This one popped up in my YouTube feed.
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Put me in!!!
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I will be completely surprised if Willis is drafted in the top 10 of the draft and will be completely pissed if the Lions take him in that range. His accuracy is bad and he may never be able to improve upon that. So any team that takes him has to know that it will be a year or two before he will be able to get on the field and be productive.
Now if the Lions want to take him in the 30s then I have no problem with that, though I would put him strictly in the 10 - 25 range and I would hope that the Lions do not move up for him, when there will be players who can help them this season.
I posted in another thread a while back that Iâm pretty sure accuracy is mostly innate. Everyone can get better with practice and technique, but there is just hand-eye coordination that goes beyond hours and reps.
Check out this twentyman article on how inaccurate all the QBs have been (this is why I think most feel this is a weak QB class).
https://www.detroitlions.com/news/twentyman-senior-bowl-day-3-observations-willis-malone-shakir
Everyone has opinions on Goff, but one thing he is awesome at is accuracy drills like dropping it in trashcans at 40 yards out. These QBs? In one competition drill it was not good:
All about the QBs : Duce Staley and the Lions finished out the week of practices Thursday with a little throwing competition between quarterbacks Malik Willis, Sam Howell and Bailey Zappe. First, they had to throw into a small net target from 10 yards away. Zappe hit one of three throws, while Willis and Howell went 0-fer.
Next, Staley set up a large red garbage can in the back corner of the end zone, and each signal caller got three throws to try and make it in the bucket from the 20-yard line. Willis hit the bucket twice, though it didnât go in. Zappe and Howell had some throws come close, but failed to make it or hit the bucket.
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Maybe I am mis-interpreting you here, but are you stating that nothing he will do in this off-season will affect his evaluation positively and he will be drafted solely on what he has down during the actual college football season?
Senior Bowl, interviews, combine, pro day, individual workouts, etc all have an impact. Sometimes these things may re-affirm what you already thought or may you re-think an evaluation and have you go back. Sometimes you see things you never saw before.
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Willis is not a complete enough prospect to take at #2, IMO. Love his talent, but is he the 2nd best player in this class? Is he even top 20? With the Rams pick it is certainly a gamble worth taking if they like him, but not at 2.
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No, you are mis-interpreting the point I was trying to make, might be the way I worded it. Point I was making was several posters on here were making the case that the Senior Bowl would NOT change what teams and even posters on here would think of their pre-Senior Bowl evaluation. Those same folks were calling Willis as a 2nd rd maybe late 1st round pick. Now all of a sudden there are glowing reports at the Senior Bowl practices and all of sudden the bandwagon has him going as high as 2 OA just based on a couple practices. Just pointing out the contradiction of pre Senior Bowl posts vs now. Just makes me laugh how fast the tide swings on certain players this time of year.
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By the way I think the most important evaluation teams do are the interviews. The combine helps some players display their overall athleticism but the interviews (IMHO) can make or break a player getting selected either higher or lower.
Senior Bowl might help a small school kid given he is going against a lot better comp, but itâs only one game and a few practices. I think for our coaching staff it can give some reassurance to their previous evals.
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If you really check who says what, I donât think positions of individual posters have changed all that much. The ones saying heâs worth only a 3rd round pick are the same ones focusing on the negative traits. Many donât start watching a ton of tape early on, but once guys start getting newsy, and questions about guys are being asked to our HC, QB coach and GM⌠well more will go take a look and comment. I havenât changed my view really and I know Thats2 hasnât either. We really wonât know whoâs more right until the draft - then down the road a few years.
Willis at two is not happening. It just isnât happening. Now, they might be saying they love Willis but that is in an effort to get a trade back partnerâŚthey very well might not like the two DEâs as much. I wouldnât be shocked if the pick is between the two DEâs and Hamilton. I have heard they like Hamilton a lot, he is a very very good player and they need a safety desperately. If they want to go get a qb next year, meaning Goff didnât work out, then they have the draft capital with the 2 1âs and other picks to go get a much better player next year. But that doesnât mean they are going to walk away from GoffâŚthey brought him in with the intention of keeping him. They understand that they didnât give him much to work with this yearâŚyou donât slow roll the wr core rebuild if you are trying to evaluate a qb and are considering moving on from him next yearâŚWillis isnât coming to Detroit.
