MichiganCardinal

That article is a great peak behind the curtain, but it does come across as at least a little bit of sour grapes on Decker's part IMO. On January 5, he does two exit interviews with Campbell and Holmes. He says he's going to consider retirement, they say that's totally fine, no problem, we want you back. Don't screw us like Ragnow did though, please let us know by March 10. Decker says no problem, he will let them know, and--oh by the way--he's not interested in a pay cut. On February 22, he says he wants to come back. Campbell says great, he's meeting with Holmes in two days. Holmes doesn't respond. The next day--so before Campbell and Holmes meet--Decker goes public and says he's coming back. Then on February 26, after Holmes and Campbell have met, Decker's agent informs him that the team wants him to take a pay cut. He immediately says no, doesn't even attempt to negotiate. Then Decker says that the possibility of a pay cut wasn't broached in the exit interview, contradicting himself from when he said that it was clear in the exit interview that he wouldn't take a pay cut. Gotta be honest, that all seems reasonable on the team's part. For one, they probably hadn't done a comprehensive analysis of the 2026 roster on January 5 that could tell them "we want you back only if you take a pay cut." Even if they had, they're not going to negotiate a pay cut with the player in an exit interview; that's the agent's job. For another thing, even if Decker did make it clear in the exit interview he wasn't going to take a pay cut, it doesn't mean the Lions in any way accepted those conditions when they said they want him back. They did want him back, they weren't lying in the exit interview. But he forced their hand by basically giving them an ultimatum of either pay me $18MM (the 25th most amount of money to an OT in the league), or I'm not coming back. They made the right choice. And I think that's obvious by nature of the deals that have been signed by top end OTs in free agency. The only thing I would criticize the Lions for is the breakdown in communication. Decker said he hasn't talked to Campbell or Holmes since his release and talked to Fraley only after Decker reached out to Fraley. But that Ben Johnson reached out to him to just check in as a friend. I know they're busy guys, but they could have said something. Sheila/Rod Wood/Spielman too. You can't deny that Decker has done a ton for the org and nobody is interested in another messy divorce like Calvin's (not that Decker is comparable to the kind of player Calvin was). At the very least you could thank him for his years with the Lions and say you hope to welcome him into the Pride of the Lions when he eventaully hangs up his cleats. TLDR: Decker probably has some legit beef about communication, but I don't think the Lions did anything categorically wrong. It's a tough business and they made a business decision.

Ding ding ding! 🙂

If you’re not already watching The Pitt, I can’t recommend it enough. it might overtake Breaking Bad as #2 on my all time list.

Faulk is a unique prospect. It's rare to have a defensive end who is so good at setting the edge and overpowering linemen at the point of attack, while not having the flashy stats to show for it in the pass game. If Bain fell, they could take him. He's got a lot of qualities they like. High motor, physical, good character. He's good against the run, but not like Faulk. He would probably take longer to adapt to the Lions system than Faulk. Howell would surprise me. He's an athletic freak, but a natural edge whose weakness is in the run game. Not really their MO at all and I don't see them trying to force him to be something he's not in the Lions system.

I think those are legitimate concerns about Faulk. To the extent you want a sure-fire pass rusher across from Hutch, he's probably not your guy. Though, to be fair, Faulk's utilization at Auburn makes for a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem. They played a 3-4 defensive front, and Faulk was lined up in a 2-gap, asked to effectively act as a space-eating DT, rather than a more traditional edge. It's understandable why they did it, because it's a role he excelled in. If you line him up outside the tackle, does he generate better stats? Probably. But how much better? Is he a Calais Campbell/Arik Armstead type or just a more flashy Josh Paschal? More to the point though, I think he's exactly what the Lions love out of that DE/EDGE position, for better or worse. They aspire to have the best run defense in the league, and I do think a front of Hutchinson-Williams-McNeill-Faulk gives them that by 2027, if not sooner. They are okay with having a just-okay pass rush if it means teams are forced to pass because they just can't get anywhere on the ground. Whether that's a sound strategy is probably a discussion for another day, but it's how the team was built and it's where we are today.

