Detroit Lions Reportedly Will Sign Leonard Davis
by Sean Yuille on Nov 6, 2011 11:00 PM EST
in Detroit Lions News
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Offensive guard Leonard Davis, who worked out for the Detroit Lions earlier this week, is going to sign with the team, according to Rep 1 Sports (Davis is one of their clients) and Scout.com's Aaron Wilson.
Although Davis was just in town for a workout, this move surprises me. Davis worked out for the Lions back in August and Detroit didn't decide to add him then. Now, however, the Lions have apparently elected to bring Davis aboard for the second half of the season.
What this means for the Lions offensive line is unclear right now. Davis has been a free agent since the Dallas Cowboys parted ways with him after the lockout ended at the end of July. He hasn't practiced since the end of the 2010 season, and you wouldn't think a lineman suddenly joining a team in the middle of the season would be ready to immediately play.
It's also not clear right now who is being let go to make room for Davis. The Lions currently have only two guards on the roster -- Stephen Peterman and Rob Sims -- and they are both starters. Dylan Gandy can play guard as well, but he is the backup center. The Lions have four tackles on the roster -- starters Jeff Backus and Gosder Cherilus and backups Corey Hilliard and Jason Fox -- and none seem like players who are candidates to be released. Unless there is an injury that suddenly happened, it looks like Davis is being brought in at the expense of a player at another position.
The obvious question that needs to be asked is this: Is the move to sign Davis an indication that the Lions want to shake up their offensive line (most likely at right guard), or is this simply a move to add a player who can be a quality backup. I'm really not sure. While Davis did make the Pro Bowl in 2007, 2008 and 2009, you have to imagine a team would have picked him up by now if he is still a Pro Bowl-caliber player. Maybe the Lions think he can still play at that level and figure it's worth bringing him in since the risk is low. At worst, he is a quality backup at guard, a position with very little depth. At best, perhaps he is a player who can step in at some point during the second half of the season and improve an offensive line that has been very inconsistent this year.
It will be very interesting to hear what Jim Schwartz has to say about this move in the coming days. The Lions will soon return from their bye week to get ready for the Chicago Bears game next Sunday, and it appears they will have a new face on the offensive line with Davis reportedly set to join the team.
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This means....
That the Lions are taking this run seriously, view getting into the playoffs as more then a one game thing, and despite all of the bullshit downplaying their lack of a run game, acknowledges that opposing D’s have little respect for anything other then CJ and the passing game.
Also it means Mo will be getting a greater percentage of the handoffs.
by delusional on Nov 6, 2011 11:15 PM EST via mobile reply actions
hum...interesting..
i was in the same boat in aug. Maybe they told him he needs to get into better shape…then he got into better shape…so now they decided to take a chance…i wonder if we will be seeing someone go on IR? I hope it’s not Best.
The Disassembly Line....nuff said.
I think they cut one of the CBs
Either McDonald (seems to be in the doghouse lately) or that new FA they signed a few weeks ago.
Formerly WestSideLionsFan. Fan of all Detroit sports teams.
I like it
Some more competition is good, it will push these guys hopefully. Maybe he is in shape, the guy is gigantic. Let’s pound the friggin ball. Him and Gosder on that right side is a whole bunch of humanity comin’ at ya.
yeah..if we can't run with that much mass + Pettigrew
we have problems. I just don’t want our pass protection to take a hit.
The Disassembly Line....nuff said.
This line still deserves credit
Look at all the great defenders we’ve played who haven’t touched The Stafford. Overall I give them a B-, because we’re winning and Stafford is healthy. Gosder did a nice job against Denver, the Raiders line didn’t fair so well today.
Who the hell is Anthony Madison
he might be the guy getting cut.
Is he still on the team?
That’s who I’d nominate to be cut then for sure. We don’t need 7 CBs.
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I dont hate this move at all
maybe it’ll light a fire under Peterman and Sims’ asses to cut it out with the crap penalties?
