Those tricky little Canadians. You just can’t trust them.
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But last year my hair was on the line and you put up nothing. The D’s been majorly upgraded with Reader, Davenport and all the talented corners. I aint risking my hair for nothing this time 
Last year was a no brainer I knew my hair was going nowhere. For the record it’s not quite Anzalone length but it’s flowing well.
Singing a 4 min song is nothing compared to walking around bald for weeks
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I would also be completely bald in Canadian winter with that deal… i have a lot more to lose. Lmao
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Actually, if you go by DVOA, which IMHO is superior to yards or points, we were 13th, just out of the top third, but well into the middle third and top half. If we could fix those long completions, I think we’ll easily be top 10. The thing that gives me pause is speed, or lack thereof. Our LB’s are not sideline to sideline types, so I think we’ll still have problems with running QB’s.
Sounds like cold feet to me 
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Yeah - I only bet when I can’t lose.
Let me think about this…our offensive coordinator is Ben Johnson, who has turned down 22 head coaching jobs. Our defensive coordinator is Aaron Glenn who has interviewed for 22 head coaching positions without a nibble.
Nah, keep your hair, 57.
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Smart man you are @JerseyJungle but I was really looking forward to your music career I’ll hatch another plan yet. It’s still early June
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I can’t be overly optimistic. Not w this defense. I had several back and forths w @Davicus last year about this defense and the fact that they were a top 10 defense at different early parts of the season. Hell, sutton was being touted as a pro bowler a few weeks in, dumb woodward take. Point is he was right, it was all fool’s gold. This is on paper a much improved defense. But until DL help aside from reader, mcniel and hutch, step up, all we got is a bunch of role players and potential. The secondary is much improved. Davis and robertson are way better then anyone we had last year. But need to see them play w the rookies and everyone else first. Should this be a top 10 defense? Yes. Will it be a top 10 defense? I believe so. I believe in AG. But im not going to be annoyed w anyone looking at us and not giving us flowers bc on paper our defense is better…although i would say PFF is loving what we did…so we are getting flowers.
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No more excuses for AG. Holmes did almost everything he possibly could to give him what he needed.
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Every year, Lions fans have thought we have had a good, talented defense. Every year they have been proven wrong.
Last year,
Sutton proved he wasn’t anywhere close to an $11M CB
Moseley $6M salary got us two snaps
CJGJ $6.5M salary played half the snaps in 3 games
Charles Harris’ salary was reduced to $3.5M and he was still overpaid and is now out of the league
Romeo’s salary was reduced to $2.5M and is now out of the league
Jacobs hasn’t found a team to even give him a minimum salary contract.
Hopefully Brad has acquired some players that can finally produce and stay healthy.
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Last year I was worried about the secondary even after we signed Sutton. Jacobs was a nice story but there was no talent OF depth after Sutton and Jacobs. Many of us didn’t love Moseley as a free agent as that injury is tough on corners. Lots of reason for concern.
Further, Romeo and Charles Harris were concerns too. Levi wasn’t being counted on by any here so DT was also a concern.
The Lions run defense was outstanding in 2023. FAR exceeding reasonable standards. But CB and Safety were concerns. Iffy was unproven and we lost Ceedy early. Walker never got back to form.
But the Lions run defense STILL performed well (credit Benito Jones) but the secondary was a concern BEFORE injuries hit. I LOVED the Branch pick but I wanted 2 CBs in the draft still. And I liked the Sutton signing. But damn, the corners simply fell apart in 2023. Awful doesn’t even describe what happened in 2023.
In 2024 I don’t have those concerns. CB looks good to me now. Safety isn’t awesome but it might also be good depending on Iffy. LBers look tough as hell now. Houston is back and we have Marcus Davenport. DJ Reader is a MASSIVE upgrade.
I think this defense ends up top half good or even better. The talent is there and young guys are now experienced. There is more depth than ever. I like where this D is now and I had real concerns in 2023.
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It’s hard to compare fairly because it appears that Ben is a far superior coordinator to AG, but if you look at personnel…
Comparing the receivers and tight ends to the secondary, you’ve got Ra and LaPorta, but beyond that, I’d put most of our corners and safeties ahead of our remaining offensive talent. Jamo is still mostly potential, and I would put my money on Arnold being a better cb than Jamo at WR at this point.
Our offensive line is legit, but not necessarily better than Hutch, McNeil, and Reader lining up against them. We’ll see on that last end spot, but the d line depth is certainly better than the o line.
Our LB corp is deep with talent, but Goff and the RBs are very good as well.
What I’m getting at is that aside from one question mark at DE that may turn out well, it’s much easier to spot deficiencies on the offensive side. I’d give the edge to the offense in ultra premium talent at a few spots, but the average talent per position is better on defense. Unproven, but the players are there.
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Yeeeep!
I suspect most are not factoring that in!
YEEEESSS
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I see this too, but I also think AGbrings a shit ton to the team in terms of being a leader of men…I think he may actually be a better hc candidate, despite coordinator abilities. As Spielman said about coach Dan…peopel want to work with/for him. Is that the case with Ben and/or AG? If so, to what extent?
Really enjoyed reading that. Very possible. I still think our offensive line is incredibly offensive. If you are right about the Dl being as good or better…wowza
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I’m not sure if AG has done more with less, but that’s neither here nor there.
There is so much more talent on offense than defense and it really isn’t that close.
If you want to compare the offense to defense, look no further than excellent cap % analysis that @DBend144 put together on offense we have:
OT - 3rd Sewell (Highest paid RT)
QB - 6th Goff
WR - 6th ARSB
RB - 13th Monty
IOL - 14th Ragnow (who is the highest paid Center)
OT - 18th Decker
IOL - 33rd Glasgow
IOL - 35th Zeitler
Then highly drafted rookies:
12th overall Gibbs
1th overall Jamo
34th overall LaPorta
On defense we have:
CB - 9th C Davis
LB - 23rd Anzalone
IOL - 27th Reader
CB - 28th Robertson
Rookies
2nd overall Hutchinson
18th overall Campbell
24th overall Arnold
41st Levi O
45th Branch
46th Paschal
61st Rakestraw
McNeil/Houston/Barnes
We have two rookies contributing at a high level on offense. 3 on defense plus Houston, Barnes will probably be more of a backup this year (hopefully Campbell steps up).
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Defense deserves the same “Highly Drafted” designation that Offense has.
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I won’t believe it until Aaron Glenn proves me wrong.
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