Thought id share this since its DL
https://x.com/BillyM_91/status/1898879787369644398?t=XoqigvrPEc3Y6Tb4AO_Qyg&s=19
I like Risdon but predicting Barnes to lead this team in sacks is crazy. Most expect Hutch to make another run at DPOY and probably have 15 plus sacks.
What to take from it is how they plan to utilize Barnes. More as a pass rusher like he was at Purdue
EDIT: Also, this kind of goes together with the SAM and blitzing LB types we have met with. I havent watched any of the Georgia kid - LB Chaz Chambliss - but his pass rushing at the Shrine reminded me of Arizona Dennis Gardeck.
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Yea I get it but lead the team in sacks is a bit much lol.
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I like Scourton a lot. I have doubts he will be there at 28. Looking at how much pass rushers are getting paid (whats new lol?), and teams are gonna value him higher than most think.
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Yea I do get what you mean about keeping our picks in this draft. Not sure it’s worth moving up unless someone really drops that they love.
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I can’t imagine that a seasoned, and smart, GM like Holmes would go into the draft with a usually broken Davenport and a very average Paschal as their primary starting edges alongside Hutch. He must have cut Za’Darius for a reason.
Then again, he went into last year with pretty much this same D-Line so maybe he’s content with it which is a bit baffling to me but he’s a lot smarter than I am.
Sure you can draft one but it seems a little risky to bank on a rookie in the late 1st to be a solution this season and to force himself into drafting one early because the depth is so weak currently.
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Yeah you said that before I believe, I don’t know what to say to that.
This. But also trading up takes away from adding development pieces and future starters. I honestly think there are only a select few who will be differance makers as a pass rusher in this draft. And some of them are raw.
For example, and this is not to bicker as i know lots of Lions fans like these two, but in my opinion, the two Ohio State DEs wont be difference makers in the NFL. While they can probably carve out solid NFL careers, they just dont have the natural tools to develop into anything more than they are now. Basically, they will just be a JAG in the NFL in my opinion, and that is not what we want, as we can find that from an average NFL vet. We are looking for someone who will truly make a difference. Davenport has that potential, but is on a one year deal and has injury concerns. And, if he has a great season and stays healthy (hopefully), he very well could get a bigger contract we want to take on next off season.
I also dont think Trey Hendrickson is a special talent, but i cant argue with production. But no way id pay the cost in draft capital and the contract he wants. He does not have elite physical skill and is 30 years old. Its a shame Von Miller has this checkered past. One year deal? I think he would be a Lion by now.
If Barnes has more sacks than Hutch I will literally shit my pants more than James Houston on gameday 
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You got my mojo rising with that tidbit
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Trust the process guys! Davenport is are money ball 3rd down pass rusher. Pascal are early down end. This is less wear and tear on Davenport.
Levi play on the end at times.
We are playing money ball on the edge. Besides Hutch.
I think we bring back Mohammad and another 1.5-2m dollar edge.
We are building this defense from the back end to the front. That is Holmes way. We have brought in high prices CB every year the last 3 years, Sutton, CD3, Reed. Spent 2 high picks on CB last year.
Said this last year on here on got ridiculed for my take that Holmes builds from the back to the front but after 3 years you can see what he has done.
2nd round pass rusher. I think we go OG 1st rd.
Again Davenport or bust.
So drafting Hutch 1st rd, Levi 2nd rd, Alim 3rd rd, Paschal 2nd rd, Bromart 3rd rd before we ever drafted a CB before the 7th round makes you believe this theory? We also paid for DJ Reader and traded for Zadarius. Brad has not neglected to address the front. Players just didn’t live up to expectations. It happens.
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But what DL has he signed in FA or Traded for? Beside a mid season break glass trade. Z. Smith.
His priorities has been on the back end. His 2 biggest FA signing have been 2 CB. Sutton and DJ Reed as far as years and dollars.
He has taken 5 DB in the first 3 rounds. 3 in the last 2 drafts in the 1st and 2nd rd. He has at least took 1 DB in the first 3 rounds of every draft.
He has taken 5 DL in the first 3 rounds but the last one was Bromart in the late 3rd. If you take Bromart out of it which you can because he has got 54 snaps in his career they have not taken a DL that has got any real snaps in 2 years in the 1st 3 rounds.
He has prioritized the back end more than the defensive front imo. Especially from 2022 to 2023 season and then again this past season 2024 almost completely different every year.
That second part may be true but I definitely wouldn’t go as far as the first bit up there. There were a LOT of people around who wanted to draft Aaron Curry over Stafford back in the day. Damn near 50% if my memory isn’t failing me. More recently, there was a significant number of people wanting Thibz over Hutch.
The guys on this site may get a lot or even most of the picks right but nobody ever gets it perfect everytime.
For every outside free agent you bring in, you lose the ability to sign one of your own talented people… Do I personally believe Brad should be a bit more aggressive right now? Yes…
That said we had no idea that Levi and Barnes would both be back at a combined 13.5M- AAV right? We had many posters with varying levels of inside information that were POSITIVE that Iffy would not be back, and they stated by by mid season…
Swift, Hock, Swaggy, Reynolds, Chark, E Brown, Okudah, Golladay, Elliott, Stutton, etc have all proven to be inferior to the players we have replaced them with…
It’s pretty clear that guys like C Wilkins, L Davis, N Suh, A Haynesworth, E Armstead, J Hargrave, B Huff, H Reddick, etc haven’t panned out…
Again- lets say we draft Derrick Harmon, Tre Harris or Tory Horton, David Walker or Jack Sawyer, and Luke Kandra… and we sign a guy like Z Smith back- are we not pretty stacked everywhere?
Say that to all the great players including HOF players that were picked late, or weren’t picked in the first round at all, or those that were undrafted. Ask ARSB if there were any good WR’s left when he was drafted. This is where good GM’s come in.
I think a lot of fans believe unless you’re picking high you won’t get a good player which is not usually the case. We’re also just so used to this team drafting high.
Look at all the teams who are good, and stay good for years (sometimes decades) who draft late year after year. They’re all telling you to hold their beer.
Plus Brad makes trades. I trust in Brad.
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Maxx Crosby agrees with you.
Very true. And LaPorta and Branch were 2nd rounders. So Holmes may very well find a stud dlinemen at 28. If any GM is gonna do it, it’s the villiain.
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Nice post. I agree w/every point. I’ll add that even if they hope Barnes becomes a pass-rush demon, they can only hope at this point. Even at Purdue he wasn’t exactly a terror - 7.5 sacks in 12 games in the one season they apparently emphasized his pass rush. Anyone they can pick up now in FA has obvious warts, including Von Miller.
Weird. REALLY hard to see them doing better than Z opposite Hutch this year.