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that's cause
they haven’t
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 7, 2011 6:34 PM EST up reply actions
Could be but if one of them goes down
it would be nice to have a back up ready to fill in. Gandy isn’t the answer. Guess it just dawned on me they only have two guards on the team. Probably a smart move, considering the track record of the staff it probably is. These guys actually know wth they are doing. Such a nice change. Smart personnel moves and they win games. Yay.
Interesting move
Adding some depth to the O line and someone who might bring different skills to the mix sounds good to me. The guy is huge (355?), so he’s got a lot of mass, at least. Don’t know how much quickness he still has. But in Mayhew we trust! His instincts for talent have been great so far.
Davis does have a history of penalties, so that is a possible downside. The Lions have gotten better in the penalty department lately (not perfect, but consider our history over the past few decades)..
Lion fan in the Great Land!
No, he hasn't played at all this year
Not sure of his status, but maybe they don’t see him getting back.
"My grandma could play behind that line!"- Zack Follett
fox is healthy now
according to reports, he is just last on the depth chart.
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 7, 2011 3:00 PM EST up reply actions
Meh
Let’s see if he’s still in football shape…
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Right
My guess is that he was out of shape in August, but came to this workout looking a lot better. Either way, I can’t imagine Schwartz bringing him on board if he looked like he wasn’t in NFL game shape.
Yes, sounds like the Max Starks situation with the Steelers.
The announcers were saying that Rothlisberger was making a case with Tomlin to bring back Starks who was cut earlier because of how out of shape he was. Supposedly Ben said that he lost forty pounds, and Tomlin replied that he should come back when he lost fifty pounds.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
Yes, for a guy not playing and unwanted by anyone else, I thought he did very well against Suggs and company.
I did not see the whole game, but he kept Suggs and anyone else in front of him off of Big Ben all game. Suggs’ big play was a result of him not rushing at the QB.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
In Shape is a relative term my man
It could mean he’s in shape for the 2 short down plays
It could mean he’s in shape to be better than our bench guards
It could mean he’s in shape to be a starter
We’ll just have to wait and see which one it is
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Good point Latif.
I think we will see Davis on some short yardage plays initially, and then he will get evaluated from there.
I really don’t see him starting unless Peterman or Sims goes down. Neither of those guys is playing great or playing poorly either.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
Peterman and Raiola both
Have been absolutely PUTRID at times. They were especially bad against San Fran and Atlanta, but they have had their moments against the others as well. If Linehan is not calling 3 step drop plays on passing downs, lookout Matt…
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Not to mention the blatantly obvious lack of push
In the middle and right side of our O-line on run plays.
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Not sure why you are jumping on Peterman so much.
Sims has been worse than him IMO.
According to NFL.com [http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?archive=false&role=TM&offensiveStatisticCategory=OFFENSIVE_LINE&tabSeq=2&qualified=true] there is virtually no difference in the Lions success whether they run left, right or in the middle.
I don’t have the 2011 data that has carries and YPC for each part of the line, but from the NFL.com data I would be surprised if it shows a significant difference. Although Jahvid’s long run against the Bears will skew the results a bit.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
"Rush Center"
That is a REALLY misleading set of stats right there. The running back should never be running directly center (or he would run into Raiola). Therefore he has to choose one side or the other…and most of those runs you see in the “rush center” category have been center LEFT. Jahvid Best’s long run was designed as a run to the right, but he broke the play to the left (between Raiola and SIMS). Why did Jahvid Best cut it back to the left side? Was it because Peterman was doing such a great job bulldozing his man? Or was it because he and Cherilus both got blown off the ball and were engaged, with linebackers waiting to stuff the run to the right? He cut back left because he had nowhere to go. Sims and Backus both walled their men off on the left side, and Best was able to get loose.
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Like I said on the other thread
These stats do not tell the whole story. The eye test and subsequent analyses do.
