Wednesday Lions Notes: Duckett to Seattle

by Sean Yuille on Mar 5, 2008 11:02 AM EST in Notes Comment 0 comments

Running back T.J. Duckett has signed a five-year deal with the Seattle Seahawks. Duckett spent only one season in Detroit and had some nice moments on the field. For the most part he wasn't utilized very much, but the Lions did seem to want him back considering running back is already thin as it is.
With the one-time Michigan State standout leaving for Seattle, the Lions will have to add a running back or two via free agency or the draft. For right now, they are showing quite a bit of interest in Julius Jones, who was on the Cowboys before becoming a free agent. He visited the Lions yesterday and was supposed to take a physical, so now it is just a matter of waiting to see if anything happens. I would hope the Lions make a move to sign Jones considering how thin the depth chart really is at running back, but we'll just have to wait and see.
Speaking of running backs, Kevin Jones is ahead of schedule in his rehab and will be returning to Detroit in the next couple of weeks.
Teddy Lehman has signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Lehman had been a Lion ever since he was drafted back in 2004, but didn't do much after his rookie season due to injuries.
The Lions have re-signed tight end John Owens, setting up an interesting battle between the TEs at training camp for a spot on the roster.
Lions defensive coordinator Joe Barry defended the team in their efforts to trade for Jonathan Vilma. Many fans, including myself, were upset to see Vilma go to New Orleans when all it took was a fourth-round pick, but Barry said Detroit "went full-bore after Vilma."
Shaun Rogers is happy to be in Cleveland.
Leigh Bodden, the cornerback Detroit got as a part of the Rogers trade, said his goal is to get 10 interceptions next season.
SportsProjections.com is running a bloggers mock draft, and I made the pick for the Lions. After giving it some thought, I selected Boise State offensive tackle Ryan Clady. A week ago I thought that cornerback was the biggest need, but after trading for Leigh Bodden, I didn't see a first-round pick on a CB being the right move, especially when the top ones had already been taken. Taking that into consideration, I opted to start making the o-line better as that will have to happen if the Lions want to become a running-oriented team.