Top impact rookie classes for 2013

[Kreton]

ESPN Insider story they did about the top 5 impacts.

Guess who is #1!

1. Detroit Lions
1st in NFC North, 6-3 record

The Lions have gotten both quality and quantity out of their draft class, a key factor to their being in first place in the competitive NFC North. Five of their eight draft picks, plus one undrafted free agent (TE Joseph Fauria), are on the 53-man roster, including three full-time starters and a fourth part-time starter, and all eight picks are still with the team.

Lions' 2013 draft picks
Rd Overall Player Position School
1 5 Ezekiel Ansah DE BYU
2 36 Darius Slay CB Mississippi State
4 132 Devin Taylor DE South Carolina
5 165 Sam Martin PT Appalachian State
6 171 Corey Fuller WR Virginia Tech
6 199 Theo Riddick RB Notre Dame
7 211 Michael Williams TE Alabama
7 245 Brandon Hepburn ILB Florida A&M

First-round DE Ezekiel Ansah missed Sunday’s win over the Bears because of an ankle injury, but it’s the first game he has missed this season. When he has been on the field, he’s made a significant impact and provided consistent pressure (19 tackles, three sacks). DE Devin Taylor has been more productive than I would have expected as a rotational defensive end -- I thought he needed more time to develop, but he’s been contributing while learning on the job. He started against Chicago in place of Ansah. CB Darius Slay is contributing in nickel packages and shows the promise of one day developing into a starter (although he did struggle against the Bears). Larry Warford has solidified the right guard position as a full-time starter this season, and the fact that he (and the entire line) has been very solid in pass protection has been critical to QB Matthew Stafford’s success this season. RT LaAdrian Waddle, an undrafted free agent, has also helped solidify the line and has started and played well the past two games. It’s pretty remarkable to think that Detroit may have solidified the right side of its line with a third-rounder and undrafted free agent. Another key undrafted contributor has been Fauria, who, despite inconsistent separation and ball skills, has made some clutch catches this season as the No. 2 tight end behind Brandon Pettigrew.

Lastly, Sam Martin has upgraded the punter position for Detroit, and also handles kickoffs and holding duties on kicks.

 

[Dr. Evil-er]

I said from the moment he was drafted that Devin Taylor was a steal. He will continue to develop the same as Ziggy and you are going to have bookend DE's that paired with Suh and Fairly inside will make that D-line a moster.

I've seen some of the early draft reports saying this team needs to draft another DE and IMO thats crap. We need another LB and a shutdown CB. Slay may be a rookie but I cant even see him showcasing a guy with great athleticism even if he is lost in his execution. I cant think of one high quality play he's made this year. I get that its way early in his career but he looks like a #2 CB at the very best.

LB, CB, and WR. Get quality at those three positions and I think the Lions can be legit contenders next season.

 

[Thruthefog]

No center? If the Lions draft a center, that offensive line will be a moster too.

 

[Dr. Evil-er]

No center? If the Lions draft a center, that offensive line will be a moster too.

Indeed. But in all honesty I would have that fourth on that list. As much as I hate Ravioi, which is due to his pussy ass play in years past I am not as much of a hater this year. While I still think he is weak and cant get any push off the line I cant deny the fact that our 0-line has played much better than I could ever have expected and he is still the guy making the line calls.

I would not be terribly disappointed if he was actually resigned for another year (at $1.0, which is just a little bit above the vet min). While I would love to have someone in camp pushing him next year I would not view that as a big weakness on the team.

Let the hate begin upon me for those thoughts.

 

[Thruthefog]

No hate, but I think Dom was needed for this transition year. Next year, let's get one that can actually block.

 

[tpaulus_2]

I said from the moment he was drafted that Devin Taylor was a steal. He will continue to develop the same as Ziggy and you are going to have bookend DE's that paired with Suh and Fairly inside will make that D-line a monster.

Yerp. He's an athletic anomaly who should develop into a helluva pass rusher with his speed and length. Great 4th round pick, imo.

I've seen some of the early draft reports saying this team needs to draft another DE and IMO that's crap. We need another LB and a shutdown CB.

I think we're fine at LB- Levy has been one of the best 4-3 OLBs all season, Tulloch is doing outstanding work in the middle (his game against Dallas graded out on PFF as the 8th best game EVER for a MLB) and Palmer has done just fine in his part-time role. Now, if we can add an impact-type OLB to the mix then obviously that's great and we certainly should, but I'm shocked at how steady our LB unit is right now.