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that run incidentally
was setup with an excellent combo block by Peterman and Dom. Sims was a weak runblocker last year and looked like he was much improved in that respect during preseason. That hasn’t carried over to the regular season though imo. I think a lot of the Peterman hatred comes off his injury plaqued poor performance over the first 2rds of the season last year and human nature being what it is we need a scapegoat for the lions run blocking deficiency. Hell his penalties have been under control all year in numbers and people can’t stop mentioning " the penalties".
All that being said it has looked like his performance has fallen off from 2 years ago and the ladder part of last year for that matter. Peterman is not "the problem with our run blocking imo though he may be part of it,
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 8, 2011 12:17 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Wow man...
I do not see it that way at all. There was no “combo” block. It was Raiola trying to save Peterman’s ass.
I also never said Peterman was “THE” problem. He IS part of the problem. Just like Raiola and Cherilus are part of the problem. Our best run blockers are Sims and Backus, and of that I have no doubt.
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Leonard Davis will end Peterman's tenure as our starting LG...
I’d bet the farm on it.
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I meant RG...
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I'll bet the farm he doesn't
Of course I don’t own a farm. :)) I’ll look at that Best run again I stated what I remembered. If Leonard suplants Pete great but I wonder how much the guy has left and why he was still available if it was that much. Almost every team is looking for oline help.
Incidentally whether I’m right or you are regarding the Best run means little in terms of overall performance.
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 8, 2011 12:37 PM EST up reply actions
I agree
I was just pointing it out as one example.
Peterman’s overall performance has been below average in my opinion. He is not a terrible pass blocker, but he is a pretty bad run blocker.
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You are right
Peterman and Raiola did make a combo block on the 88 yard run by Best. I stand corrected on that. Peterman actually made it to the second level and gets in front of Urlacher. Briggs went outside and was blocked by Pettigrew. The RDE overpursued, Sims and Backus doubled the RDT until Sims released and Backus pancaked him, and Best ran right behind Sims and Backus on the cutback. It was a great job by everyone up front. However, I think it is an outlier in terms of overall performance.
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Correction
Briggs thought it was a fake run, went outside to cover Heller, and did not realize it was a run until Jahvid Best was already past him. I think it was Nick roach that was blocked by Pettigrew.
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"The Penalties"
I can’t link you to any specific stats or anything, but I do remember quite a few boneheaded drive killers by Peterman this year. The first one I recall was in the game vs Tampa Bay. Down 6-10, on 1st and 10 Jahvid Best runs for a 7 yard gain. The play is over, and all of a sudden Peterman does his best Superman impression, and dives over the pile into a defenseless Ronde Barber. All of a sudden it is 1st and 25…thanks 66!
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yeah I remember that one well
and it was dumb and something pete has done on occasion throughout his career. He’s far from the only one league wide in that regard and til last year with his foot injury induced false starts his penalties were below league averages. I don’t recall many penalties this year other than the bucs game though, I haven’t seen any stats for this year though. Like I said though his overall performance this year seems to be lacking but I’d have to do a lot of rewatching to confirm.
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 8, 2011 2:18 PM EST up reply actions
I wonder how many false starts he's had so far?
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This means...
… someone is playing injured and Davis will need to step in. That’s usually the reason behind surprise moves, an undisclosed injury.
If this was an move to improve the roster they would sign a better running back. How about Tiki Barber?
Tiki had some tryouts
But point taken.
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See ya Peterman!
bout time we replace that bum
just pass me the damn ball
by Christopher Moriarty on Nov 7, 2011 9:42 AM EST reply actions
Peterman won't be going anywhere anytime soon.
Even if Davis is in game shape, he’s not gonna be ready to step in and start anytime soon.
I disagree
An old, fat, and out of shape Leonard Davis may very well be better than Peterman right now.
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I don't know how much impact this guy will have but I love this move
I love any offensive line move at this point. Especially if it helps our running game.
