BATFAN Begins – #30 Cost Analysis
April 23rd, 2010 | by detfan1979 |Firs of all, BATFAN begins — and at #2 overall, his name was Ndamukong Suh just as almost every single Lions fan was hoping for. I had just finished Taekwondo class, went to my car, got my phone and saw the Rams did indeed take Bradford. I knew what was coming and wasn’t disappointed. There were a few Lions fans in the academy, and all I had to do was walk over and say “Suh” and everyone went wild. I get the feeling this guy is going to be a force in the NFL, and he should make the Lions defense instantly better.
As for BATFAN at #34, below is a list of players I had pegged for possible BATFAN status at #34 based on player visits with Lions, etc:
Everson Griffen DE USC
Sean Weatherspoon OLB Missouri
Anthony Davis OT Rutgers
Devin McCourty CB Rutgers
Jermaine Gresham TE Oklahoma
Kareem Jackson CB Alabama
Ryan Matthews RB Fresno State
Patrick Robinson CB FSU
Jahvid Best RB California
Carlos Dunlap DE Florida
Charles Brown OT USC
Only 3 – (Dunlap, Brown, and Griffen) made it out of the first round. Yikes! Looks like the Lions had good talent scouted. Lets be clear: Once it became apparent to the Lions that their top rated players wouldn’t be available in round one, they had to make a choice between making a move to secure the top guy on their board, or hoping a trade happened tomorrow. Rather than chance it, Mayhew made a bold move. The cost was pretty low. They moved up from 34 to 30, and moved down 28 spots in round 4 from 100 to 128. They still have a 4th round pick. They also gave up pick 214 in the 7th. Oooh.
I said before, and I will again: My feelings on Best are that he’ll be the second coming of either Brian Calhoun (never on the field) or Brian Westbrook. Just don’t see much middle ground. He’ll be a situational weapon sharing the backfield with Kevin Smith who is more of a solid all-around back. Most teams have at least two RB now and the Lions have theirs. With the top CB’s ready to be picked before 34, and Best most likely taken as well the Lions would have been left with hoping for a trade, or taking a risk on a DE. It’s a gamble, but IF it pans out for Mayhew could be good…
It was a crazy round one – Denver alone made about 4 – 5 trades either back or up, with two additional trades they weren’t involved in to cap it off at 7 trades between picks 11 and 32. That is one trade every 3 picks and just insane!
NFL.com has a Trade Tracker. Here is a summary of what teams traded what to move where tonight, and you can judge if Mayhew got good value for his move to 30:
- Broncos get #13 and #113 from the 49ers, for #11 (Anthony Davis, OT).
- Miami gets #28, #40, and #126 from the Chargers for #12, #110, and #173 (Ryan Matthews)
- Broncos get #24, #70, #87 from the Eagles for #13 (Brandon Graham)
- Patriots get #24, #113 from the Broncos for #22 (Demaryius Thomas)
- Patriots get #27, #90 from the Cowboys for #24, #119 (Dez Bryant)
- Ravens get #43, #70, #114 from the Broncos for #25, #119 (Tim Tebow)
- Vikings get #34, #100, #214 from the Lions for #30, #128 (Jahvid Best)
Denver, for all of it’s moves around, ended up gaining: #25, #87 & #119, giving up #43, #114. If not for the Tebow trade, the Broncos would have been doing even better for essentially being in the right part of the draft to just keep trading down. If we look at the comparable trades up:
- 49ers: 4th round pick to move up 2 spots
- Broncos: 4th round pick to move up 2 spots
- Cowboys: Move 29 spots from round 3 to 4 to move up 3 spots
- Lions: Move 28 spots down in round 4 + a late 7th to move up 4 spots
Mayhew didn’t make a killing like a luck Ozzie Newsome did, but he was right on the button as far as the going values for moving up. If anything, he was on the lower end of the scale price wise. So it wasn’t a spectacular value trade in and of itself, but it wasn’t overpayment either. (Goldilocks sits down in the perfect chair to eat the perfect porridge “just right”)
My guess is this: Mayhew looked at his board, and realized that without a trade down to the mid/late-second he would be reaching at 34 because the 4 guys left he wanted were going to get taken 30 – 33. The cost wasn’t bad, and they got who they wanted to complete the offensive backfield.
After day one, the Lions still have need at: OLB, DE, CB and S. With really just their 3rd to net an immediate starter, with maybe the 4th rounder being that caliber if they are lucky, the Lions will only fill two of those “holes” depending on who falls to them. Who will BATFAN be at #66? Will there be any more trades? Tune in tomorrow night at the same BATFAN time, same BATFAN channel.
Oh yeah — SUUUUHHHHH!!!! Next Poll: Ndamukong Suh’s nickname. {looks at advert for Suh #90 Jersey at Detroitlions.com. Resists clicking “buy”…for now…}
Let the Big Guys roll!
Tags: 2010 NFL draft trades, Detroit Lions 2010 draft, Draft, Jahvid Best,Ndamukong Suh, NFL Draft, NFL Draft trades
4 Responses to “BATFAN Begins – #30 Cost Analysis”
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- Apr 23, 2010: Lions Building Their Own House of Spears in Round 1 | detroit.rssible.com
By chiefger139 on Apr 23, 2010
im very happy so far, Ive wanted a 1st round rb for the last 3 years now and we finally got him and 2 starters , 2 very good starters I may add. The rest of the draft now is gravy, who ever we get now if they contribute is a plus, so glad they didnt wait till the 3rd round if they were going to get a rb with there top 3 picks.Now get the cb or safety or a guard, they will have less impact on the team if theyre mediocre, the positions they filled last night will by far have a more immediate and noticeable impact on the team-good job mayhew and crew!!
By jreffy on Apr 23, 2010
I’m not as high on the pick of Best as everyone else, but I do recognize that he brings some speed and elusiveness that Detroit hasn’t had since a certain #20 was running wild in the Silverdome.
What I can’t figure out is why did they trade up 4 spots for him? Were they that worried someone was going to take him before them? Maybe they were concerned that Minnesota was on the phone looking for a trade with someone else.
Either way, I’m looking forward to making a road trip to visit my folks in Westland, and then seeing a game at the new “House of Spears”.
As for the rest of their picks, I know they have a need at CB, but I think the Lions are still talent deprived enough to be taking BPA from here on out.
By RIP on Apr 23, 2010
Totally agree with BPA the rest of the way even if that includes a QB with accuracy and a winning history. Do not get me wrong for I want Stafford to succeed. I do believe Best would have been taken by Minnie (if no trade was available, Indy or at 33. No way N.O. was trading thier pick with Brees presentling the last player chosen in round one.
Best could be a great pick up and perhaps be the closes thing to Barry since his retirement. Again, do not mistaken me for that comment for there will never be another Barry.
Good draft so far.
P.S. Interested to see if Lions will draft RB Keji Karim from S. Illinois in the later part of the draft.