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Speaker 2: Hey, everyone. Jeff Risen here for your daily DLP. It is Sunday, May 3. We're back. Took yesterday off. I had family in from out of town. It's tulip time here in Holland, Michigan. Went out. Saw a ton of so much Lions paraphernalia, hats, shirtseas, jerseys, hoodies, because it's freaking cold. Just Lions fans everywhere. It's fun to watch. You know, Lions fans be proud of being Lions fans. I never get I never get tired of that because there was a long time, too long of a time, where we couldn't do that. And it's nice to see that that roar has been restored. Enjoyed. We're getting a little bit of a time off. Try to do we try to do these every day, but sometimes things come up. My brother visited me for the first time. He's a Colts fan. Not a not a hardcore one, but we wound up talking about the Colts some. And I will say, just from his point of view, the Lions are such a better team, such a better run team. And, again, they've had ownership issues there with, obviously, we don't we don't get into that, but it it was fun getting more perspective from outside the lion's bubble. And that's one of the things that I like to do, and I try to I try to imbue that here. A lot of times, we talk in circles in lion's land where we're, you know, repeating one another, and sometimes it's good to step outside, open the window, look out, you know, open the curtains, and see what else is out there in the world. There haven't been any real acquisitions. I know there's been a little bit of undrafted free agency look, but that's one of the reasons for that is because the Lions did not have the rookie mini camp. And a lot of other teams did this weekend, and that sort of generated some enthusiasm and everything. And so I'd I'd step back and I I I read a bunch of different, you know, beat writers that I respect from around the league and looked at what happened in, like, Chicago and Las Vegas, Cincinnati, other places where, you know, things are going on, Carolina. And, honestly, it kind of reaffirmed why the Lions didn't have the rookie minicamp. But I again, I'm on record. I think it's a mistake. I think they should have it or at least something similar to it. And, apparently, they are like, they're getting the rookies involved. You know, the the players are there for voluntary workouts. But looking at some of the transactions that went on, and I'll I'll use the Raiders as an example. Over the weekend, they cut Charles Snowden, who was one of their better pass rushers last year. And I know I know everybody's like, who? Yeah. They've struggled to fill their role opposite of of Max Crosby and to also get Max Crosby off the field. Like like we have with Aiden Hutchinson here in Detroit. And he was a guy that had and his release has upset a lot of people because it came at the hands of guys who were there for a rookie mini camp slash tryout. I don't think the lines are gonna have any interest in Charles Snowden. I don't know that. But if you're not sticking with the Raiders, you're probably not gonna stick with the Lions. That's that that was another thing that that stood out to me is, you know, we're cycling in players in and out of these, you know, lesser teams. Raiders would have the first pick. They earned the first pick. They were the worst team in football last year. If you're not good enough to make the rotation there, not sure the Lions should have interest in you. And I know there's a segment of the Lions fan base that is still like, oh, Bryce, I'm sorry. I've heard of this guy. He can help us. Well, not really. Like, if you're if you're not making Cleveland, if you're not making the Jets, if, you know, if they're cutting you now after the draft because they think that their draft picks that they've gotten are better than you, like, it might be one of those where you wanna hold. And so it made me think. Who else is still out there? So I did see that Calais Campbell signed. Good for him. He's 40 ageless wonder. Although, he did start to show his age a little bit last year. But he's he's he's in ring horror mode. So I took a look at Pro Football Focus and also Bleacher Report, and, they they rank the remaining available free agents. Just wanted to see what was still out there, if there was anybody who might wanna come come to Detroit to try to chase a ring.