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Lions enter contract negotiations (1 Viewer)

If its Stafford I'm a little surprised. I would have waited to see what happens with Cutler first. Their late first and second this year might have gotten it done.

 
(KFFL) KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions will take Baylor OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.

 
duece2626 said:
(KFFL) KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions will take Baylor OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
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That would be very UN-Lions like. I mean, that's a great pick. :moneybag: If he's as good as advertised, add another TD or three to Calvin's total this year. That should take him to what, 20, 25? :kicksrock:
 
Ripleys said:
duece2626 said:
(KFFL) KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions will take Baylor OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
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That would be very UN-Lions like. I mean, that's a great pick. :shock: If he's as good as advertised, add another TD or three to Calvin's total this year. That should take him to what, 20, 25? :banned:
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I like the pick for the Lions as well. They have been ignoring their line problems for too long. Just like last year when Miami took Jake Long. A lot of experts are fixing their mock drafts right about now.
 
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duece2626 said:
(KFFL) KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions will take Baylor OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
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Usually, KFFL quotes a source for their information. Any news source confirming this story.
 
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Craig_MiamiFL said:
duece2626 said:
(KFFL) KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions will take Baylor OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.
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If true, I love the pick. I'm not high on Stafford to begin with, but their issues go beyond just finding a QB.
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Yeah, the pick makes sense and this class of QBs reminds me of the Smith/Rodgers group where there were a lot of question marks. Smith has lived up to those question marks (lol) and if Rodgers did not drop to GB and was forced out of his three year incubation period that he was lucky enough to have with GB, who knows what could have happened. I am a Jets fan and on Sirius there has been some speculation they may grab Sanchez at 17...I really hope they decide to punt, see what they have and address it next year (as i think a lot of teams would be wise to do with top 15 picks.
 
Isn't it more likely that they're in contract negotiations with more than one guys agent right now? This is what Miami did last year to play them off each other and get the best deal with the guy they wanted, right?

“We have to have robust dialogue with the agents of the players we’re interested in,” Lions president Tom Lewand said. “We’ve started that process and we’ve made it very clear to all of them that we have to have that as this month draws to a close.” per an earlier PFT post... I doubt very seriously they're minds are made up 100% at this point, despite what KFFL is saying. The discussed pick sounds smart, however.

 
PFT reporting sucks IMO:

If the Lions already have made that decision, and if Smith is the only person with whom they plan to negotiate, then the Lions deserve to go 0-16 for sixteen more years.
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Don’t know where PFT got the notion that the Lions haven’t been negotiating with other players prior to naming Smith as their number 1. According to the Lions website:Jason Smith visited March 9thMatt Stanford visited March 10thAaron Curry visited March 16thB.J. Raji visited March 18thWhat did they have these guys come in for? I wouldn’t doubt that Lions would have been talking contract with all of these players this past week.
 
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It is weird that KFFL gives no indication of where they are getting that information from and also that the title of the update had a question mark.

Lions | To take J. Smith with first pick?
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I wonder if it's Smith's agent that is telling them that he's the one.
 
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The more I think about it. The more I think the KFFL report is bogus. The NFL draft is not until April 25th. A week early I can understand but a month or more.

BTW: This is second time in one day - I got punked by a false website report. :shrug:

 
If true, good job by the Lions. They avoid a holdout and they get a OT who will protect their QB of the future's (whoever that may be) blindside for the next 6-7 years.

 
Deranged Hermit said:
If true, good job by the Lions. They avoid a holdout and they get a OT who will protect their QB of the future's (whoever that may be) blindside for the next 6-7 years.
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The Lions have a private work out still scheduled with Stafford on March 31st. I dont think they know who they are taking yet, but the I could see the Ford's who already have to pay a 1st pick premium not wanting the added QB premium at pick #1
 
Detroit Lions in contract talks with several first draft pick prospects

by Tom Kowalski

Monday March 23, 2009, 4:12 AM

DANA POINT, Calif. -- The Detroit Lions still are not saying who they might select with the first overall draft pick, but they are getting closer to putting that player's name on the dotted line.

Lions president Tom Lewand, who is attending the annual owners' meetings with several members of the team's front office, said the team already have started initial contract negotiations with several No. 1 prospects.

