After fully defending the Detroit Lions 1st round pick of Riley Reiff I am having a hard time understanding what the heck they are thinking with their second round draft selection. I’m not going to start throwing around the “MM word” because it’s not fair, but the Detroit Lions have shocked many Lions fans by drafting Oklahoma wide receiver Ryan Broyles with their second-round selection (54th overall) in the 2012 NFL Draft.

The Lions could have had C Peter Konz out of Wisconsin, Nebraska LB LaVonte David and various cornerbacks who were available. Evidently the Lions feel that Ryan Broyles is a better football player and they went with him.

Ryan Broyles played wide receiver and returned punts for Oklahoma.

Here are his measurables and draft projections (according to various media sources)

Height: 5-10
Weight: 192
40 Time: 4.56
Projected Draft Round (2012): 2-4

(Photo by Jackson Laizure/Getty Images)

Broyles looks to have slipped a bit in the draft according to Lions management because of suffering a torn ACL towards the end of 2011 against Texas. Broyles will likely not be a full participant in early training camp this year, he is only 6 months into his recovery. Martin Mayhew feels that the Lions can afford to bring him along slowly.

After the drafting of Broyles, Mayhew said… “We have the luxury of being able to rehab this guy very thoroughly, very carefully, and just allow him to get healthy,” Martin Mayhew continues… “If the guy were healthy now, he would have been gone way before our pick. We’re just fortunate to have this guy on our team. I think he’s a great talent.”

When Mayhew mentioned this I thought about when the Lions drafted Shaun Rogers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft. Rogers only fell that low because of his injury and I think it’s fair to say that he was a very productive player for the Lions. Will this draft choice turn out as well or better? Only time will tell.

But the questions still remain. Don’t we have much bigger needs than an injured wide receiver? What about this shredded defensive backfield? Why not draft Konz, the center out of Wisconsin to eventually replace Riola?

Ryan Broyles did not work out at the Combine, but reportedly showed nice progress at a pro day work out with an impressive 40 time considering he’s only six months removed from the injury.

Please don’t misunderstand me.

I am not saying that Ryan Broyles will not be good, I actually EXPECT him to be good. My issue is that I don’t know if he’ll be good enough to offset the glaring holes that are being left on the roster, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The Rundown on New Detroit Lion WR Ryan Broyle

The man is a Lion now, so all we can do is hope for the best right? I certainly do and he gave me reason to be excited after my initial confusion. Looking on the bright side of things, Broyles was exceptionally productive in his collegiate career, he had 349 receptions, 4586 receiving yards and 45 touchdowns. He is known for his amazing hands and superior catching ability.

Ryan Broyles makes the most of his smaller body style, even with his smallish stature he excelled because of good quickness and very savvy route running. He is very good at creating mismatches against linebackers and safeties, but lacks the high-end speed to stretch the field vertically.

As far as character is concerned, the guy might as well be a Boy Scout, he won’t bring trouble to the locker room or organization,he’s known to have great character, Broyles is a hard worker, a good teammate and comes from a good family.

Overall, I am disappointed that the Detroit Lions were not able to fill a more than dire need in the secondary with their second round pick, but I will be rooting for Ryan Broyles and hoping he can keep those points stacking up on the scoreboard. It sure looks like were going to need every single point.

Player Comparision: According to MockingtheDraft.com , Broyles is similar to Mario Manningham, formerly of the New York Giants. Probably not a #1 wideout on most teams and definitely not with the Lions, but a slot guy who can slash zone coverage and is a great receiver in short yardage situations who swallows the ball with his hands.