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. You can still do that. Like, you can one of the things that I have picked up over the last few months in going to the combine and pro days and talking with people who cover the league and people who cover other teams and people who work for other teams. The lions are still viewed as a very viable NFL contender, and it's weird that lions fans almost seem more down on the team than the world the football world as a whole does. I think that's changing. I think, you know, the draft reinvigorated a lot of Lions fans. I hope it did. They didn't necessarily take the sexy picks. One quick thing on that. I noticed that none of the Lions draftees were invited to the, the rookie showcase thing that they have every year, the rookie premier. It's generally for skill position players on both sides of the ball, whether it's, you know, quarterbacks, wide receivers, running backs. I think Kenyon Sediq was the only tight end invited this year. No offensive linemen were invited. Defensive linemen don't get done. I know David Bailey is going. I know Arvell Reese is going. And I think Ruben Bayne, I think those are the only pass rushers that are going. But the Lions got Blake Miller, Derek Moore. Like, they're not gonna be guys that, you know, you're you're you're clamoring to get your rookie cards unless you're a fan in Detroit. So, I mean, I get that. But that's sort of the lower profile, but this feels like it feels like Lions fans are starting to get excited again because they drafted for for need and best player available fit. They kind of always have. It's just the north narrative gets distorted. That that's for a different show. Want to look at some of the players that were out there and then flip up pro football focus. Number two available free agent, DJ Reader. I'm sorry. That's Bleacher Report. Number three available free agent, Taylor Decker. That tells you the caliber of players that are out there right now on the free agent market. You're not getting stars anymore. You're getting what's left of Taylor Decker and what's left of DJ Reader. Now I I do still defend DJ Reader. I think he did a decent job in his time in Detroit. I think he is one of the prime reasons why why Jack Campbell ascended to being an all pro. I absolutely believe that. And I can find people in that building who will tell you that that's the case as well. DJ Reeder didn't get a lot of stats, didn't rush the passer a lot, but he kept them clean. And I think that's one of one of the things that helped the defense as a whole. He did stay healthy too, which was nice. I wouldn't be opposed to him coming back. He was, to give you an idea of where his status is, though, he visited the New York Giants, and they opted to sign former Brown and journeyman Shelby Harris instead as their new reserve nose tackle. Tells you the quality of player that's up. By the way, the number one player is JoJuan Jennings, former wide receiver for the forty niners, who's not gotten any interest at all. And and, like, Shadamian Cloudy's still out there. Bosa's still out there. Bobby Wagner, Russell Wilson. You're looking at guys who are at the very end of their careers, Harrison Smith's another one, that they don't need to sign right now. Signing right now would be a sign of desperation. These are guys who are gonna pick and choose their spots once training camps open, not even mandatory mini camps, but training camps. There's no point in them signing right now because they don't need to do voluntary work, and they don't need to be at OTAs. They might just because they love football so much, but I think Taylor Decker's going to OTAs in Detroit or wherever he would sign. That's not who he is. Not with the injuries that he's had. Now if he were if he were healthy, he'd be signed now. By the way, I don't think that Detroit is gonna be interested in bringing Taylor Decker back. Just from the way that that whole thing went down, I wouldn't count on that. Reader, again, if they get to training camp and they get through a week of training camp and Reeder's still out there and they're not happy with what they see at the defensive tackle position, it's plausible plausible that DJ Reader could come back, but I don't think it is likely. I don't think it's something that they wanna pursue. And quite frankly, I don't think that the I don't think that the DJ Reader would I think he's gonna feel like there's better opportunities for him to play more in a more integral role elsewhere, but he's I don't think that I don't think that door is closed like it is with Decker, but it would feel almost like a loss for both parties, honestly, if they have to reunite just because the lions feel like they have addressed the position well enough. At least we hope. We'll see. I don't know. That's but looking at the the the guys that were out there, so guys that might be of interest. Cam Jordan, he's still out there. Again, former Saint, still very productive, still insanely durable. I think that's important as we talk about Detroit and potential ring whoring in Detroit, which Cam Jordan could do. These are not guys that are gonna sign right now. And if they do sign before even mandatory mini camp, which is coming up in a couple of, like, six weeks, that's a sign that they are scared that the interest isn't there. And, like, they're worried that they wanna they wanna get that money as much as they can. These are guys that are gonna pick their spots. Again, wait till there's an injury somewhere or a team realizes that his draft pick isn't gonna be ready to to contribute, whether that's Detroit, Chicago, Minnesota. Minnesota's draft.

