Thoughts on Mayhew hiring, other tidbits...

I feel very strongly that removing the interim tag from Martin Mayhew and giving him the GM gig was the right thing to do. Not only has he impressed me with the Roy Williams trade, but he has also impressed with experimenting with personnel during the 2008 when the Lions were quickly knocked out of the race. The Lions didn't have to put Kitna, Furrey and others on IR, but it was clear to Mayhew that the Lions needed to move on. And he did, sort of fearlessly; which is what he must do to purge the present roster. I was also impressed with his comments when asked about the scouting staff that the scouting wasn't the problem; the problem was with the decision making, which is throwing Matt Millen under the bus, but also explains that he didn't always agree with Millen. Others feel that he should be lumped with Millen, but that isn't fair or true. He's as well trained to take over the GM job as anybody ever has. His resume is extensive, from law degree to interning in the Redskins personnel department. He has also impressed in that he doesn't show his hand very well. He didn't say much in his initial press conference, although he was asked about personnel. I think he will hire an adept personnel mind, and will gather information from others, including the Head Coach. I feel the Head Coach must be in tune with Mayhew and the personnel department, so that everybody is on the same page. Another impressive quote from Mayhew was that the Lions have let players go who were good players, but they didn't fit a certain system. From now on, the Lions will get the good players, and fit the system around the players they have. This is important, since the Lions have rid themselves of players like Dre Bly and Shaun Rogers because they didn't "fit" their Tampa 2.

As far as the draft is concerned, it looks like Mayhew is mostly concerned with drafting the best available talent. There are plenty of needs, and plenty of picks after the Lions pick up some much needed compensatory picks. Free agency must be used to fill in holes that will allow the Lions to draft for speed. They already are the slowest team in the league, and the defense is also the smallest team. That isn't a good combination right now.

Quick mock I posted at MotownSports...

1a. Matt Stafford, QB
1b. Terrence Cody, DT
2. Derrick Williams, WR
3a. Jared Cook, TE
3b. Victor "Macho" Harris, CB (Love his toughness, but I need to see a time)
4. (projected comp pick) Scott McKillop, LB
5. Pat White, Athlete
6a. Kendall Davis-Clark, CB
6b. Jordan Shipley, WR
6c. (Projected comp pick) Rich Ohmberger, G
7. (Projected comp pick) Andrew Hartline, OT

I look at the Vikings right now. Pretty terrific team all around, no quarterback. Look at the Titans, I love their team speed, not good enough quarterback. Matt Stafford has the ability, so the tools are there. The Lions can make a huge jump with this group, of course they'll have to continue to work on their defense, and continue to work on their team speed.