CB, now that's where we still need help. We've improved, and have some quality pieces there, but clearly we need to keep adding talent. Mathis is in his 30s and Houston is 29 (I think), so we need to keep the cupboards stocked.

We certainly don't have a need at DE. Ansah, Taylor, Willie Young and Jason Jones are a damn good group of DE's in my opinion. I don't see a need to make a change there unless we fall into a good pass rusher in the draft.

Slay may be a rookie but I cant even see him showcasing a guy with great athleticism even if he is lost in his execution. I cant think of one high quality play he's made this year. I get that its way early in his career but he looks like a #2 CB at the very best.

I disagree- watch the plays where he gets beat, particularly for TDs- he's drapped all over the guy and is always step-for-step with his WR. His issue is just technique; he needs to work on finishing the play- knocking down or intercepting the ball. The coverage part, which is the hardest aspect, he already has down. He also needs to add bulk.

With his size and speed, and the ability to run with WRs that he's shown I think we got our #1 CB finally, but he won't be at that level for another season or two- clearly he's got a lot of learning to do.

I get where people are coming from who are nervous about what he's shown so far, but in today's NFL CB is by far the toughest position to play- that's why top CBs make such big money. The rules are tilted against DBs in a big way, and the passing game is more advanced and effective than it's ever been.

From a pure man coverage standpoint though, Slay looks very promising, as funny as that may sound. Remember though, that the ball-location and "finishing" issues plagued Chris Houston early on too, and he seems to have that one figured right out.

I get that it's cliche to say "give a rookie time" and as much as we've been burned by that nobody wants to hear it, but this is one case where I think it's very true. I think we'll see a drastically different player next season.

LB, CB, and WR. Get quality at those three positions and I think the Lions can be legit contenders next season.

Just CB and WR for me, thanks. Those are our two biggest areas of need, imo. It's a different thought process to get into, but remember that we only have two true "starting" LBs, and they're both playing outstanding ball this year...

 

[tpaulus_2]

No center? If the Lions draft a center, that offensive line will be a moster too.

I didn't even think about that- Center should be right up there as well.

Don't like the guy still, but Riaola has been playing very well this year (shockingly), so he might buy us a couple more years there... also, I think Rodney Austin might well be the future of the position- the coaches have been very high on his abilities and we've been lucky enough to stash him on the practice squad for a couple years now. I wouldn't be surprised if he took Gandy or Harris' roster spot next year as a center/guard back-up and then took over for Raiola in a couple of years...

 

[tpaulus_2]

Indeed. But in all honesty I would have that fourth on that list. As much as I hate Ravioi, which is due to his pussy ass play in years past I am not as much of a hater this year. While I still think he is weak and cant get any push off the line I cant deny the fact that our 0-line has played much better than I could ever have expected and he is still the guy making the line calls.

I would not be terribly disappointed if he was actually resigned for another year (at $1.0, which is just a little bit above the vet min). While I would love to have someone in camp pushing him next year I would not view that as a big weakness on the team.

Let the hate begin upon me for those thoughts.

No hate here, that's pretty much right on, imo...

 

[jdwills126]

I think Waddle may have the biggest impact at RT. That was a huge problem spot with Fox and Hilliard unable to stay healthy.

Taylor is a bonus at DE. And Martin will be a decade long starter as Punter and KO specialist.

The real question is who gets the credit Mayhew or Xanders?

 

[themuzzer]

I think Waddle may have the biggest impact at RT. That was a huge problem spot with Fox and Hilliard unable to stay healthy.

Taylor is a bonus at DE. And Martin will be a decade long starter as Punter and KO specialist.

The real question is who gets the credit Mayhew or Xanders?

If Xanders is the man who deserves credit then the Lions are probably going to be good for a long time since this would have been his first draft......Whereas Mayhew has had plenty of drafts for Detroit....

I hope it's Xanders because that would make me feel comfortable for future drafts.

 

[gvsulaker82]

We are not fine at LB. Levy is one of the reasons detroits defense has improved but overall their defense is still in the bottom ten. While Levy is having a monster year can we really count on that permanently? I dont think so. Palmer is way below average and they have no depth. I think the lions need another DE, LB, and CB on defense along with a WR, and C on offense and maybe another T. They also need a better kicker. A lot less holes than last year which is good but still too many. They have been winning games but still have not beat a great team this year. Theres alot of work to be done to consider them legiimate super bowl contenders.

