No Poison No Paradise - The Official Detroit Lions 2014 Offseason Thread

[Knights89]

Joique Bell could play an even bigger role this season after flourishing in 2013. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)
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By Kyle Meinke | kmeinke@mlive.com
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on July 23, 2014 at 4:59 AM, updated July 23, 2014 at 8:34 AM
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• Detroit Lions position preview: Is the Theo Riddikk hype for real at RB?
• Detroit Lions position preview: Eric Ebron provides new dimension to tight ends
• Detroit Lions position preview: Matthew Stafford entrenched at QB, but there's little certainty

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MLive will examine each of the Detroit Lions' positions heading into the start of training camp July 28. Today we hit on the tailbacks and fullbacks. Thursday: Offensive line.

Tailbacks

Locks: Reggie Bush, Joique Bell, Theo Riddikk

Competing: Mikel Leshoure, Jed Collins, Montell Owens, Steven Miller, Chad Abram, George Winn

The Reggie Bush experiment proved to be a successful one last season. He became the first Lions tailback to eclipse 1,000 yards since Kevin Jones did it in 2004, and also caught 54 passes for 506 yards.

His backup had a pretty good season too. Joique Bell also eclipsed 500 yards rushing and receiving, joining Bush to become the first teammates ever to join the 500/500 club in the same season.

Bell has subsequently missed most of the offseason with a knee injury, though he told MLive.com that his condition is minor and he expects to be ready for the start of camp next week.

Provided he's healthy, Detroit should again feature one of the NFL's best 1-2 tailback combos in 2014. And they'll be featured prominently. Team president Tom Lewand said the team will deploy more two-tailback sets under new coach Jim Caldwell.

So expect to see a lot from Bell this season, even if he remains slotted behind Bush.

It's possible that Theo Riddikk could also break into that rotation. The former sixth-round pick had only 13 offensive touches as a rookie last year, but has drawn considerable praise from teammates and coaches for his development this offseason.

Bush called Riddikk a better natural runner than he was at that age. What really stands out, though, is Riddikk's potential in the passing game. He played a lot of receiver at Notre Dame, and that experience has translated to some polished route-running in the new scheme.

If the Riddikk hype is for real -- and at this point, there's no reason to suspect otherwise -- then Riddikk could fill a kind of Darren Sproles-like role in the offense. If that happens -- again, there's no reason to suspect otherwise at this point -- Detroit could feature one of the NFL's deepest backfields.

Bush's addition, as well as the emergence of Bell and now Riddikk, means Mikel Leshoure could again be nudged out of a role.

General manager Martin Mayhew has said he expects the former second-round pick to compete for snaps, and the Saints -- whose offense has arrived in Detroit -- did occasionally use a fourth tailback. But Leshoure's battle for touches will be an uphill one with Bell, Bush and now Riddikk seemingly entrenched ahead of him.

As part of the changing scheme, the Lions also are bringing back the traditional fullback, which had been abandoned under Jim Schwartz and Scott Linehan. Detroit signed Jed Collins to fill that role.

Fullback Montell Owens returns for a second season in Detroit, but he is more of a hybrid player who specializes on special teams. Owens will have to prove himself indispensable there, or risk not making the roster because he does not fit the mold of the traditional blocking fullback the way Collins does.

Prediction: Bush, Bell, Riddikk, Leshoure, Collins

Lombardi and Caldwell bought to come something up
Riddikk has been getting a lot of attention about his development, hopefully he brings something to the table

feed the rbs, and keep it away from Stafford. Hopefully Reggie stops with the fumbles. Mention leadership and give the ball to the other team brehs lol

 

[Knights89]

The Lions return all five starters from a unit that was top-five in the NFL last year, but there are a couple young players who want to make their mark.
On the roster – C/G: Dominic Raiola, Larry Warford, Rob Sims, Travis Swanson, Rodney Austin, Garrett Reynolds, Darren Keyton, Alex Bullard and Bryce Quigley

On the roster – T: Riley Reiff, LaAdrian Waddle, Corey Hilliard, Cornelius Lucas, Michael Williams, AJ Dalton

Key loss: None

Making the cut: Raiola, Warford, Sims, Swanson, Austin, Reiff, Waddle and Hilliard

On the bubble: Reynolds, Lucas, Williams, Bullard, Keyton, Quigley and Dalton

Best competition: Waddle vs. Hilliard

Who is the starting right tackle Week 1 vs. the New York Giants?

The smart money is on second-year starter LaAdrian Waddle, but Hilliard isn’t going to let him have it without a good camp competition.

