Lions 2021 off-season FA. Something for nothing or nothing at all ?

[Gulf of Brazil]

Should Holmes and the coaching staff not feel comfortable with Crosby at RT then I would anticipate them drafting one early on.
Crosby misssed four games this past season due to injury and there's no proven history beyond that.

Holmes specifically talked about VaiTai as OG in press conferences while also noting the need for depth, specifically at OT/WR on the offensive side.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

wasn't even mentioned prior to reading this article

Did the Detroit Lions make the right decision restructuring Jared Goff’s contract? - Pride Of Detroit

And in order to get under the cap—in addition to those cuts—they’ve made Nick Williams take a paycut,

After the Williams pay cut, the Lions had about $4 million left in cap space accounting for what it would cost to pay their rookie class. That’s essentially no wiggle room to fill the dozens of roster spots still necessary for training camp, nor is it a significant amount to carry into the season if an emergency situation happens.

Nicholas Williams Contract Details, Salary Cap Charges, Bonus Money, and Contract History | Over The Cap

Williams agreed to a $2.7 million pay cut in 2021.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

I believe @Mebert and I were on his possible drafting back in 2017. He tore his achilles 4 games into last season.

Kazee, a former fifth-round pick from the Falcons, has been a starter for Atlanta for the past three seasons. He had a breakout year in 2018, just his second year in the NFL, by snatching a league-leading seven interceptions to go along with 10 passes defended.

Report: Detroit Lions to host safety Damontae Kazee for a free agency visit - Pride Of Detroit

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

I'm not a fan of signing UFA or even drafting players who are a DB with an achilles tear but if his medicals check out and he's on a cheap prove it deal I'd be okay with is possibility.

Damontae Kazee Stats | Pro-Football-Reference.com (pro-football-reference.com)

 

[Old Lion]

Hell, most of us on here would be willing to cut bait with Trey Flowers after 2021 if he doesn't perform and that'd cost 12.8M with a slightly over 10M savings.

If we're willing to cut bait on a pass rusher with 12.8M dead cap then it shouldn't be a big deal to cut bait with a 10M dead cap on a QB in 2023.

A restructure would be in order. Not sure I would cut him for that much. He should bounce back in the new defense hopefully.

 

[Old Lion]

wasn't even mentioned prior to reading this article

Did the Detroit Lions make the right decision restructuring Jared Goff’s contract? - Pride Of Detroit

And in order to get under the cap—in addition to those cuts—they’ve made Nick Williams take a paycut,

After the Williams pay cut, the Lions had about $4 million left in cap space accounting for what it would cost to pay their rookie class. That’s essentially no wiggle room to fill the dozens of roster spots still necessary for training camp, nor is it a significant amount to carry into the season if an emergency situation happens.

Nicholas Williams Contract Details, Salary Cap Charges, Bonus Money, and Contract History | Over The Cap

Williams agreed to a $2.7 million pay cut in 2021.

View attachment 267690

Deservedly so.

 

[Old Lion]

Chistian Jones back to the Bears and Mo Sanu back to Niners.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Chistian Jones back to the Bears and Mo Sanu back to Niners.

Whoa.

Hold down the excitement please.

We're now a team that is tough as nails knee-cap biters

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

What the Detroit Lions are getting in LB Alex Anzalone - Pride Of Detroit

He plays the majority of snaps off the ball, with his biggest strength being in coverage and biggest weakness being in stopping the run. Per PFF, Anzalone has a career coverage grade well above average at 70.9, while his run defense checks in at a below-average 51.8 grade. His 65.9 pass-rush grade also shows up on film.

His four-year overall PFF grade of 65.2 is better than any Lions linebacker in the last three years, though Collins was close with a 64.2 grade in 2020. The last Lions linebacker to land a higher grade was the recently re-signed Jalen Reeves-Maybin with a 68.2 grade on 239 snaps in 2017.

One of the key advantages of the Lions bringing in Anzalone is that Campbell and Glenn know what he brings to the table, both good and bad.

“It’s not even so much what you think they can do, it’s you know what their downside is,” Campbell said about bringing in free agents that had worked with the Lions staff previously. “That’s different than anything else, in free agency you don’t always know what all the warts are. You do when you’ve been with these guys.”

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

^^^^

Pretty Damn Pathetic

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

10 best remaining free agency fits for the Detroit Lions - Pride Of Detroit

I expect them to sign a vet CB and a vet S of some sort on a short term deal prior to the draft and drafting one each of those two positions

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Boston may be the only possibility at signing.

 

[Old Lion]

10 best remaining free agency fits for the Detroit Lions - Pride Of Detroit

I expect them to sign a vet CB and a vet S of some sort on a short term deal prior to the draft and drafting one each of those two positions

I hope so. I cant take another year of Chris Harris.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

I hope so. I cant take another year of Chris Harris.

Chris Harris would probably not like that comment coming from you.
Will Harris on the other might agree with you.

