No, this unfortunately isn't a joke. Before I start complaining about this next story, take a look at a quote from an article in a Dayton paper discussing the Lions having interest in Troy Smith.
The source added that the team has kept a close eye on Smith throughout the year and took special notice of his performance in Mobile, which leads one to believe that Smith could be an option for the club at some point in the draft. It would likely be in round two providing he is available.
Alright, buckle your seat belts because this could be a long ride. If the Lions wasted a second round pick on Troy Smith, it may actually be worse than wasting a first rounder on Brady Quinn as I had worried about many times in the past. Although the latter doesn't appear to be happening anymore, it still is a scary thought. Don't get me wrong, Troy Smith was a great college quarterback. I definitely know that as a Michigan fan considering he torched the Maize and Blue in every meeting. However, college success doesn't translate into pro success, and I especially feel that way about Smith.
If the Lions had a few extra picks in the late second round or early third round, then drafting Smith wouldn't upset me nearly as much. But the thought of Matt Millen using the 34th overall selection on Troy Smith is just scary. He will be around at that time and probably will fall even more depending on what other teams do in the first round. His stock is actually falling after the combine as many felt he hadn't prepared well enough for it. Assuming that this is some actual genuine interest, let's think about what else could be behind these team sources revealing they're interested in Smith.
Recently the Lions have been pushing the media hard with the story that they are interested in a quarterback. I and many others believe that it is just untruthfulness being put out there by Detroit to try and generate interest in the #2 pick. If Detroit hoped to trade down, then making other teams feel like they would draft a QB if a trade doesn't happen could be a way of getting a few extra picks. How exactly would Troy Smith get into this thinking? Smith will not be selected by Detroit at #2 or any other first round pick, but the fact that they are out there again saying there's interest in a QB strategically places the thought in other teams' minds that it could actually be truthful.
I really don't think Detroit will take a quarterback unless a trade happened where a few extra picks went the Lions' way. Detroit has quite a few holes to address, and with free agency not looking as good as once thought, the draft may be a way to fill them. And also, why would Detroit need to draft Troy Smith? Dan Orlovsky is on the team along with Josh McCown, who are both reliable backups in case something happened to Jon Kitna. For those that say drafting Smith would get a QB for the future, why is there a need for one at this point? Sure, you want to plan ahead for years down the road, but drafting Troy Smith in my opinion isn't a way to do that.
Those are my thoughts on the idea of picking Troy Smith. If you have some yourself that you would like to express, leave them in the comments section.