This is the second year in a row Hilliard will be in this spot. He eventually lost the competition to Jason Fox for the starting right tackle spot out of camp last year.

Waddle was a terrific surprise for the Lions last year and was playing as well as anyone upfront before an elbow injury limited him some late in the season.

Waddle is big and strong and the Lions had the most success running the football last year over him and standout right guard Larry Warford.

This should be a good competition to watch over the next few weeks between Waddle and Hilliard.

Best competition #2: Austin vs. Swanson vs. Reynolds for an active role

We’ll see if Austin, Swanson or Reynolds can supplant center Dominic Raiola or guard Rob Sims as a starter.

That seems unlikely at this point, so the trio could instead be competing for two roster spots and a role as the active interior backup on game day.

The Lions have stayed amazingly healthy upfront the last couple years, but that backup role is important in the interior. It was a role played by Dylan Gandy the last few years and requires a player who can perform equally well at both center and guard, if needed.

The Lions love where Austin is headed at guard, they felt highly enough of Swanson’s talents to draft him in the third round and signed Reynolds last week, a player who started 10 games last year for Atlanta.

Who steps up?

Twentyman’s take: Offensive line coach Jeremiah Washburn has a great problem on his hands.

He returns all five starters from a top-five offensive line last year and also has a good collection of young players eager for their piece of the pie.

T LaAdrian Waddle (Photo: Detroit Lions)
I’ve always taken the philosophy that if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. Now if Austin or Swanson or someone else comes in and wows in training camp, that’s a different story, but Reiff, Sims, Raiola, Warford and Waddle are only going to get better as a unit the longer they play together.

Warford told detroitlions.com this offseason that he wore down at the end of last year and everything he’s done this offseason is to be at his best for 16 games. Warford is going to be even better in 2014.

Waddle didn’t even start until Week 8 as a rookie. He’s going to be better after a full offseason.

The two biggest question marks upfront are if Rob Sims can come back from offseason surgery, and if Raiola can continue to play like he’s find the fountain of youth at age 35.

Austin and Swanson look to be the future at both guard and center. Do they expedite the process in 2014?
By the numbers:

23: Sacks allowed by the offensive line in 2013 in 634 passing plays

4.49: Average yards per attempt when the Lions ran over the right side last year. They averaged 3.92 yards running left and 3.59 yards up the middle

204: Career games played by Dominic Raiola, second on the Lions’ all-time list

Quotable:

“I think you find out that guys that are young, it takes a while in terms of the development of a player, particularly in the offensive line.

“He has certainly shown that he’s made real good progress and had some real fine performances, but it takes you two, three, four years to really perfect your craft in there. (Malcolm) Gladwell says it takes 10 years and 10,000 hours. I’m not certain we’ve got that much time, but nevertheless, he’s coming along. He’s a guy that’s all business. He’s focused and I think you’re just going to see him continue to improve.”

-- Head coach Jim Caldwell on Larry Warford

 

[Knights89]

The linebackers are being asked to do a lot of different things in Teryl Austin's scheme.
On the roster: DeAndre Levy, Stephen Tulloch, Kyle Van Noy, Ashlee Palmer, Tahir Whitehead, Julian Stanford, Cory Greenwood, Travis Lewis, Brandon Hepburn, Justin Jackson

Key loss: Rocky McIntosh

Making the cut: Levy, Tulloch, Van Noy, Palmer and Whitehead

On the bubble: Stanford, Greenwood, Lewis, Hepburn and Jackson

Best competition: Van Noy vs. Palmer

Palmer did his job as a two-down linebacker last year in his first full season as a starter, but this is a whole new defense under Teryl Austin and the SAM linebacker plays a completely different role.

Van Noy, the team’s second-round draft pick in May, was a backup on the depth chart for most of the spring, but it seems like only a matter of time before he slides into that starting SAM position permanently. He’s big, fast and can do a lot of different things.

Palmer, however, isn’t going to give up his spot easily. He feels his game also fits the new requirements for the SAM spot and is looking forward to the competition in camp.

Van Noy seems to have the edge here, but Palmer had to earn every minute of playing time he’s gotten in his career and isn’t going to lose his starting spot without a good competition.

