Many here feel he’s a top 5 DT in the NFL and will be paid like one. Hence my comment above that I think he’s overrated on this board.
It really comes down to the money.
Do you think Holmes will pay him top 5 money?
Some think he gets over 20 mil a year. That’s top 10 DT money. Do you think Holmes will pay that?
The Lions signed Reader to 11mil a year money. Which puts him about 25th in NFL salary for DT’s.
My question is where will Holmes draw the line that it’s too much money?
Brad drew the TE line easily with Hock, though it was before the Lion burst into relevance and when Hock’s grit was questionable and with an extraordinary TE draft class looming.
Brad can draw lines. How does he value DTs relative to the league? (A lot in 2021.) We found out in the 2023 draft how he feels about positional value versus the league, if PFF, pundits, and anonymous sources are any indication.
The Lions are now relevant, McNeill’s intangibles are in the vicinity of St Brown’s and Sewell’s, and there’s an extraordinary DT class looming.
Predicting Brad’s next move is like trying to tackle Barry. It’s a fun endeavor at the moment with no urgency.
For sure. Both have shown flashes but we need more consistency and for Iffy he’s got to prove he can play a full season.
It’s comments like this that made me speak up. You just compared McNeil to a couple perennial pro bowlers. Do you really believe he’s a top 5 player at his position?
I do not …. And if he draws that kind of money I’m fairly confident Brad Holmes will move on.
It comes down to what Dan and Brad think of Alim.
DT’s are hard to evaluate just on stats. Most are just looking at sacks and tackles. Further complicating McNeill’s stats is the fact that he has played NT through most of his career. 2023 was a mix of NT and 3T.
He is a rare DT that plays the run and pass very well.
By most advanced stats McNeill is definitely a top 10 DT. When you also factor in age, upside, and culture fit he is definitely a player, as Brad would say, can be a Lion.
I think Alim is trending that way and has a chance to solidify that position this season.
Holmes has shown he is not cheap when it comes to rewarding HIS GUYS when they demonstrate they are high level players and buy in to the culture that he and Dan have created.
His work ethic and team first attitude as shown by his willingness to be miscast as a NT when the team needed him there is what I meant by intangibles. His work ethic and team first attitude are in the vicinity of St. Brown and Sewell–that was my comparison–and well within the range of what the Lions covet.
I agree that Alim is not a top 5 player in the interior yet. IMO, it’s possible, but not probable, that he will be top 5 at the end of the year–which is when Brad will make decisions. There are way too many moving pieces at this time to predict anything with confidence.
Yeah - I don’t think he’s in the vicinity of St.Brown or Sewell, even with the intangibles. Yet he is way, way above Hock, Jonah, and remember…Golladay? All of whom Brad passed on.
I also don’t think it comes down to valuing a position. For Brad, I think it comes down to valuing the person.
I’d say its 90% we sign Alim. We probably did make an offer, but Alim wants to stack two good years to be thought of as a top 5 DT. If he does, we’ll pay him that bc he’s a good dude. Yeah its lot of money, but this isn’t close to a Jonah or Hock we’re dealing with.
Alim carries a $3.4M cap hit this year. Davis is $14M.
Add those two up, and you’re most of the way to $20M.
Let Davis walk, snap up a comp pick (someone desperate at CB will hand him $12-16M per), re-sign Alim and use some of this year’s surplus cap space to do it.
I agree with a lot of your post. I do think BH loves Alim, and I wouldn’t doubt any of this.
We know BH wanted players like JW, Chark, Jackson, and Reynolds back, but I’m assuming they wanted more money. With the 3 big mega contracts, and a mega contract coming up for Hutch, I just don’t see Alim staying. Those are 4 massive contracts. That’s basically every good team. They keep about 4 massive contracts one always being the QB. As time goes on, cap increases, and cap opens up, I see Branch, and LaPorta being next. Unless Jamo, and Alim completely light it up.
If Jamo doesn’t, not sure he’s sticking around. I’m sure Kerby, Iffy, and Alim will be gone tbh. There’s also Taylor Decker. Unless Alim becomes on a Hutch level, I just don’t think BH is offering 20mil per.
Alim can be Aaron Donald if he wants…
Saw it in him when he waa a freshman at NC State…background of HS running back?
Every snap…lets go!
Watch out…all im sayin"
He is gonna do it…
Hhmmm, me thinks he has returned.
He’s gotta have 25 percent of the den accounts by now 
You’d think by this point he’d change up his posting style. He’s got a very unique posting style and it outs him every time.
Maybe they are AI accounts…
I think even an AI account would figure that out.
Haha you’re probably right… maybe it’s just Jman messing with us all. it does work.
I’m pretty sure it’s Antonio Brown.
Holmes tends to zig on the loaded position classes, letting him take a player they love at another position that slides as a result. I recall fans here losing their minds over not landing a player in a loaded class, as with WR etc recently. WE DIDN’T GET ONE. IT WAS LOADED!
He actually did that in one of his personna’s for a day then reverted back.