TBH, maybe Glenn and Pleasant can turn this kid around.
Harris' biggest knock was poor eye/route recognition and the ability to stay with WR who were savvy route runners.

I do agree with you though in that I'm not interested in another year of relying upon him in any capacity.
Maybe different scheme/use will help but his coverage skills were already lacking and missed tackles are now added to his repertoire.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Which is why I believe they will draft a ready to go OT/RT this year (best draft class for OT in quite awhile). Vaitai has no business playing OT. He's a run-blocking OT and not a combo pass-pro/run blocking OT. He has slow feet/slow re-set to anchor to boot.

Crosby is on his last year of rookie contract and if you can upgrade him, you do it. Should they ride the year with Crosby at RT and he regresses from last years play, it could become a regrettable non-move.

Detroit Lions ‘intrigued’ about moving Halapoulivaati Vaitai to guard - Pride Of Detroit

“Until we get our eyes on him and see where we feel like he fits best, it’s hard to just put that in stone, but I will say this—and we’ve talked to him about this—we’re a little intrigued by moving him inside to guard,” Campbell said. “That does intrigue us, and so we may—as a starting point—work there and see where we’re at.”

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Dan Campbell credits Lions’ front office ‘team effort’ with free agency finds - Pride Of Detroit

BB_72: A lot of quality collaboration has gone into the decisions made so far whether they end up being right we'll have to see on it on the field.

It's completely different than what BQ/MP and their regime showed this team.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

2021 NFL Draft: Detroit Lions have the NFL’s most experienced scouting staff - Pride Of Detroit

The 2021 NFL Draft presents a unique challenge this year. Not only was there no NFL Combine to help evaluate players both on the field and on it, but many players in this year’s class have limited tape due to a shortened college season or opt outs. This is a year in which teams will have to really trust the grunt work done by their tireless scouting staff.

Believe it or not, that may give the Detroit Lions a bit of a leg up on the rest of the league. That’s because, according to Neil Stratton of Inside the League, the Lions’ scouting staff is collectively the longest-tenured staff in the NFL.

“The Lions have a big department of tenured scouts, so it’s no surprised [sic] they led the way with 268 total years of scouting, by our count,” Statton wrote.

Here’s the catch, though. This study was done back in August under the old regime. With new general manager Brad Holmes, the scouting department is likely to change. However, plenty of the scouts currently on staff date back to regimes far before Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia. Regional scout Dave Uyrus has been with the team since 2000. Director of player personnel Lance Newmark—who recently got praise from both Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell—has been in Detroit since 1998.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

^^^^

There will most definitely be changes coming.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

Fun should be a part of the Detroit Lions rebuild - Pride Of Detroit

Along with Campbell is a group of coaches that all used to be players and know firsthand what guys in the locker room will respond to and how professional football players want to be treated. We’ve also seen that some of these guys can be just as affable as Campbell. See new Lions running back coach Duce Staley’s comments on our own Jeremy Reisman’s mustache or his entire appearance on our podcast.

Even more good news on this front is that the past shows that Dan Campbell can get players to buy into his way of coaching. Former Miami Dolphins tight end Jordan Cameron said that Campbell “brings a lot of energy, a lot of passion.” He also said that “everybody would run through a wall for Dan Campbell.”

It truly seems like there’s a feeling in Detroit like each person in the office and on the staff is believing in the sense that they’re working on something bigger than themselves. It’s as if the egos have been stripped from this team and everyone is working together to make this team good. When that kind of energy is about, it’s not hard to believe that there could be a level of fun added to this teams culture.

 

[Gulf of Brazil]

What the Detroit Lions are getting in LB Alex Anzalone - Pride Of Detroit

Campbell has previously mentioned that the Lions plan to model their defensive front after the Rams’ 2020 scheme while leaning on coverage concepts derived from the Saints scheme.

Last season, the Rams’ deployed four main linebacker roles.

The SAM (basically the same role as the JACK in last year's scheme) is a pass-rushing linebacker who rarely leaves the field. Romeo Okwara seems the likely primary player for this role, but he will be backed up by Austin Bryant, Julian Okwara, and Charles Harris.

The WILL is another pass-rushing linebacker—who lines up on the line of scrimmage opposite the SAM—that has some potential in coverage. Both Okwara brothers should be in the mix here. This is a part-time role and last season the Rams’s used it roughly 50 percent of the time.

The MIKE is a traditional off-the-ball role, that lines up in between the tackles at the second level. Both Collins and Anzalone are ideal fits here, and Reeves-Maybin also seems to fit the mold. This is another position that will remain on the field at all times.

The final linebacker role is a second INSIDE linebacker (called the JACK, but its role is closer to the WILL in the previous scheme) and they line up off the ball next to the MIKE. Collins, Anzalone, Reeves-Maybin, and Shaun Dion Hamilton are the ideal candidates here. Last season, the Rams used this linebacker role between 50-75 percent of snaps.