2013 Stats
NameGTcklSckPDefINTFFFR
DeAndre Levy 16 119 0.0 15 6 0 0
Stephen Tulloch 16 135 3.5 3 1 0 0
*Kyle Van Noy 13 70 4 7 2 0 1
Ashlee Palmer 16 33 0.0 1 0 0 1
Tahir Whitehead 16 9 0.0 0 0 1 0
Julian Stanford 4 3 0.0 0 0 0 0
Travis Lewis 12 6 0.0 0 0 0 0
*Justin Jackson 12 26 2.0 2 1 0 1
+Corey Greenwood 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
^Brandon Hepburn 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
*college statistics +did not play in 2013 ^practice squad
Twentyman’s take: It’s a whole new ball game for the linebackers in this scheme. Gone are the days of reading and reacting to what the four guys in front of them are doing. This is an attacking scheme. The Lions are going to show opponents a lot of different fronts and are going to bring pressure from a lot of different gaps.

LB Stephen Tulloch (Photo: Associated Press)
The SAM linebacker is going to play on the line of scrimmage a lot, which is probably the most drastic change to the position. That player is going to rush the quarterback, play the run and even drop back in coverage at times. He has to be versatile, which is why I see Van Noy ultimately winning the starting spot.

Van Noy spent part of the individual portion of practice with the defensive line group, which tells you how versatile Austin wants the SAM to be.

Tulloch will be better in an attacking scheme and it will be harder for offenses to isolate him in the passing game. He could potentially improve upon the career-high 3.5 sacks he had in 2013.

Levy should excel in this scheme and will continue to be one of the better 4-3 linebackers in the NFL.

The Lions kept six linebackers on the 53-man roster out of camp last year. If that holds true this year there seems to be a lot of competition for that fifth and sixth spot. Lewis, Stanford and Greenwood are all good special teams players and that will certainly play a factor in who wins those spots.

Hepburn has good size, and as a former draft pick, will get an opportunity to make the team. Both he and Jackson are practice-squad eligible.

One of Mayhew's better deals was the inexpensive Levy contract. he outperformed that contract

 

[eastside313]

Lombardi and Caldwell bought to come something up
Riddikk has been getting a lot of attention about his development, hopefully he brings something to the table

feed the rbs, and keep it away from Stafford. Hopefully Reggie stops with the fumbles. Mention leadership and give the ball to the other team brehs lol

Stafford gonna be slinging that rock 40-50 times a game again

All this theo riddikk gonna be a pro bowler and Darius slay is a lockdown corner has me
Really from some non tackling ota they come up with this

 

[Knights89]

Stafford gonna be slinging that rock 40-50 times a game again

All this theo riddikk gonna be a pro bowler and Darius slay is a lockdown corner has me
Really from some non tackling ota they come up with this

As far as Caldwell and Lombardi and the offense, I give guys a shot before i talk about them. Dont let the Lions history of failure not give a man a fair shake
I haven't heard lock down corner mentioned in regards to Slay, you care to link me that article , or is your Lion pessimism making something out of articles saying the young man is getting better. Same thing for Riddikk

 

[eastside313]

As far as Caldwell and Lombardi and the offense, I give guys a shot before i talk about them. Dont let the Lions history of failure not give a man a fair shake
I haven't heard lock down corner mentioned in regards to Slay, you care to link me that article , or is your Lion pessimism making something out of articles saying the young man is getting better. Same thing for Riddikk

the lions have scarred me. Ruined me for all sports relationships for the rest of my life, I can't help it.


I don't have no links, but I'm referring to those bleacher report articles that have came out over the past 5 months that hasn't said a bad thing about any lion player

All we need now is the annual peter king lions going to the Super Bowl prediction to make the offseason complete

 

[eastside313]

Detroit Lions' Ndamukong Suh 'highly unlikely' to sign before camp
By Dave Birkett Detroit Free Press Sports Writer17 hours ago

Ndamukong Suh's contract has hung over the Detroit Lions' collective head all off-season, and with the first practice of training camp just four days away, it appears that the star defensive tackle's future will remain unresolved for at least a few more weeks.

Suh and the Lions continue to have dialogue about a new deal, but one person familiar with that talks said it's "highly unlikely" that anything gets done before practice begins Monday.

Both parties still hope to finalize a long-term contract extension before the start of the season, though failing that, the Lions eventually will reach a point where they'll table negotiations until 2015.

Suh, who's entering the final year of the rookie contract he signed as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft, already is the highest-paid defensive tackle in the game and will remain one of the richest defensive players in all of football on his next deal.

He's scheduled to make $12.5 million this fall, with a $22.4-million salary cap number -- the biggest in the NFL -- and the Lions seem unlikely to use the franchise tag to keep Suh from reaching free agency, given it would cost nearly $26.9 million.

Just six current defensive players make more than $13 million per season.

