Detroit Lions 2008 NFL Draft Needs

April 14, 2008

After many of the players came in predicting a 10-win season, the team looked primed to fill those expectations after starting the season 6-2. But man did it get bad after that, the team went on to lose 7 of their final 8 games to finish the season at a disappointing 7-9. While the team doesn’t seem far from a 10 win season, they are going to need to mix things up, and did just that when they got rid of pass happy offensive coordinator Mike Martz. The team wants to control the clock a little more, and give their defense some rest. The team has had a pretty quite this offseason after they were unable to sign or trade for any of the big names out there. They did bring in some depth at corner and safety. Corner was a big time need after last season, and they are hoping that the Bills Leigh Bodden and the Buccaneers Kalvin Pearson are part of the answer. We won’t be surprised to see them go after another in the draft, but here are our top 5 positions the Lions need to go after in this year’s draft.

1. Middle Linebacker

This need has been a problem the Lions have tried to fill ever since the end of the 2007 season. Right now they are stuck with Paris Lenon here, who isn’t bad but would be much better off as a strong side backer. The team tried going after Jonathan Vilma and Dan Morgan, but failed on both of them. There is still talk about going after Al Wilson, but the team is really tight in the salary cap. The draft isn’t full of any big names outside of Oklahoma’s Curtis Lofton and Tennessee’s Jerod Mayo. Mayo would be a better fit here to fill the need in their Tampa 2 defense.

2. Running Back

The team is really hurting here and will need to find some help in the draft if they want to have any success in 2008. They lost T.J. Duckett to Seattle in free agency, and decided to part ways with Kevin Jones. This is a pretty heavy draft here and the team could make a splash by landing Illinois’s Rashard Mendenhall with their first pick, or could wait till round 2 and grab a guy like Oregon’s Jonathon Stewart if he continues to fall.

3. Defensive End

The team is putting some of the blame on the d-line for a poor pass defense in 2007. The only guy that was able to get to the QB is Dewayne White, and that just wasn’t enough for the team to be successful. They will surely target a DE in this year’s draft, but its unclear when they will take one. There will be plenty of guys early on, but can they really afford to not take a linebacker and running back early on. That question probably won’t be answered till draft day. If they decide to go early they could grab Florida’s Derrick Harvey, or might wait on a guy like Iowa’s Kenny Iwebema in the 3rd or 4th round.

4. Offensive Tackle

After losing Damien Woody to the Jets in free agency the team is in need of some help on the O-line. They could grab a guy like Vandy’s Chris Williams at pick #15, but will probably wait and take a guy like Ohio State’s Kirk Barton later in the draft.

5. Cornerback

Even with the offseason signings to help here, there is no sure thing here as the Lions were one of the worst teams in pass defense in 2008. Anything thing will help here and they might even be able to land a star here in the late rounds. This won’t be an early pick, but we would be shocked if they leave draft weekend without a pick spent on this position.

Be sure to continue to check back as we will continue to be bringing you team-by-team draft articles. Also, be sure to check out our first round Mock Draft. Feel free to leave any comments you might have on the draft and each team’s draft needs in our comment box.

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Detroit Lions 2008 NFL Draft Needs

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