Lions host Rashaan Melvin for pre-draft visit

With the 2013 NFL Draft almost here, there's no time for rest. That's why the Detroit Lions continued preparing for the draft over the weekend by bringing in Northern Illinois cornerback Rashaan Melvin for a visit. He is the third cornerback known to have visited the Lions in advance of this year's draft.

Melvin put up some big numbers at Northern Illinois. This past season, he set a single-season school record with 17 pass breakups, and he also had 55 total tackles, 1 interception and 1 forced fumble. A year earlier, in 2011, Melvin recorded 78 total tackles and 2 interceptions. In 2010, his first season seeing extensive playing time, Melvin picked off 2 passes and had 39 total tackles.

The Lions enter the 2013 NFL Draft with a slight need at cornerback. Given that they drafted three cornerbacks last year and have Chris Houston back, they aren't in desperate need of help at the position. They could use a No. 1 type of cornerback to go along with Houston, but Dee Milliner in the first round seems like the only immediate option to fill that need this year. If they pass on Milliner and decide to just bolster their overall depth at cornerback, someone like Melvin in a later round could be worth a look.

As of Monday morning, the Lions have used 20 pre-draft visits. That means they have 10 left. It remains to be seen if they will actually use all 30 of their total visits, but this will be a very busy week if they do end up using the final 10 they have left.