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Everyone here talking about Willis and Iâm just waiting for us to build a team and wait till baby Manning declares in like 3-4 years.
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I will say you have been steadfast in your eval of Willis! Although I tend to agree with Thats2 more on Willis at this point. But there are a few that have hopped on this bandwagon, maybe not suggesting at 2 but suggesting to somehow trade up in the first from 31/32.
Bottom line for this team (Lions) they donât have the luxury to take a gamble on Willis at 2 and have him sit 1-2 years, even if they like him I donât think they can take the gamble when they have so many other holes to fill and build a solid foundation for a rookie QB.
Would love for him to drop to end of 1st or early 2nd but my opinion is there are other teams that will take him in the late to mid 1st, just because he flashes that potential.
I would be OK with Hamilton, fills an immediate need and he is top 5 of all players in draft IMHO
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He is looking like a future #1 pick and hopefully thats not where we are picking then unless its another teams pick.
So you think if they go through this evaluation process, and they really start to like Willisâ upside. They think he can be a franchise QB and think he would be a perfect fit that Goff will stop them from selecting him, espeically with the Rams pick?
Iâve said this before, but I am perfectly content forgoing a QB this year and seeing what Goff has. I just think as we sit here on February 4th that it is a little too early to think the Lions have closed the book on drafting a QB in the top two rounds.
I know I am in the minority, but safety play is extremely underrated in the eyes of many. People always say how CBâs are so highly valued, and they are, but they mainly have one responsibility. That is why you saw a player like Jalen Ramsey be used as a moveable chess piece this season. They wanted to put him in the best positions to make a greater impact on the game. The best safeties have that ability.
I may be the only one here willing to do this, but I would have no issues signing Marcus Williams, bringing back Tracy Walker and drafting Kyle Hamilton. He can be that moveable chess piece that can drop in the slot, can move into the box, guard TEâs one on one, blitz off the edge or drop deep into coverage. I would use him very similar to what the Steelers did with Polamalu. He never had a specific role and that allowed him to be one of the most impactful defenders in the NFL.
There is plenty of edge talent in this draft, and its not like we are devoid of talent if we bring Charles Harris back. There are even a few free agent edge rushers that can make some sense.
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They donât thoughâŚitâs all smoke and mirrors⌠Never said You canât replace Goff and never said They wonât replace him eventually if it is warranted. You just arenât going to take this kinda risk for this kid.
I wouldnât mind that with us taking Hamilton just for the reasons you state. I think with a combination of Hamilton, Walker, and Williams, that improves our 3rd down defense tremendously because we have always had issues covering TEâs. Like you say you can now put a Williams or Hamilton on that TE and take one of the LBâs off the field.
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I know you have said before that you have some connections and I am not doubting that one bit. I am sure you may know some things that most of us wouldnât. At #2 overall, I would agree 100%. At that spot you just canât take that risk unless you are absolutely in love with the guy. Taking a QB with his potential in the late 1st will not cripple this rebuild if he fails. We have Goff and donât have to let Willis play if hes not ready. If he is ready by 2023, and he proves to be as good as his talent may suggest, you have just hit the jackpot. There is no quicker way to turn a franchise around then to find an elite QB and if you donât have one, and you think someone may be just that, you pull the trigger.
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There are many ways we can go in this draft, and I am sure my opinion may change by that time, but right now this is one of my favorite scenarios. That is especially true if we could drop a few spots and still get him.
I will eat my words if this doesnât happen, but I would put the odds at like 95% that Marcus Williams and Tracy Walker are Detroit Lions in 2022. After reviewing the Saints cap situation, there is no way they are retaining Williams. Aaron Glenn absolutely loves this guy and I am sure Campbell does too. It is one of the weakest positions on our roster. The fit is perfect. I also think with Walkerâs play kind of tailing off as the season went on, his value dropped. Where I once thought it would be too much money to sign them both, now I think we can make it work.