Because the Lions have the first pick, they are allowed to begin negotiating before the April 25 draft.

"By the rules, we could agree to terms with somebody tomorrow if we wanted to," Lewand said.

The top four prospects for that first pick are believed to be Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford, Baylor left tackle Jason Smith, Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry and Virginia left tackle Eugene Monroe.

Lewand indicated he has been in contact with the agents of other players as well. One of those might be Boston College defensive tackle B.J. Raji who made a visit to Allen Park last week to interview with Lions officials.

The Lions want to begin negotiations early because contract language will be different than previous years because the 2010 season does not have a salary cap.

"We have to have robust dialogue with the agents of the players we're interested in. We've started that process, and we've made it very clear to all of them that we have to have that as this month draws to a close," Lewand said. "Because of the complexity of the rules, we've already started discussions. I don't see any reason we can't advance those discussions with multiple parties as we're narrowing the decision-making."

The Lions have indicated they want their No. 1 pick to be signed before they officially select him, but Lewand said there's no timetable on when that will happen.

The first order of business is the Lions making the decision; coach Jim Schwartz will have heavy input, but the final say will come down to general manager Martin Mayhew.

"There's no timetable one way or the other. If we make the decision, and Martin and Jim and everybody else is comfortable with it and we can come to a contract with the guy, there's no reason we can't do that tomorrow," Lewand said. "If we can't -- and any one of those pieces isn't in place -- and it doesn't get done until the night before the draft, that's fine, too."

The Lions want the draft pick signed prior to the draft because it eliminates any possibility of a holdout in training camp. If the Lions select a player who is unsigned, the leverage immediately shifts to the player, because he can withhold his services, much like LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell did with the Oakland Raiders two years ago. Russell missed all of training camp in a contract dispute.

The Lions have the leverage by negotiating with several players before the draft. Last season, the Miami Dolphins were in talks with four players and eventually signed Michigan tackle Jake Long before officially selecting him at No. 1. The Lions want to put themselves in the same position -- as soon as possible.

Source

 
I really like this approach by the Lions. Sure, it somewhat takes away from the suspense of the Number One pick on draft day, but they are doing the right thing by doing their due diligence on the prospective top picks. They might still be in the Jay Cutler sweepstakes. I still see the pick being Stafford unless they can get a deal done with Denver.

 
Just curious, but if the Lions liked one of the guys and signed him today, could that player report for OTAs etc...? Or does he have to wait until after the draft or ???

 
blend said:
Just curious, but if the Lions liked one of the guys and signed him today, could that player report for OTAs etc...? Or does he have to wait until after the draft or ???
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I believe that the school year must be over for the player, whether he is attending classes any more or not, for him to attend an NFL team activity.
 
More from KFFL, http://www.kffl.com/hotw/nfl

Lions | Drafting J. Smith No. 1 overall?

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 09:11:33 -0700

Updating a previous report, KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions are expected to select Baylor University OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. The Lions are currently negotiating with Smith, University of Georgia QB Matthew Stafford and Wake Forest LB Aaron Curry, but Smith is believed to be the Lions' choice, according to sources with intimate knowledge of the situation. An announcement could be made within the next two weeks.
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ConstruxBoy said:
blend said:
Just curious, but if the Lions liked one of the guys and signed him today, could that player report for OTAs etc...? Or does he have to wait until after the draft or ???
Click to expand...
I believe that the school year must be over for the player, whether he is attending classes any more or not, for him to attend an NFL team activity.
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I would also assume any contract is contingent upon actually drafting said player.
 
GregR said:
More from KFFL, http://www.kffl.com/hotw/nfl

Lions | Drafting J. Smith No. 1 overall?

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 09:11:33 -0700

Updating a previous report, KFFL has learned the Detroit Lions are expected to select Baylor University OT Jason Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. The Lions are currently negotiating with Smith, University of Georgia QB Matthew Stafford and Wake Forest LB Aaron Curry, but Smith is believed to be the Lions' choice, according to sources with intimate knowledge of the situation. An announcement could be made within the next two weeks.
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Curry needs to get his ### back to Detroit and try again. :thumbup:
 
Smart to be working at it this early. If they get the guy they want with the best deal they can manage, so much the better for them.

 
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