Jason_R

Ugh. A two minute 5 on 3 and a penalty shot.

A Gold Glove third baseman!?!

Good find. What I expected. They basically got him for half the cost of AQM, and he should be on the field almost twice as much as AQM.

😶

Yes, it is great to see DeBrincat, one of the smallest guys on the ice and an elite goal scorer, getting into every scrum. But let's not forget Patrick Kane. Takes a shot from way downtown, against the boards, just inside the blue line, as far from the goal as you can possibly get in the offensive zone, between the legs of a defender, off the *** of his teammate screening the goaltender, and hits nothing but net. Also, with three minutes left, springs a puck loose from the defensive zone for a streaking Alex DeBrincat to chase down. Sure he didn't get an assist on that one, he didn't get a goal on the first one, and there was an element of luck involved in both, but every time I watch him I marvel at his vision. He makes plays that few other players can even see.

Still the only team on the list with a negative point differential.

Great game. Kane and DeBrincat carried the team.

Others have said it, but Wonnum is the Davenport/Paschal replacement, not the AQM/third-down pass rush specialist replacement. AQM ended up being DE2 by default last year since Davenport missed most of the season. He played over 40% of defensive snaps, Davenport played only 25%. in 2024 Paschal played 50% of snaps with AQM getting less than 25% of snaps. Last year, AQM had to be on the field for a lot of situations he was absolutely not capable of handling. Detroit is looking to Wonnum to be on the field opposite Hutch for probably two-thirds of defensive snaps. I don't think signing Wonnum and not signing AQM means the team doesn't value a 3rd down pass rush specialist, it means they need someone to play 1st and 2nd down now that they've moved on from Paschal and Davenport.

“PFF tracks something called average depth of tackles, so just the yards away from the line of scrimmage you are when you bring a player down. Al-Quadin Muhammad ranked dead last among qualified EDGE defenders last year in average depth of tackle against the run — 7.5 yards from the line of scrimmage … Wonnum checked in at 2.5 yards, which is 5 yards better than the average Muhammad tackle. And then PFF also tracks run stops and Muhammad was tied for last in run stops last year among EDGE defenders with just two … Contrast to Wonnum, who had 19 run stops, which ranked 11th. You get an idea of what the Lions are valuing here & what they are devaluing in some ways in letting AQM walk & replacing him with Wonnum.”

Are we talking about Trammell/Whitaker tier prospect? I keep reading about the 80 hitting tool. Is this guy going to hit like Tony Gwinn?

Finish this sentence for a Detroit sports fan whose attention is mostly directed toward the Lions and the Red Wings. It seems like it might be accurate to say that Kevin McGonigle is already the best hitter on the Detroit Tigers, even before playing a regular season game in the bigs. Assuming he makes the opening day roster (and it would be astonishing if he didn't), it seems like he is going to be on the short list for ROY candidates. Where is he likely to stack up against this generation of players? Where is he likely to stack up against Tigers greats? I am starting to get hyped up about him, but I don't know how hyped up I should be.

AQM's deal was $4 million base with $2 million in incentives ($500k for 40% of defensive snaps, $500k for 60% of defensive snaps, and $250k for 6, 8, 10, 12 sacks). I think AQM would make $5.25 million if he reproduces his numbers from last year. Will be interesting to see what Wonnum's base and incentives are. The market is the market. Defensive ends are expensive on the market. Wonnum won't be a major factor but he will do his job when called on which is to set the edge. They will pick a DE to go into the rotation as well.

Regardless, the Lions met with Proctor at the combine. They may have met with other tackles, but I have not specifically seen information about it. I have seen several mock drafts with the Lions picking Proctor at 17. In other drafts, I have seen him slipping to the last few pics of the first round, and I think I even recall one where he was early in the second round.

https://www.nfl.com/news/charles-davis-2026-nfl-mock-draft-2-0-cardinals-seahawks-select-notre-dame-rbs-in-round-1 Charles Davis doesn't have an OT going until pick 9 with Mauigoa. Has Spencer Fano going at 14. Says he likes Proctor to Detroit at 17, but mocks Miami DE Mesidor. Then has Miller at 24, Freeling at 27, Lomu at 28, and Proctor at 31. OTOH, I've seen Freeling mocked as high as 5. But I suspect that at 17, Detroit will have at least three very good OT options to choose from. This makes me think that Brad would be happy to move back. They met with Proctor at the combine. My understanding is that he needs work in pass pro but he is a beast in the run game. And we know Brad loves players from Alabama. I could see them taking him and doubling down with bookends at tackle who are absolute bullies in run blocking.