Here’s an article that just came out less than an hour ago on Iffy. This article was pretty harsh but it pointed out the exact same things I did.
I actually thought he showed promise in man coverage but he wasn’t as physical in press as you’d expect. I also pointed out his recovery concerns. This article touches on those same concerns.
The article even suggests that he might not make the final 53. Which I think is a bit of a hot take. However like I said above he’s a developing CB that is a few years away.
I know it isnt your take… but like on 97.1 when karsch and Anderson do their bold ass or dumb ass predictions, i would say the idea iffy doesnt make the 53 next year severly leans toward dumb ass but i suppose anything is possible.
With that belief should we consider loading up on d line and filling cb with midtier free agents that can flourish with a high level pass rush? Just thinking from a roster building and replacing talent perspective.
I think it’s a bit of a hot take and that was written by Daniel Kelly too. Whom I’m not the biggest fan of.
However he pointed out a lot of the same things I did that are real concerns for Iffy. Areas Iffy needs to work on. Right now he’s a liability but that’s not uncommon for young CB’s either.
I do think we have a coaching staff that can develop a young CB like him so I have hope we will see some strides in him this offseason.
"At this point, Melifonwu may not even be a lock to make the 53-man roster in the coming season.
Nobody can watch what he put on film in the final three games of the 2021 season (against Atlanta 12/26, against Seattle 1/2 and vs. Green Bay 1/9) and say anything different."
I watched those games, though I did not focus solely on Ifeatu. And I am going to disagree with Daniel Kelly. Ifeatu is a lock to make the 53-man roster. IMO, he will make vast improvements in 2022, getting significant playing time if he’s healthy.
If we hit on all our future 1/2 round picks, it will not matter how many each year we have….
The past leadership sucked at the draft….
This dynamic duo has potential to be much much better at it…
And yes!, it would be freaking awesome to be five young players this season and have them all start and one or two become elite
I mean we could have up to ten one and two yrs players having a major impact on our ability to win lots of games!!
I think BigNatty hit the nail on the head. I fully realize in 2023 it is possible we need to overhaul the entire CB group. Its also possible they can emerge as a top 10 unit, IMO.
We KNOW we need at least 1 ILB’er, 2 safeties, an edge rusher, and a DE. Those are 100% needs, nobody is obvious waiting in the wings. Even if Levi improves, who mans the other spot in 2023 after Brockers is gone? At WR, Amon Ra is the only treu building block. Cephus may turn into a solid player for us, but do we think he is definitely more then a #3/#4 guy? Do we have our future QB? Is Hockenson the long term answer at TE or is he going to want more money then he is worth?
Everyone has their opinions and a completely understand the thought of needing a CB, I do. I just think, big picture, there are smarter ways to use our resources. Now if we are sitting there and someone we love has dropped way below what we valued them, I get it. Outside of that scenario, I’d be disapointed if we selected one with one of our first 4 picks.
I think DT is as big a need as OLB/Edge is to be honest. But I think we can solve a lot of that in FA. This years free agency class has a lot to offer and the draft is a tad thin. I actually started a thread about this just for @BigNatty. Here’s a link to that if your interested.
As for edge I disagree that nobody is waiting in the wings. The Lions will likely draft Hutch or KT at 2OA to fill the spot vacated by Flowers whom I’m expecting to be a cap casualty.
The opposite side has ROkwara starting. Who is definitely a question mark coming off an Achilles injury. But behind the two starters we have JOkwara, and Bryant. We also have Harris as a free agent who Holmes has said was a priority to resign. That’s 5 and I doubt we would carry any more than that.
Now if ROkwara isn’t expected back or Harris is lost in FA then I’d say we would need to add one more or we will just restructure Flowers and keep him around. But that’s a fairly deep group.
The truth is we need talent across the entire defense. What we’re debating here is what to prioritize first.
Not to hijack, but its weird to me that we don’t get a 3rd round comp pick for HIRING a Black GM but the Rams get one for losing Brad Holmes. New rule starting this year.
I think having that many back end picks means we could see some moving up and down the board to get our guys. I won’t be shocked to see that. Moreso when trading one of those day 3 picks is all it takes to move up so probably around the backend of day 2.
I am a huge Julian fan, have been since before he was drafted. Even with that said I don’t think he profiles as a dominant edge player. That is what we need, IMO. Having a guy like Watt, Garret, Bosas, von Miller, etc is huge.
Since we run a base 3-4, when I say DE I mean 3-4 DE. I think we need a guy to play the 3-4 DE and 3 tech in a base 4 front. I like McNeil as the NT and Penisini is good depth.
LOL 