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His presence alone should be enough to
boost the play of the Oline.
Thank you FO!!!
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Even so, put him in in the redzone or 3rd/4th and inches
He’d get a lot of extra push in there.
Formerly WestSideLionsFan. Fan of all Detroit sports teams.
I'm down with it.
Dude is getting old, but he still can be a quality player. I’m doubtful that he’s gonna start anytime soon, and my guess is that they’re hoping that bringing him in will light a fire under Peterman’s ass and get him to play his ass off, which may or may not happen. But if all he is is good depth, which is what I’m guessing he’ll be, then I’m happy with the signing. It’s nice to have an insurance policy like him in place.
I don't know his strengths ...
He was a recent pro bowler .. he might not be a threat overall but I think he might have been bought in so that we can run specific plays ..
For example, he might be a good blocker in the running game. We badly need a run game, so use him on specific downs to jump start run plays .. or even keep pass rushers honest with threats of a good running play ..
Our running game badly needs help and that will help the passing game and Staff even more .. This might be a specialist move …
From what I've read
It seems like he plays really well at times, but gets tired out quickly and then his play falls off and he gives up sacks in the passing game.
Formerly WestSideLionsFan. Fan of all Detroit sports teams.
He's been known to be out of shape
but if I had to guess, he’s probably in shape now. My guess is that he showed up in August out of shape, expecting his resume to be good enough to land him a job somewhere. After seeing that wasn’t the case, he’s likely spent the last couple of months since then working out and getting back into game shape. It’s the only reason I can think of why we didn’t sign him in August but are bringing him in now.
You guys make sense ...
so maybe he is in better shape .. and/or or our need for a run blocker made us desperate. He is bad in pass blocking, but we will probably use him in running plays, or pass plays that need minimal protection ..
If opponents have to respect our run somewhat more than now, it will help our offense immensely …
I have 3 thoughts on this...
1) As I said above…and old, fat, and out of shape Leonard Davis is better than Peterman, especially in the run game.
2) Maybe they will rotate him and Peterman, giving Davis a majority of the snaps on 1st and 2nd downs and bringing Peterman in on passing downs to keep Davis fresh.
3) Perhaps there is an injury that none of us knows about yet, but my guess is that this was a move to strengthen the depth on the O-line. Even if Davis does not start, he will be in the mix.
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Rotating O-line is a recipe for disaster.
Just look at the Bears O-line the past couple of years.
No slogans. Just win!!!
Suck backing up suck usually sucks...
I’m just thinking Leonard Davis is probably better than Peterman all around…but when he gets tired it shouldn’t hurt to let Peterman take some snaps to give him a breather.
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sit your fatass on the bench Peterman
you’ve never been anything but a backup anyways. Perhaps a run game will be discovered soon as well.
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This is like an August Tigers signing to get ready for the playoff run.
Their getting setup for the “offs”
Even if he’s just a goal line presence it isn’t a bad move. I wouldn’t expect him to play a major role at this point in the season, especially after listening to Dallas fans talk about how much he slowed down. Not a bad move though…
by smm1198 on Nov 7, 2011 2:08 PM EST via mobile reply actions
You guys are all overreacting to this move.
Didn’t anyone see what happened with the Bears O-line recently? Changing and rotatiing players on the O-line is a move ripe for disaster. You don’t do it unless someone is performing so badly that he might as well be cut. No one on the Lions O-line is performing that badly right now. Breaking up the O-line could be worse than doing nothing.
No slogans. Just win!!!
by drgarnett on Nov 7, 2011 9:59 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
I agree drg.
People can dump on Peterman all they want but he is playing as well as anyone else on the O Line IMO. I think he is here for depth and short yardage blocking.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
I'm ok with him just coming in for short yardage plays
certainly at first. let’s face it, the man can move a pile and our short yardage plays need help. passing everytime on 3rd and 1 isn’t going to cut it.