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Speaker 2: We're gonna do it around the division. We're gonna have, folks. I have tentatively scheduled a Packers guest and a Vikings guest this coming week to review what happened with their drafts and their status and also what they think of the Lions because I do think it's important, again, to get the the broader view. Cam Jordan was the top name that I wrote down. Daquan Jones, more of an interior guy, could give you some reps. A durable guy, not necessarily a guy who's gonna move the needle for a lot of lions fans or around the league, but could could be in the Roy Lopez category. Remember last year at this time, the lions fans really know who Roy Lopez was? Like, I knew who he was. I'd I'd watched him, but I wasn't like I didn't think he would be what Roy Lopez was for the lions last year, especially down the stretch where he was a very productive and good piece of the defense. And when the defense bounced back late in the season, he was part of that. Daquan Jones could be that guy. Bobby Wagner. Again, insanely durable off ball linebacker. He plays the exact same role as Jack Campbell, so this would be bringing him in as a backup. If you're Bobby Wagner, you're signing somewhere where you know that you're not gonna play, like, that that doesn't make any sense. So that would be one where if the lions don't like what they've got at linebacker and that by the way, that's for me, in looking at the lions roster right now as we talk on May 3, getting ready for the Pistons game today. Go Pistons. Game seven. My son is there. He's very excited about that. Hope they win. They need to win. Can't lose as a one seed to an eight seed, especially one in Orlando. But I digress. It's it's a case of you don't have any other options. You have better options. Russell Wilson's out there. Jabril Peppers is a name that I wrote down. Jabrill Peppers has bounced around. He's had he had good years in Cleveland when they didn't play him 50 yards off the line of scrimmage. That's an exaggeration, but not a great one. Go back and watch the l 22 of him in Cleveland and Greg Williams' defense. He's not on the screen in the wide view. Did well in New England. He can capably fill the Brian Branch role until Brian Branch gets healthy. By the way, if you didn't catch the episode with doctor Liao, Jimmy broke down great information on the draftees and the guys who are coming back, guys like Branch, Joseph, Levi, the worry meter with all those guys. Great episode. Check it out. Look in the the Detroit Lions podcast archives for either on your favorite podcast provider or on YouTube. We love it when you watch on YouTube. If you have to look at me for a while, sorry, wearing the hat today because the hair was just not fit for public consumption. That happens. I am not Trevor Sikama. I don't have those locks. And shout out to the NFL Stock Exchange guys, Connor and Trevor. Best hair in podcast. They're good dudes too. They're both friends. I've known Trevor forever. Try to get him on the show at some point this summer, this off season. Talk about the lions. He sort of owes me a favor, so we'll we might call that in. But Peppers is a guy that can play that box slot role, which is where the lions do have a need. And the lions do have a need of off ball linebacker as well, and that's why I brought up Bobby Wagner. So they haven't replaced Alex Anzalone yet. And this has come up in the comments. It's come up on social media. Who's gonna be replacing Alex Anzalone? Well, I don't think I I actually think that one of the reasons why they haven't filled that yet is because they don't wanna fill it with a linebacker. They're tired of the four three. They realize it's not working, and it's gonna be a safeier and extra lineman. Gandalf harking back to last summer when they toyed with the five three d the five two defense. Now Derek Barnes was one of the five who slid up front. It's kind of a cheat a little bit, but it got so if you tried to run against that and they again, the Texans offense was not great last year. Texans were built to win by defense, not offense, but it it really it was a governor on their offensive engine, and I liked it. And I wish we would have seen more of it last off season, and maybe last season, maybe we will see more of it this year. And that's where guys who are more versatile, who can play multiple spots up front, maybe Skyler Gil Howard, maybe MacKay Wingo finds a better home, maybe they find a role for guys like that. I'm for that. I support them. If you're not a nickel. But, you're looking at guys that, you know and a lot I I I felt your eye rolls as you watch it. Jirpreet, come on. Like, yeah, that's who's out there, folks. That's one of the reasons why they're not being super active in free agency because the names that are out there and I just read you the best ones. Who's left beyond that? You probably don't care. You probably don't want them in Detroit. Because if they're better than somebody that you just drafted or signed, you didn't draft well. Now this draft is different. We're gonna do draft grades. We're gonna do that on Monday's show. I'm gonna go through and read some because we haven't really done that show yet. I will offer my close approximation to a draft grade. I do not grade drafts grade drafts or grade drafts. Draft. Whatever. Y'all know what I mean.

