Story Behind Change in Chris Houston Trade
by Sean Yuille on Mar 25, 2010 5:22 PM EDT
in Detroit Lions News
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PrintWhen the Lions announced the terms of the Chris Houston trade, there was confusion over the fact that they were different than what the Falcons had previously announced a week or so earlier. It turned out that the terms of the deal changed before the trade was truly official, but nobody could figure out what exactly happened to cause the change. Unsurprisingly both the Lions and Falcons stayed quiet on the matter, not wanting to share the details of what went on behind the scenes.
Thanks to Pro Football Talk, though, we now have one possible explanation for the change in the terms, and boy does it make me think even more highly of Martin Mayhew.
So what happened? According to a separate source, the Lions contacted the Falcons and said that Houston could not pass the physical imposed by Lions' doctors. We're told that the Lions also said that perhaps Houston could pass the physical if the terms of the deal were adjusted.
And so the terms of the deal were adjusted, and Houston passed the physical.
In other words, the Lions weren't content with the original terms of the deal, so they played some hardball to give up less and it worked. It was definitely a risky proposition considering the Falcons could have easily told the Lions to screw off and scrapped the trade, but the payoff is not having to swap fifth-round picks in exchange for possibly having to give up a seventh-rounder in 2011.
All I can say is job well done, Martin Mayhew, although we probably shouldn't expect the Lions and Falcons to be trading partners again anytime soon.
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high 5
Mayhew… righting the ship!
GO LIONS in 2010! the transformation starts now.. they have much to do.
Mayhew is a saint.
Seriously. I’m really starting to think God sent us Mayhew as a way of saying “my bad about the whole Millen thing.” It has to be divine intervention, right? What other possible explanation is there?
the guys knows his shi+
seeing the mistakes of Millen.. trained him in what to do….
GO LIONS in 2010! the transformation starts now.. they have much to do.
? couldnt pass a physical?
i think a trade is automatically voided if a guy fails a physical.per NFL bargaining agreement.Has Houston been at a Lions workout?
Me thinks you missed the point entirely
It was more of a “wink wink” type of thing. For the original terms they worked out, Houston was going to fail the physical, therefore voiding the trade. Because the Falcons were okay with lower compensation, the physical was passed and the trade became official. It wasn’t about his health. The Lions were playing hardball.
Pride of Detroit, SB Nation's Lions Blog
Mayhew is awesome
Only thing that could make this guy better is for him to Kick Millens Butt at halftime of a game.
You could have the whole thing sponsored by M&M’s
by LionFaninCA on Mar 25, 2010 10:36 PM EDT up reply actions
or Eminem....it is a Detroit thing....
if the shoe fits...get another one just like it - George Carlin
this is the diffrence
Mayhew got a player for less than his worth. Millen would have overpaid for a lesser player.
How do you keep a running back out of your secondary? You put up a LEVY.
and the good news keeps coming
do i really get new reasons to say it every day? i love this front office!!!
I get my ass kicked for money, all you gotta do is talk motherfucker.... Rampage Pride GP03
Maybe
Mayhew should have arranged terms the lions we happy with to begin with. Not saying I don’t appreciate Mayhew but I do wonder why he agreed on terms then decided he wanted to “play hardball” after the fact.
Nice move
Let’s hope these sorta moves translate to wins on the field.
"Zack Follett: he will hurt your mind." - Pride Leader, Sean Yuille, wielder of the Ban Hammer.
2010 Wests Tigers : Current record - 1-1 : Current Position - 11th : Last game - Defeated by Sydney Roosters 44-32
Mayhew is the freakin' man!!!
So what exactly does an NFL physical consist of?
Isnt this a bad thing for us??
Oh darn
we probably shouldn’t expect the Lions and Falcons to be trading partners again anytime soon.
I was hoping to pry away Jamaal Anderson and his 1 sack per season
"I didn’t even know Elvis was from Memphis, I thought he was from Tennessee." — Drew Gooden.
Question
I noticed on profootballtalk.com… Mike F. said the same thing…“that DET and ATL would not be trading partners (do business) in the future” …. I commented to him as well
if ATL objected to the trade they would have pulled the plug…there was a REASON why the terms were lowered….but both parties agreed with the terms . ATL and DET will do business in the future .. and tomorrow if both teams had something each other wanted…
whatever the issue was, the Lions, in my opinion, benefitted with the deal… I commend Mayhew for the deal…. remember there was a reason , something in the physical that did not look right.. (red flag) that made mayhew adjust the terms… even if it was not a big deal… mayhew is doing what it takes to right this ship even if it were a minor thing on the physical… he used it to his advantage and got a HELL of a deal…
Now let us hope Houston rocks on the field to where ATL can regret doing the trade….. Houston is young, has new surroundings, has potential (a starter that we need) and once Schwartz / Cunningham gets a hold of him…
with Mayhew doing what he does best… the franchise where no one wanted to go will be where everyone wants to go
GO LIONS in 2010! the transformation starts now.. they have much to do.
Trust me, guys; landing Chris Houston was not worth losing front office credibility points.
Regarding “if ATL objected to the trade they would have pulled the plug” … Once initial news of the trade was released, we had to go through with it despite Detroit’s gimmickry, as otherwise we’d be stuck with a player who knew his team thought he was worth a 6th round pick. Who could blame Houston if he didn’t give 100% as a Falcon if that had been the case?
And as bad as 100% Houston is, we’d REALLY hate to see what Houston not trying looks like. If he suddenly flourishes in Detroit, fine. I’d be shocked if that happens, but who knows.
Longest Atlanta Falcons winning-seasons streak: 2008 - current
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I know
and you are probably right. But you have to understand that, as Lions fans, we just got finished watching an idiot by the name of Matt Millen slowly decimate our organization over an eight-year period. For the guy running our team to make a move like this that actually shows signs of intelligence (even if it was a sneaky) is a reason for celebration. You probably will never understand exactly what kind of pain we have endured here in Detroit.
Lions bad ST's
How about we change that to feared to return against!
mayhew's a stiffler
and i love it!! the guy knows how to bargain
by D-Town Dope Boy on Mar 25, 2010 9:37 PM EDT reply actions
PFT
I doubt it went down the way PFT has reported. I have found PFT to be a source of gossip, often false.
Why pull a stunt, like that to get better terms (without finding something of merit)? If Mayhew gets known of pulling those type of stunts. No one will make trades with him.
I suspect that the Lion’s Doctors, found something that ATL knew and had hoped the Lions would not have discovered. So Mayhew was able to get additional compensation, to make the trade. Regardless, It was good trade by Mayhew.
I agree with that.
Mayhew didn’t come out that far ahead for what’s being reported. Who’s to say, really.
"I didn’t even know Elvis was from Memphis, I thought he was from Tennessee." — Drew Gooden.
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