That is about the most ignorant argument I have seen posted here
So it’s ok and good to rotate guys on the defensive line, but not the offensive line?? That makes NO sense. Just because Chicago’s offensive linemen, and their backups, all suck and can’t get it done, even with a rotation, does not mean it is a disaster waiting to happen for every team that tries it. There is absolutely ZERO logic in the idea that rotating players on the offensive line is a recipe for disaster.
And the idea that Peterman is playing just as well as everyone else on the O-line?? Ridiculously ludicrous, to the point of hilarity.
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Wow, thanks for straightening us all out with your brilliant argument KDawg.
Fact is that no NFL team rotates O Line personnel. Please point out a team that successfully did so. Or how about one that even did it at all.
Peterman has not allowed a sack all season, something I don’t believe any other O Lineman [except Gandy and Fox] can say. Do you have any stats or facts to back up your claims besides your gut feel and eye test?
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
Was I talking to you?
Nope…so fuck off.
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Sorry...
Knee jerk reaction.
Just talking logic man. I don’t care who has and hasn’t done what. If it is logical to rotate guys on the D-line, then it stands to reason that it would work just as well on the other side of the ball, if you have the right personnel.
Stats can be deceiving, and there is never enough of them to paint the whole picture. All I know is that I watch these games very closely, multiple times, just so I can break it down piece by piece. I see poor run blocking in the middle and on the right, and I see Peterman getting beat a ton. I watched him whiff on his blocks and fall on his face several weeks in a row now. He was especially bad against SF and ATL. Not to mention the penalties…
It has nothing to do with gut feeling. It’s mostly what I have seen with my own eyes. I don’t even know where you would find reliable individual offensive line stats. All I can say is that Raiola, Peterman, and Cherilus are ALL under performing when it comes to run blocking. I’d say Dom is the worst, followed by Peterman.
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Oh yeah...
And to answer your question about a successful team that HAS rotated offensive linemen? The 2002 New England Patriots is one of many, and THEY have done it successfully ever since.
Usually it only happens when there is an injury, but it can be done for other reasons as well, including short rests. Rotating offensive lineman also helps to standardize and equalize training for all offensive linemen, so they all have chemistry regardless of who is in the game. Standardization, training, and rotation of offensive linemen allows teams to transition seamlessly when an injury occurs as well, making recovery time minimal.
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Rotating O Linemen because of an injury is nothing like what you are proposing.
If the Pats were so successful with it why did they not continue it?
And since the Lions like to use the hurry up offence, how will that work then?
Come on, that is just laughable.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
I don't think it's laughable
but of course you wouldn’t rotate on a play by play basis and probably not often in the same series of downs. Frankly I think the main reason it isn’t and shouldn’t be done throughout the league is that the depth league wide simply isn’t there to allow it. If Davis proves to be an improvement in run blocking short yardage situations especially than it makes sense to rotate him into the lineup for those situations just as if he proves to be an upgrade overall at some point it makes sense to play him primarily.
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by Justan Oldfart on Nov 8, 2011 2:27 PM EST up reply actions
Exactly
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They did continue it
They STILL do it!
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NL12
What part of “They have done it ever since 2002” was unclear??
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thismove was made to help the right side of line get thier ass going on run blocking and pass blocking now that perterman has some one who can re place him on the roster he might pick his play up lets hope so .great move by the lions also by picking up a rb that knowes thier plays in smith let hope he has something left .
+1
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Not sure what you are talking about as Sims and Backus have been less than mediocre in pass blocking this year.
Most of the pressure on Stafford seems to be coming from the left side of the line this year. Davis is nothing more than depth for the Guard position. IMO. If he gets a lot of snaps, it is because of an injury to Sims or Peterman.
My 2011 Lions season prediction: 12 wins and 4 losses. I made this prediction the week after the New England preseason game. It's looking slightly optimistic right now.
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