First Round Shortlist 1. Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami 2. Keldric Faulk, EDGE, Auburn 3. Reuben Bain Jr., EDGE, Miami 4. Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia 5. Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU 6. Spencer Fano, OT, Utah Second Round Shortlist 1. Max Iheanschor, OT, Arizona State 2. Jalon Kilgore, DB, South Carolina 3. CJ Allen, LB, Georgia 4. Akheem Mesidore, EDGE, Miami 5. Dani Dennis-Sutton, EDGE, Penn State 6. Deonte Lawson, LB, Alabama

The real fun could have come had a zealous MSP or DPD supervisor decided it was enough to arrest Metcalf on site.

Can we call this the Metcalf rule? Wouldn't be a complete offseason without a new rule being created to fix something that screwed the Lions the prior year.

They haven't won a single game since that crushing loss to Seattle. It's been more than five months. I don't know how Harris and Hinch still have jobs. At some point enough is enough.

Monarrez is neither dumb nor lazy. He’s just scum, and the worst of what sports writing has become. His content generates clicks, clicks generate revenue, he keeps his job and probably gets a nice yearly raise. Given a truth serum he would admit that he doesn’t even believe half the nonsense he spews. But “”it’s provocative. It gets the people going.” -Chazz Michael Michaels” - Kanye West

Maybe this is why Rod Wood is stepping down. Focusing on his next career.

But imagine finding one in your coat pocket on the first day of winter!

Unfortunately, $15,000 Indian Crores is about $1.6 billion USD. Might have to recheck the couch cushions.

The beginning of the end. Sheila will begin building her cricket empire and the Lions will be as forgotten as the 1990s Tigers. /s

I don’t think JR was doing any analysis or reporting with that Tweet. He was just introducing his article.

Valenti is a New York shock jock without Detroit friends or sources. If it were Birkett or Rogers, they probably would have reported something themselves. Twentyman probably wouldn’t because the team signs his paycheck. But I take anything Valenti says with a big grain of salt.

Duke has played terribly through 24 minutes, but Siena (who’s played the same five players all game) is starting to look like a 16-seed.

I think the Lions FO appreciates that if a team is “good” for long enough, they will eventually string together three straight wins in January, and hopefully one more in February. Of course, the Bills fam would argue this is a fallacy. And the Chiefs fan would argue it’s better to be elite for long enough than good for long enough. But if the choice is good for ten years or elite for two, I can understand the appeal of not wanting all of your eggs in two baskets, only to have it be derailed by a decimated defense and a fluke five turnover game.

Everyone pick your sides, is he the greatest addition of all time or completely useless. No in between, you all know the rules.

There’s got to be some give and take though. If your situational pass rusher is never on the field, because you’re never in a 3rd and long, because the opponent can just run to the OT opposite Hutch and gain four yards every play, your situational pass rusher does you no good. I wouldn’t discount the possibility that Hassanein is the situational pass rusher either. He had a stretch of nine straight games with a sack at Boise State. If he’s James Houston with an ounce of run defense ability, that’s a good player to have.

I don’t think they’ll pay him $6MM. We’ll see when the details come out, but Pelissori was reporting directly from the agent. “Up to $6MM” may well mean “$2MM with a $1MM bonus for every five sacks up to 20 sacks” It won’t be that, but you get the idea. His “$6MM” and AQM’s $6MM are very unlikely to be created equal.

I’m not saying you’re wrong, but I don’t think they prioritize it in any way. James Houston was that player and he was the first Holmes draft pick released despite lighting up the stat sheet. Hassanein was a one-trick pony to start his Boise State career and probably won’t be good against the run this year. But they only get 48 players every game day. 25 starters leaves 23 spots. Have to use each one wisely, and you’re in a tough spot if there is a player like Houston who you physically cannot put in the game except in one role.

What he does have over AQM is that he’s a three-down player. I still expect them to at least draft an edge, if not add a cheap option in free agency (Cam Jordan will probably not be that). Justin Rogers had a good reminder that they carried eight edge rushers into camp last year. AQM merely emerged.

His problem (surprise-surprise) is an injury history. He was great with the Vikings, but went down late in 2023 with a non-contact torn quad. After the surgery to repair it, his body rejected the stitches, he developed MRSA, and then developed blood clots as a side effect of his IV antibiotics. Those are the kind of complications unhealthy people die from. But he came back midway through 2024 with Carolina. He’s just not quite returned to anything like his 2023 form. Recorded 8 sacks, 62 tackles, and 15 QB hits over 16 games in 2023… 7 sacks, 69 tackles, and 10 QB hits in 24 games since.