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Speaker 2: Long weekend. Tulip time tries your patience when you live in Holland, Michigan. By the way, if you're coming to Holland for tulip time, get here now because the tulips are already past their prime. If you like the tools, which is it's it's cool. It's fun. It's a good time. One last little tidbit, and I shared this in the Slack the other day, and I wanted to close the show on this. Talk to somebody very familiar with the Lions drafting and draft strategy. And we will go back to all the the mock drafts that came out. Daniel Jeremiah, Peter Schreicher, who were insistent that Caden Procter was the lion's draft floor. Now we don't technically know that that's not true because he was drafted much earlier. Gotta throw that out there. But it was strongly suggested to me without being explicitly suggested to me that all of the Caden Procter talk was a canary trap. If you don't know what that is, Chris and I have talked about it before. One of the members of the Lions front office is John Dorsey, the former Cleveland Browns general manager, and he canary trapped when he was the Browns general manager. He would leak different information about their draft to different members of their staff to see who was talking to who in the media. It was very strongly suggested to me that that's what was going on with the Caden Proctor talk, that he wanted to find out who was talking to who in the media. Now the fun part is as you spin this forward, we did learn this in Cleveland. After the fact, Dorsey was gone, was that he knew who it was. And the people who got busted on it or outed as talking to the different sources knew who it was, but he never called them on it. He held that card. And I can absolutely see Brad Holmes holding that card and playing it when he needs to. Again, I it was not stated as explicit facts to me, but it was made very clear. And I know that I know this person well. I know when to read between lines and how to read between those lines. That that was what was going on with the Caden Procter to Detroit talk. Because if you go and you'll like, if you listen to this show, if you follow I I know Eric Schlitt was big on this as well, and I trust Eric. Love Eric. We've worked together for a long time. He knows he's smart on these things. Other other people were as well. It just didn't make sense, Caden Procter, as a as a entity for Detroit because he's not what he doesn't fit the grit, period. And it was always very curious to a lot of us that that was brought up. Well, it feels our spidey senses were right. At least I'm gonna I'm gonna trust what I was told on that or how I was told. So have fun with that, Internet. We're gonna call it a show. Gotta go get a fat ball at two up time. Deep fried cream puffs with filling in them. Yeah. Yeah. Yum. Get out here and get that. Thanks everyone for liking and subscribing. Remember, check out the the the Slack channel, the DLP Patreon Slack. It's worth your time, so you'd have to be on social media. You'll notice I haven't been on social media much since the draft. I plan to sort of keep it that way. You want me, that's the best way to get me. Thank you for liking and subscribing. Thank you for checking us out. We'll be back on Monday with draft grade show. We have guests throughout the week to review the the Lions draft, and I know Emery Hahn is coming back. I know Luke Easterling is coming back. I'm trying to work on Chris Depasso and some other guys who were here before the draft. Let's talk to them after the draft to see if they changed our tune or what what they thought about it afterwards. I think they've engendered that level of trust. So look for that in the coming week. Till then, Jeff Risen signing out. Be good to one another, everybody.