ESPN NFC North beat writer Kevin Seifert has posted his All-NFC North Team roster. The roster features five Detroit Lions, including WR Calvin Johnson, OG Rob Sims, OT Jeff Backus, DT Ndamukong Suh, and S Louis Delmas. Seifert provides an excerpt regarding his thoughts surrounding the Sims selection.
"I went with the Lions' Rob Sims at left guard in part on the advice of John McTigue of ESPN Stats & Information, who noted that Sims was the only NFC North left guard to play the position for 16 games this season. Sims also had the best pass-sack ratio (19.7 passes per sack) of the group, based on video study," says Seifert.
Noticeably absent from this list are TE Brandon Pettigrew, QB Matt Stafford, and DE Cliff Avril. Seifert also provides some insight into the logic behind leaving Pettigrew off of the list in favor of Packers TE Jermichael Finley.
"There is no doubt that the Lions' Brandon Pettigrew (83 catches) had a more productive season then the Packers' Jermichael Finley (55). But the Lions often used Pettigrew as a substitute for their punchless running game, and that's why his per-catch average of 9.4 yards was lower than any other tight end with at least 30 catches. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the average pass to Pettigrew this season traveled 6.5 yards in the air. The average pass to Finley traveled 11.4 yards. Finley caught five passes of at least 30 yards. Pettigrew's longest was 27. Both players had their share of drops, combining for a total of 15, but I thought Finley made a bigger impact on his catches than Pettigrew did," says Seifert.
Some Lion fans will take exception to DE Cliff Avril being left off of the list in favor of DE Julius Peppers. DE Jared Allen had a remarkable year, and though I personally took exception to his comments about the city of Detroit, I can't argue his nomination. Peppers over Avril? Avril finished the season with 11.5 sacks compared to Peppers 11. His impact this season exceeded that of Peppers.
There were also considerations for LB Stephen Tulloch and CB Chris Houston. To further view Seifert's comments, go to, http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/post/_/id/38287/finally-your-2011-all-nfc-north-team.
2011 All-NFC North Team
| Pos. | Player, Team |
|---|---|
| OFFENSE | |
| WR | Calvin Johnson (DET) |
| WR | Greg Jennings (GB) |
| WR | Jordy Nelson (GB) |
| LT | Jeff Backus (DET) |
| LG | Rob Sims (DET) |
| C | Scott Wells (GB) |
| RG | Josh Sitton (GB) |
| RT | Bryan Bulaga (GB) |
| TE | Jermichael Finley (GB) |
| QB | Aaron Rodgers (GB) |
| RB | Matt Forte (CHI) |
| DEFENSE | |
| DE | Jared Allen (MIN) |
| DT | Kevin Williams (MIN) |
| DT | Ndamukong Suh (DET) |
| DE | Julius Peppers (CHI) |
| OLB | Clay Matthews (GB) |
| MLB | Brian Urlacher (CHI) |
| OLB | Lance Briggs (CHI) |
| CB | Charles Tillman (CHI) |
| CB | Charles Woodson (GB) |
| S-NB | Tramon Williams (GB) |
| S | Louis Delmas (DET) |
| SPECIAL TEAMS | |
| PK | Mason Crosby (GB) |
| P | Tim Mastay (GB) |
| PR | Devin Hester (CHI) |
| KR | Percy Harvin (MIN) |
| ST | Corey Graham (CHI) |
ROAR.
By: Dustin J Quarrella
Poll
Which Lion was the biggest snub?
Cliff Avril (28 votes)
Brandon Pettigrew (43 votes)
Matt Stafford (16 votes)
Chris Houston (4 votes)
Stephen Tulloch (25 votes)
None (13 votes)
129 total votes
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