 

[BigLarry75]

Where's the Love?

ESPN Insider story they did about the top 5 impacts.

Guess who is #1!

1. Detroit Lions: 1st in NFC North, 6-3 record

Lions' 2013 draft picks
Rd Overall Player Position School
1 5 Ezekiel Ansah DE BYU
2 36 Darius Slay CB Mississippi State
4 132 Devin Taylor DE South Carolina
5 165 Sam Martin PT Appalachian State
6 171 Corey Fuller WR Virginia Tech
6 199 Theo Riddick RB Notre Dame
7 211 Michael Williams TE Alabama
7 245 Brandon Hepburn ILB Florida A&M

This really hurts

 

[gvsulaker82]

This really hurts

Awww big larry it hurt your feelings? Maybe you should report kreton incognito for bullying you.

 

[broncosmitty]

We are not fine at LB. Levy is one of the reasons detroits defense has improved but overall their defense is still in the bottom ten. While Levy is having a monster year can we really count on that permanently? I dont think so. Palmer is way below average and they have no depth. I think the lions need another DE, LB, and CB on defense along with a WR, and C on offense and maybe another T. They also need a better kicker. A lot less holes than last year which is good but still too many. They have been winning games but still have not beat a great team this year. Theres alot of work to be done to consider them legiimate super bowl contenders.

How many teams have beat great teams so far this year? Two? (Or are we supposed to consider NO great also?)

 

[tpaulus_2]

We are not fine at LB.

Lol, I knew all that agreeing we did couldn't last... I think our LBs have been surprisingly good this season. Tulloch has an established track record, no worries there, and I think you're harder on Levy for his play prior to this year than he deserves. He simply wasn't a bottom-end starting OLB, as you have implied. He's been a middle of the pack guy since his rookie year, imo. He's always been an athletic specimen at the position and, imo, he's finally to the point where his experience allows him to put those gifts to good use. That's just my two cents though, maybe this year is an anomaly in an otherwise mediocre career, but I just don't see it. He looks like a young, ascending veteran to me.

Levy is one of the reasons detroits defense has improved but overall their defense is still in the bottom ten.

Bottom ten in total yards, middle of the pack in scoring, which is more important and also quite an improvement over last year's numbers. Also, we're the second best defense in the league in getting off the field on 3rd downs. That's huge.

While Levy is having a monster year can we really count on that permanently?

See above. It's gotta the beard. He stole Brian Wilson's mojo.

Palmer is way below average and they have no depth.

I'm curious what this is based on? Palmer seems perfectly capable in his role, which is that of a part-time defender. He's athletic and can attack the run, hasn't made any glaring mistakes so far (that I can think of, at least) and seems to be doing his job all-in-all. His salary is cheap, too, as overall I think he's a great fit. The only way to improve that spot without spending more is to draft someone who is a superior talent, and I'd be all about that. But that still doesn't mean Palmer isn't an acceptable two down OLB.

Behind him we have Rocky McIntosh, who generated a turnover (or change of possession, if you prefer) in last Sunday's win when he dropped Forte on a loss on 4th down. Tahir Whitehead is a good-looking prospect who has become a key special teams player and Travis Lewis contributes on special teams as well. I don't see anything wrong with our current depth.

Theres alot of work to be done to consider them legitimate super bowl contenders.

I can't say I agree.

I think every team that makes the playoffs is a legitimate contender based on the nature of the league. Look at the Giants or the Cardinals a few years ago. Just gotta get your ticket punched and then it's anyone's trophy to win.

We look to be on track to get ourselves a playoff birth this year, therefore I think we have to be viewed as a legitimate contender.

 

[Kreton]

I think every team that makes the playoffs is a legitimate contender based on the nature of the league. Look at the Giants or the Cardinals a few years ago. Just gotta get your ticket punched and then it's anyone's trophy to win.

We look to be on track to get ourselves a playoff birth this year, therefore I think we have to be viewed as a legitimate contender.

Exactly! Playoff teams are contenders.

Theres alot of work to be done to consider them legiimate super bowl contenders.

I know this is going to come as a shock to many but no team is perfect. None. Every team has holes. Every teams has a position or two that could be better. That is a fact. Just because the Lions have a guy here or there who are average or slightly below doesn't mean we cant complete or arent a contender.