Buffalo Bills defensive end Mario Williams and New England Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis both average $16 million a year, and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman ($14 million) signed a four-year, $56-million extension this spring.

Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden ($13.5 million), Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews ($13.2 million) and Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy ($13.116 million on a franchise tag) also make more than $13 million per season.

Suh is coming off his third Pro Bowl appearance in four seasons and had one of his best years last fall despite recording just 51/2 sacks, the second-lowest total of his career.

Despite Suh's cumbersome cap figure -- or maybe because of it -- the Lions have managed their cap more judiciously this year. They only made one major signing in free agency, wide receiver Golden Tate, and went the entire off-season without doing a simple contract restructure for the first time since at least 2010.

Suh restructured his contract to convert a large portion of his base salary into a signing bonus at the Lions' request each of the last two years. Such a maneuver frees up immediate cap space, but pushes cap commitments into future seasons in the form of bonus prorations.

Those prorations are why Suh has such a big cap number this year, and why he'll count at least $9.7 million against the cap next season regardless of whether he re-signs with the Lions.

The Lions, who entered today with $1.97 million in cap room, less than all but just three teams, signed stars Calvin Johnson and Matthew Stafford to long-term extensions each of the last two off-seasons.

Stafford got $41.5 million guaranteed on a three-year extension last July, while Johnson got $53.25 million guaranteed on a seven-year extension in the spring of 2012.

Lions coach Jim Caldwell insisted at the end of minicamp last month that Suh's contract won't be a distraction this year.

Without a new deal, it just might be.

"They're not the first guy that's gone through a contract negotiation and he won't be the last," Caldwell said. "So I think those things Martin (Mayhew) and Tom (Lewand) and those guys and ownership will do a tremendous job. What I have to do is stay focused on what's happening out there on the field and get our guys ready to play."

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@davebirkett .

Damn they still gonna have to pay him next year too after he bounce

 

[iceberg_is_on_fire]

Damn they still gonna have to pay him next year too after he bounce

Oh well. Good news is that my son was just born on Sunday and he will soon be introduced to the fukkery that is the Detroit Lions. He will quickly understand that Barry Sanders = GAWD, the words to Gridiron Heroes before the Star-Spangled Banner and why a side-throwing QB will never win a Super Bowl. His punishments will consist of games during the Marty Mornhinweg era. My son will be indoctrinated soon. He has no choice in this matter.

 

[Knights89]

Oh well. Good news is that my son was just born on Sunday and he will soon be introduced to the fukkery that is the Detroit Lions. He will quickly understand that Barry Sanders = GAWD, the words to Gridiron Heroes before the Star-Spangled Banner and why a side-throwing QB will never win a Super Bowl. His punishments will consist of games during the Marty Mornhinweg era. My son will be indoctrinated soon. He has no choice in this matter.

Congrats

 

[Regular_P]

Oh well. Good news is that my son was just born on Sunday and he will soon be introduced to the fukkery that is the Detroit Lions. He will quickly understand that Barry Sanders = GAWD, the words to Gridiron Heroes before the Star-Spangled Banner and why a side-throwing QB will never win a Super Bowl. His punishments will consist of games during the Marty Mornhinweg era. My son will be indoctrinated soon. He has no choice in this matter.

Don't do it to him. I vowed not to let my future children be Lions fans. I don't want them to have the same torment their father endured.

Congrats though.

 

[eastside313]

http://m.bleacherreport.com/article...st-news-and-rumors-on-negotiations-with-lions

 

[Regular_P]

http://m.bleacherreport.com/article...st-news-and-rumors-on-negotiations-with-lions

I don't understand how Suh's franchise tag would be $27 million. The average salary of the top five QBs isn't that high, let alone DTs. How is that number calculated so high for Suh?

 

[Knights89]

I don't understand how Suh's franchise tag would be $27 million. The average salary of the top five QBs isn't that high, let alone DTs. How is that number calculated so high for Suh?

Though most franchised players are given the average of the five biggest contracts, said player cannot make less than 120 percent of his previous salary.

because of those restructures and what not...Normally the avg of the five contracts would be the rule, but those numbers wouldnt meet the 120 % standard. So 22.5x 1.2
So 27 million it is

 

[Regular_P]

because of those restructures and what not...Normally the avg of the five contracts would be the rule, but those numbers wouldnt meet the 120 % standard. So 22.5x 1.2
So 27 million it is

Mayhew's such a good GM.

 

[eastside313]

Mayhew's such a good GM.

Matt millen is still haunting this team