Last year there was S from Illinois that I wanted the Lions to draft so bad as he was such a natural ballhawk and playmaker think his name is Kirby you might have heard of him.Now 2023 draft is upon us and the Lions need help at CB in a big way.Devon is exactly the type of guy Glenn and Holmes will be locked on he has length,speed and comes with bad intentions as a tackler.I believe it’s between 3 or 4 guys at #6 and Witherspoon is starting to get some love.
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I have not watched alot of College ball, but I am intrigued by the CB Gonzales from Oregon. Now I have to say that its due to his measurables and he seems to be tall, long and fast.
Would he be an option at 6 or how does he stack up against all the other CB’s mentioned - Porter Jr, Ringo, etc.
Thanks for any info.
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Gonzalez, Witherspoon and Porter Jr are all damn near perfect CB’s for the defense Gonzalez does need to work on his tackling for me but he is so damn fast!!
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Watch the Michigan game against Illinois this year it doesn’t take long to see Witherspoon’s willingness to smack some dudes.
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Ryan Walters and Aaron Henry did such a great job with their secondary. In addition tk Witherspoon, Sydney Brown is really good. Jartavis Martin also played well last year. From what I understand he’ll be getting a look at CB during the Senior Bowl. Martin imoressed me with his ball skills so if the juice is there he may have some versitility.
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Mike Renner said Witherspoon allowed like 3 tyards in press coverage all year.
I googled him and watched his highlights. First play was him laying the wood on a swing pass. Very impressed by what I saw!
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Isn’t KerJo from Illinois?
Hard yes to Witherspoon.
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Yes, JKerb is from there.
My issue with Witherspoon, and when the author says that he could have easily had twice as many penalties than he got he isn’t kidding. Physical is OK, grabby is not.
“The aggressive nature of his play is what makes him special, but it also can create some problems. Witherspoon can be grabby and overly physical down the field, creating unnecessary contact between him and the receiver. In college, they are more apt to swallow the whistle in these scenarios, but in the NFL, any substantial contact past the five yards contact window will draw a flag immediately. He was flagged for six penalties this past season, and it could have easily been double digits.”
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The only negative to Witherspoon is before this past season he wasn’t great. He had a huge jump in his play this year.
I think it’s between him and Gonzalez for CB1. Cam Smith closely behind.
But I’m glad everyone else is figuring out how overrated Kelee Ringo is.
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And I just saw this guy had us taking Witherspoon at 6 and then taking Mayer at 18. That pretty much discredits this entire mock for me.
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Until the playoffs.
It amazes me how bad and inconsistent officiating is.
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And in the playoffs, it matters which team is doing it.
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Agreed. Illinois produces some quality DBs, as we all know, and Witherspoon seems to be in that “1B - late 1st rd” tier from the mocks I’ve seen (still very early obviously). I also wonder if we’d be able to trade down from 18 to the latter part of the 1st round and still be able to pick him up.
I like Jacobs, happy to have Okudah (for next year anyway since we can’t save money by cutting him) for a talented depth guy that could surprise, and still have hope for Lucas as a depth guy at least.
Other than that though the CB room needs to be totally overhauled. Witherspoon would be a great start. I don’t think we’ll sign a top FA, but maybe they’ll look at a guy like Anthony Brown from Dallas or someone like Dean (I think I have that right?) from Tampa Bay for some veteran help to go with the young guys.
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With you there 100%. I don’t really care how we get there, but we have to get some better players in our secondary. I don’t think we’ll spend like crazy in FA but some quality vet signings like Elliott + 2 or even 3 CBs in the draft ought to do the trick.
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Agreed. He’s at the top of my CB list as well. Any CB that allows 1 catch for 2 yards in press coverage for an entire season is solid in my book. He’s a hell of a tackler as well.
I’m usually not big on drafting CB’s, especially high, but this year might be a bit different. The Lions need secondary help in the worst of ways and this is a very good CB class.
Frankly, I’d be ok if the Lions double up on CB’s early and land Witherspoon + Branch/Gonzalez/Porter Jr. That’d be a huge boost for our secondary.
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I’m actually just as concerned about who our secondary coach will be as who we get in FA and the draft. We need someone who can elevate their play.
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An out of house secondary coach wouldn’t be a bad thing IMO as long as he doesn’t mess with our culture.
It seems Pleasant was the perfect fit for what we wanted but it just didn’t work out.
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