For the second time in the last month or so, the Lions have made a trade involving a wide receiver, this time sending Ronald Curry to the Rams in exchange for defensive tackle Orien Harris. At the end of last month, the Lions acquired Dennis Northcutt from the Jaguars, adding more depth to the wide receiver position. It is now becoming apparent that that move was made because the Lions weren't completely happy with the slot WR position. Curry was signed earlier in the offseason to shore up depth at WR and play the slot. By trading for Northcutt, Curry then became expendable, and the Lions decided that it was time to start shoring up depth on the defensive line.
Orien Harris is only entering his fifth season in the league and the Lions are already his seventh different team. He was a fourth-round draft pick by the Steelers in 2006 but finished the year with the Browns. He then went to the Bills in 2007 but finished the year with the Saints. In 2008, he had 14 tackles for the Bengals, the only team he played for last season. Harris was traded back in May to the Rams, the team that dealt him to the Lions today.
It doesn't appear that Harris will suddenly become a starter or anything like that, but the Lions have an enormous need for depth at defensive tackle, and that is what he will provide -- depth. Considering the Lions no longer had a need for Ronald Curry after picking up Dennis Northcutt, this move was made to shore things up at DT. The defensive line in general is hurting for depth, so this trade was definitely made to add a big man (Harris is 6-3, 300 lbs.) to the D-line.