MONICA APPROVES
MEANWHILE, IN DETROIT . . .
Bob Wojnowski
Lions draft pick is another head-scratcher
The Lions made Eric Ebron the No. 10 pick
in the first round. (Elsa/Getty Images)
The obsession
continues, whether you like or not, whether it makes sense or not. The Lions are
determined to make their offense special and make Matthew Stafford comfortable
and elite, apparently at any cost.
Martin Mayhew spent
a big resource and a considerable amount of credibility on an odd and dubious
pick Thursday night. With his selection of North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron
at No. 10, Mayhew just pushed his chips back into the same pile, the one in
front of his quarterback.
It’s not a popular
pick or even a logical pick — unless Stafford and the new coaching staff make it
work. The Lions desperately need cornerbacks but passed on Michigan State’s
Darqueze Dennard and Virginia Tech’s Kyle Fuller (Dennard fell all the way to
No. 24). They need help
on both
sides of the ball, but while others teams were wheeling, Mayhew wasn’t dealing.
He was content to sit where he was, making the Ebron pick quickly, long before
the allotted 10 minutes were up.
on both
sides of the ball, but while others teams were wheeling, Mayhew wasn’t dealing.
He was content to sit where he was, making the Ebron pick quickly, long before
the allotted 10 minutes were up.
“He’s absolutely an
impact player,” Mayhew said. “He’s a difference-maker. He’s a matchup nightmare
as a tight end.”
At 6-4, 250 pounds,
Ebron indeed might be all that. He caught 62 passes for 973 yards last season
and became the first tight end since Vernon Davis in 2006 to be drafted in the
top 10. His talent is unique and his credentials are excellent, and the plan is
for him to be a receiver-tight end playmaker like the Saints’ Jimmy Graham.
But once again, we
have to demand: How many pieces must the Lions collect for Stafford to become a
consistently productive winner? There’s no doubt they needed another receiver
beyond Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate, and that’s why they were so enamored with
Sammy Watkins. As expected, the price for Watkins was too high, as the Bills
gave up first- and fourth-round picks just to jump five spots to the Browns’ No.
4.
Obsessed with offense
Mayhew was right to
resist that temptation, but man, he simply cannot resist the temptation for toys
to prop up his offense. I understand the draft is just getting started and he’ll
have opportunities to take defensive players in the second, third and fourth
rounds, and he will. But listening to Mayhew and offensive coordinator Joe
Lombardi talk about the matchup problems Ebron can create, it was easy to slip
into the haze of past mistakes.
The previous GM
(rhymes with Chillin’) was always looking for receiver mismatches with top
picks. Mayhew has been a better drafter, but displays some troubling tendencies.
Since Stafford was taken No. 1 in 2009, the Lions have used high picks on tight
ends (Brandon Pettigrew, Ebron), running backs (Jahvid Best, Mikel Leshoure) and
receivers (Titus Young, Ryan Broyles), with little to show for it.
The Lions pile up
yards, but do they ever establish a solid base of power on either side of the
ball? Nope. Mayhew said he stuck to his draft board, and when he didn’t get
calls from teams interested in moving up, he went with a player he considered an
elite talent. I get the strategy, and there’s no sense scouting and analyzing if
you don’t stick to what your eyes tell you.
Bucking the trend
But do you find it
curious all the other teams in the division — and most of the top teams in the
league — selected defensive players in the first round, some thought to be
pegged for Detroit? The Vikings took linebacker Anthony Barr, the Bears took
Fuller and the Packers took safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix.
Mayhew defended the
choice of offense, while acknowledging plenty of work to do elsewhere.
“On defense, we were
right in the middle of the pack in points allowed — 15th,” Mayhew said. “Offense
was 13th in points scored. There’s this perception there’s this huge gap between
our offense and our defense, and it’s not that big a gap.”
They have another
good player on offense now, after making it through their 16th consecutive first
round without drafting a cornerback. Ebron had two major life changes Thursday,
proposing to his girlfriend on top of the Empire State Building, then landing
with the Lions, where he’s expected to have a large and immediate role.
New coach Jim
Caldwell was beaming and suspects his quarterback will do the same, as the Lions
keep trying to give Stafford every chance to be better.
“When you talk to
Matthew Stafford, he’ll say you can never have too many weapons,” Caldwell said.
“This just adds another weapon for us.”
Another big chip
pushed into the pot, the essence of going all-in. They said they wanted an
instant-impact guy, and that’s what Ebron must be. The strategy is unchanged,
for better or worse. The Lions have built around their quarterback and their
offense, and they’re not interested in turning back now.
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