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Detroit Lions draft position slipping away with late wins

Author: Vtrd Ce
by Vtrd Ce
Posted: Feb 18, 2016

As recently as over two months ago, the 1-7 Detroit Lions had a chance at the number one overall pick in May's NFL Draft.

Amid a 5-2 finish to the season and a flurry of wins, that's but a distant memory now. With Sunday's victory over the sinking San Francisco 49ers, the Lions now are slotted to pick 13th, just on the outside of the top ten, just behind teams such as Tampa Bay, New Orleans and the New York Giants.

With one week left, here's how the current top ten stacks up courtesy of San Francisco 49ers Jerseys Cheap.

Certainly, next weekend's game with the Lions taking on the Chicago Bears will have plenty to say about where each team drafts. Detroit and Chicago have identical records, meaning the loser, depending on what happens above them, could have a good chance to stick around near the bottom of the top ten or vault themselves back inside of it.

Obviously, the Lions and their brass would maintain that finishing the season strong is the only objective, but nobody could blame fans for thinking about draft positioning while turning a watchful eye to other games.

Next week, some of the most important other games for Lions' fans to watch will be the New Orleans vs. Atlanta matchup, and Philadelphia vs. New York matchup. Both figure to have a direct impact on where Detroit ends up picking.

The Detroit Lions' front office has been in a charitable mood over the past few weeks, dealing players away who excelled for them during camp yet stood little chance of actually cracking their roster.

That theme continue on Monday, as the Lions swung a morning deal for tight end Tim Wright of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Going the other way in the trade was kicker Kyle Brindza, who wasn't going to beat out Matt Prater for the starting role in Detroit and was likely to be cut near the end of the preseason anyway.

Once again, the Lions managed to get something for essentially nothing as it relates to the roster.

Interesting to note, however, is the something the Lions got in Wright. Given depth at tight end, few would have figured Detroit would have targeted an up and coming pass catcher at that position, but that's exactly what they did. In his first two years in the league, Wright has made quite a splash, racking up 830 yards and 11 touchdowns combined for the Buccaneers in 2013 and New England Patriots in 2014.

Though those numbers might not seem that impressive on the whole, it's significantly more than the 392 yards and two touchdowns Detroit's own trio of Brandon Pettigrew, Eric Ebron and Joseph Fauria amassed in 2014, which is important to note. Though injuries were a major problem for Fauria, the trio bumbled their way to a miserable performance last season.

The Lions just signed Pettigrew to a four-year contract extension and aren't likely to give up on a first round pick like Ebron after his rookie year, meaning the smart money could be on Fauria suddenly feeling the roster heat thanks to the Lions' addition of Wright.

Fauria has had an up and down offseason, and hasn't made the type of noise likely needed to completely secure a spot while being slowed at times by various injuries, perhaps leading to the move to nab Wright, who has been fairly consistent early in his career and might be a more complete tight end.

Either way, the morning move signified that tight end is a spot to watch in the coming days and weeks.

About the Author

San Francisco 49ers Jerseys Obviously, the Lions and their brass would maintain that finishing the season strong is the only objective, but nobody could blame fans for thinking about draft positioning while turning a watchful eye to other games.

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Author: Vtrd Ce

Vtrd Ce

Member since: Feb 18, 2016
Published articles: 1

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