value sheet falls. I personally have no problem with it, I was happy when the Lions did it a few years ago to draft a defensive tackle…the problem was when they took Gabe Wright over Grady Jarrett. I like the Deshawn Hand pick and his versatility is going to be an asset. Not only that, the fact that they’re likely going to have 9 picks in the next Draft makes it more palatable. They’ll have a 1st, 2nd, 4th, 2 5th’s, 2 6th’s and 2 7th’s…plenty of ammunition to make something good happen.
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Well it has been quite some time since I last wrote. My life has been quite hectic the last seven months or so, but it’s been an enjoyable chaos. Obviously, I’ve had to forego some of my typical posts, like Combine recaps, Football season recaps and Michigan spring practice reviews. Though without a spring game, it’s a little bit tough to evaluate anything that’s been going on over there. At any rate, I’ve got this post for you, I’ll have a draft recap and the winners and losers and then it’ll be back to radio silence. The draft recap likely will not be for 2-3 weeks after the NFL Draft, but that’ll give you guys some time to re-visit things.
I would have had a whole post written up about the Matt Patricia hire, but there’s not really much to analyze…it’s a fantastic hire. I’m extremely encouraged and I think he’s going to do a great job. There will be some personnel changes and scheme changes, but it’s going to be a good season. Hopefully having a less conservative head coach will allow Jim Bob Cooter to let off the reigns and open up the play calling. I’m going to try to keep this as brief as possible while still giving you info, so let’s get after it.
With the Detroit Lions season right around the corner, it’s hard not to be excited about this season. Then you think about how many wins came at the last second last year, how brutal the defensive line depth is, how Taylor Decker is hurt, and you start to get a little bit uneasy. The number of 4th quarter comebacks the Lions had last year is not sustainable. I do not care what anyone says, it straight up is not.
At any rate, I think the Lions are going to be an improved ball club from last year. I’m probably one of the few, but I’m trying to turn into an optimist…or at least be more optimistic. For example, I was not sure if I liked the Lions jersey’s at first, I thought they were solid but did not love them. Now you see them during games and I think they’re outstanding. It does take a bit to get used to less black on the jerseys and the blue pants on the road, but they look real good. I’m curious to see how they look when they start mixing and matching jerseys and pants.
Okay, enough chit-chat, let’s take a look at the squad:
The Daily Traub is pivoting. Since my current employment does not allow for much time, nor hockey blogging, I’ll be confined to a Michigan football season preview post, a Lions season preview post and then some NFL Draft reviews. Everything else is going to get canned…at least for now.
We’re also doing double-time because I’m behind schedule…so here comes you’re quick Michigan Football Season preview.
