When a basketball team is down by 10 points with 20 seconds left in the game they usually have their best shooters chuck up 3-point shots, not because it’s the highest percentage shot to take but because they have nothing to lose and they are SUNK if they don’t hit a couple big ones.

Martin Mayhew is this Lions organization’s best shooter and he chucked up some 3-pointers in his own way by selecting a few highly-talented players with red flags hanging off of them.

I for one, do not blame the Detroit Lions general manager for doing so. When you’re rebuilding a team that lacked more talented football players than nearly the entire league for about a decade and finally bottoms out at 0-16 you are not put in the normal position of being able to play it safe.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Martin Mayhew didn’t get this team to 10-6 and the playoffs by playing it safe and making sure that all of his draft picks were boy scouts. He made sure that every player he selected was a superior player in his opinion.

BPA stands for best player available not best person available. Continue reading “You Can’t Fault Mayhew For Choosing Highly-Talented “Risk” Players” »

When you draft elite-level talent, your team will have highly-talented players that produce immediately and elite-level players that breakout after a delay in progression or unfortunate injuries. The Detroit Lions have had plenty producers on the field the last couple of years, but it’s really intriguing how many difference makers are waiting at bay.

Willie Young (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

I looked more into this after former NFL GM Bill Polian gave his list of 10 pivotal players in the NFL this season and sitting at #3 on that list is Detroit Lions’ defensive tackle Nick Fairley.

So, before I get into our other potential season-changing breakout players for the Detroit Lions, here is what Polian wrote about Fairley:

“Fairley could be the missing piece in making the Detroit defense dominant. If the big Auburn alum can reach his potential, a trio of him, Ndamukong Suh and the emerging Corey Williams could make the Lions’ D-line extremely hard to handle up the middle and wreak havoc on the pocket (which will help an improving secondary).

I still think the Lions need more from the running back position to be legitimate title contenders, but if Fairley steps up, an already improved defense will be taken to another level.”

Although I don’t know how an 8 year veteran like Corey Williams is “emerging”, I agree with everything else Mr.Polian said.

The exciting thing for Lions fans though is that this roster is PACKED with young and talented players who could blow up this year and propel the Detroit Lions to the absolute upper-echelon elite in the NFL. You all know what that means

Here’s is my top 10 Detroit Lions players that could breakout and lead this team to greatness.
Continue reading “Detroit Lions Stacked With Potential Breakout Players” »