While in town to film a "This Is SportsCenter" commercial, Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford stopped by the set of SportsCenter for an interview. He discussed several topics, including his 5,000-yard season, what's next for the Lions, what it's like to play with Calvin Johnson, his reaction to Gisele Bundchen's comments after the Super Bowl and what his prediction is for the Lions in 2012. Video of the interview can be found after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

A year ago, after putting together an outstanding first season in the NFL, Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was considered one of the most popular athletes in the NFL. Now, however, after all of the talk about him being a dirty player and his Thanksgiving stomp, Suh has become one of the most disliked American athletes, according to a survey from Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research.

Specifically, Suh is considered the fourth-most disliked athlete in the United States, according to this survey. As noted in the write-up for the survey, fans have done a 180 in regards to Suh. In a survey about the most liked NFL players that apparently came out only four months ago, he actually came in first. Now, however, he has risen to the top of the most disliked list.

"He went from being so popular to being a pariah in one season," says Master. The good news for Suh is that he’s a young player who can shake off a mistake if he keeps it clean from now on.

The top three athletes on the most disliked list were Mike Vick, Tiger Woods and Plaxico Burress.

Earlier this week, the official list of invitees for the 2012 NFL Combine was released. The combine will be held later this month in Indianapolis, and it is set to feature several players from Michigan colleges. Here's the breakdown:

For Michigan, I will be keeping an eye on Martin's bench press. He has said before he wants to break the reps record, and considering how strong he is -- he did a rep of 500 pounds this week -- it wouldn't surprise me if he does rewrite the record books.

For MSU, it will be interesting to see how Cousins does in comparison to some of the other quarterbacks. I think it's a given that Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III will be the first two QBs off the board, but after that things seem pretty open. I think Cousins has a chance to really improve his stock.

Around this time a year ago, the Detroit Lions made the decision to not bring back running back Kevin Smith. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent, but the Lions declined to tender him an offer, meaning he became an unrestricted free agent.

Smith was out of football until the Lions brought him back in the middle of the 2011 season. Finally healthy, he resumed his career with a few carries against the Chicago Bears and then put together an amazing game against the Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately, he dealt with injuries again later in the season, but when healthy he provided a nice boost to the Lions' running game.

With Smith set to become a free agent again this offseason, it's unclear if he will be back with the Lions in 2012. If it were up to him, though, he wouldn't be going anywhere.

"In every interview that I've done, even though I'm a free agent, I've referred to the team and me as us," Smith said. "I'm on the Lions roster in my opinion until I'm not on the Lions roster. That says it all."

If the Lions do decide to bring him back, they could have a backfield that consists of Smith, Jahvid Best and Mikel Leshoure next season. Injuries have been an issue with all three of them, but on paper, that is a pretty solid combination of running backs.

Value players remain a critical piece to the foundation of an NFL franchise. A plethora of said players throughout the NFL have come from the later rounds of the NFL draft. Thus far, Martin Mayhew and his staff have done a fairly solid job of accumulating talent in the mid to late rounds that have made an impact toward the resurgence of the organization.

Deandre Levy (3rd round), Sammie Lee Hill (4th round), Willie Young (7th round), and Aaron Berry (undrafted) each played key roles for the Lions this past season. There has, however, been those that have not worked out due to performance or injury. Aaron Brown (6th round), Derrick Williams (3rd round), and Jason Fox (4th round) immediately come to mind. While it may be argued that the jury is still out on Fox, his clock is ticking. Doug Hogue (5th round) remains a question mark as a developing linebacker.

Let's now re-examine the aforementioned sleeper players from my recent series. In order to continue creating depth the Lions will need to find a hidden gem or two in the upcoming NFL draft.

Offensive Lineman

C - Mike Brewster, C - Philip Blake, C - Mike Wedige, OG - Rishawn Johnson, OG - Ryan Miller, OG/OT - James Brown, OT - Nate Potter, OT - Jeff Adams, and OT - Mitchell Schwartz

Skill Position Players

RB - Cyrus Gray, RB - Marc Tyler, RB - Darrell Scott, RB - Edwin Baker, WR - Joe Adams, WR - Marvin McNutt, WR - Ryan Broyles, WR - Keshawn Martin, WR - Jordan White, and TE - Michael Egnew

Secondary

CB - Josh Norman, CB - Coryell Judie, CB - Casey Hayward, CB - Omar Bolden, S - Brandon Tyler, S - Darius Prelow

Linebackers

MLB - James-Michael Johnson, MLB - Max Gruder, MLB - Nigel Bradham, OLB - Terrell Manning, OLB - Emmanuel Acho, LB - Danny Trevathan

Defensive Lineman

DE - Billy WInn, DE - Cam Johnson, DE - Malik Jackson, DE - Donte Moss, DE - Darius Nall, DE - James Brooks

The combine, running February 22nd - 28th, will inevitably raise and lower the stock of draft prospects. There will be an updated series, and new mock draft following the event.

ROAR.

ESPN gets a lot of well-deserved criticism for some of the ways it covers sports, but one area where it receives a lot of well-deserved praise is in the commercial department. ESPN's "This Is SportsCenter" commercials have always been hilarious, mainly because they work athletes into comical situations in the offices of ESPN.

I'm not quite sure what the premise of ESPN's newest "This Is SportsCenter" commercial is, but it's going to feature Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, as well as Hairy Dawg, the mascot for Stafford's alma mater, the University of Georgia.

Flight tonight to @espn headquarters in Bristol to shoot the "This is @SportsCenter" commercial with @Staff_9. #GoDawgs

— Hairy Dawg (@UGAHairyDawg) February 9, 2012

I don't think a Lions player has been in a "This Is SportsCenter" commercial before. Actually, upon taking a quick look at the list of commercials over the years, I don't think a single Detroit athlete has been in one before. I know Sparty, Michigan State's mascot, has made a few appearances, but as far as I can tell, a Detroit athlete has not until now.

UPDATE: As pointed out by BtotheLT, Gordie Howe was in a "This Is SportsCenter" commercial.

UPDATE II: Grant Hill was also in a "This Is SportsCenter" commercial. (Hat tip to a reader on Twitter.)

Russ Lande is a former NFL scout that now works for the Sporting News. His recent mock draft has the Lions selecting DE Nick Perry at #23.

Perry is a local kid (King High School), that possesses a great burst, excellent use of hands, and led the PAC-12 in sacks with 9.5. Free agency will certainly lay the ground work for some of what may occur on draft night, but the Perry selection is worth noting because it stands in stark contrast with many of the other current mock drafts, and also comes from a credible source.

23. Detroit Lions: Nick Perry*, DE, Southern Cal. Cliff Avril is a free agent who might not be back. Kyle Vanden Bosch is 33. So the Lions grab Perry, who would upgrade their outside pass rush immediately.

Read more: http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2012-02-09/nfl-mock-draft-first-round-board-fluctuates-as-combine-approaches#ixzz1lwjKY18a