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Ranking the Offseason Moves and Interviewing the Newcomers

The official website of the Detroit Lions has been busy lately.  First, they began their countdown of the top five offseason moves.  The fourth and fifth ranked moves were released in the past two weeks, and the third will be announced on Friday.

Move number five was trading Joey Harrington to Miami and moving on with two new incoming quarterbacks.

After things ultimately did not come together between Harrington and the Lions with their new coaching staff, the decision was made to move on without the fifth-year quarterback out of Oregon.

"I've decided to go in a different direction with Joey," said Marinelli in a media session announcing the decision. "I made the decision that I think is best for our team. We're moving on at this point without Joey."

With Harrington out of next season's picture, that left the Lions moving on with Kitna, who officially signed his contract on March 22, McCown, and second-year quarterback Dan Orlovsky.


Possibly one of the best moves in the history of the organization, not just the offseason.  No disrespect intended to Joey Harrington, but he just didn't fit in with the Lions.  I don't think the West Coast offense was right for him.  I think he'll be a lot better off as a player in Miami.  Plus, what weather would you rather have in December?  Let's see, sun and beaches or snow and frigid temperatures, I think that speaks for itself.

Move number four was the re-signing of seven unrestricted free agents over the offseason.  This was a great move by the organization because several veteran players with lots of experience will be returning for another season with the Lions.

Aside from the fact that these seven players hold a high amount of talent, they also have a high amount of potential to thrive under Head Coach Rod Marinelli and his coaching staff. Marinelli kept players on his roster he felt he could develop even further than their talent had already allowed them to, and results were already apparent during offseason conditioning.

The second part of my findings while looking at the Lions' official website was two interviews of Lions' draft picks.  The first is with Dee McCann, a cornerback out of West Virginia who was taken in the sixth round of the draft.

McCann began his collegiate career at Jones County (Miss.) Junior College before transferring to West Virginia. In two seasons with the Mountaineers, McCann had 79 tackles, seven interceptions, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.

The second interview (posted today) is with the fifth round pick of the draft by Detroit, Jonathan Scott.  Scott was a steal most say as he was projected as high as the third round in many mock drafts.

When he was drafted by the Lions, Detroit Offensive Line Coach Larry Beightol expressed his excitement about the selection:

"I think he's a terrific pick, especially where (in the draft) we've taken him," said Beightol. "He's a big, athletic guy. All he's got to do is get in the weight room, get with some good strength coaches like we have here, and improve his overall body strength."

After he was drafted in late April, Scott committed himself to preparing for his next step: training camp. He went through the remainder of the Lions' offseason conditioning program - including two mini-camps - and is looking forward to the start of training camp with high anticipation.


On Friday, when the number three-ranked offseason move is released, Pride of Detroit will have the story on it.  Thanks for reading and Go Lions!

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