Detroit taking Jason Smith? Rams on the clock?

by Ryan Van Bibber on Mar 23, 2009 7:00 AM CDT in 2009 NFL draft

Take this with a grain of salt or two, but KFFL is reporting that the Detroit Lions are negotiating with the player they plan to draft first overall this year. And who is that player you ask?

Reports are that the Lions are negotiating with Baylor OT Jason Smith. (Hat tip Arrowhead Pride).

If negotiations go well, that puts the Rams on the clock. It also narrows our choices, making Eugene Monroe the only possible LT we would draft at #2. Of course, Devaney and Co. could still go another route and draft LB Aaron Curry or, well, anyone else that may be on their draft board behind Smith.

The news represents a meteoric rise in Smith's draft stock. Going into the Combine he was widely considered to be on the fringe of the top group of left tackles.

[Note by VanRam, 03/23/09 10:32 AM EDT ] It's probably best to take this news with a grain of salt. The Lions could very well be negotiating with several candidates they'd select with the top pick.

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Take Curry!

Let’s not miss our chance to have the impact linebacker we have been missing since the loss of London Fletcher. Patrick Willis and Lofa Tatupu have been wreaking havoc on the NFC West for the past few years. We need to add our own thumper to really upgrade the defense and give us a chance to keep the opponents from scoring as much as they have been doing on us the past few years. We can still take a solid offensive lineman in the second round.

by NachoD on Mar 23, 2009 1:36 PM CDT reply actions

What's interesting about this story...

First of all, we really don’t know any more about who the Lions will taken than we did before. But Detroit is in a position to dictate how much money we pay for our guy, because the market for top picks is set by the number 1 pick. No good agent for a guy going in the top 5 picks is going to sign his name until he knows what the market will bear, and that upper limit is set by the 1st player chosen overall.

If the Lions negotiate well, that gives the Rams much more leverage in terms of closing a deal with our pick. However, if the Lions screw it up, or allow themselves to get dragged into a lengthy negotiation or holdout, then that potentially delays our ability to sign our pick.

So regardless of who it’s with, I’m happy to see the Lions being proactive.

"Attaway to stomp 'em. Stomp the piss out of 'em. Stomp 'em when they're down. Kick 'em and stomp 'em. Attaway to go boys. Pound that old Budweiser into you and go get them tomorrow." -- Joe Schultz

by taiko on Mar 23, 2009 2:48 PM CDT reply actions