:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/20229063/20121209_ajl_so3_026.0.jpg)
Ever since news of Nate Burleson's broken arm was made public earlier this week, a whole lot of names have been thrown around for wide receivers who could potentially help the Detroit Lions. There has especially been a lot of speculation about potential trade targets like Josh Gordon, Kenny Britt and even Hakeem Nicks.
On Thursday, rumors were swirling that Nicks had either been traded to the Lions or was on the verge of being sent to Detroit, perhaps in exchange for Mikel Leshoure and a draft pick. The idea of the Lions getting Nicks is certainly intriguing, but here's the important part: these rumors weren't coming from reliable or known sources.
To put it simply, if the Lions were to trade for a well-known player like Nicks, chances are one of the national NFL insiders would be the first to report about it. And if not one of them, a local beat writer from Detroit or the city of the other team involved in the deal would likely hear of the news first. Random, unknown people with no track record of breaking news like this aren't suddenly going to start becoming reliable sources, and as Dave Birkett reported, the rumors about Nicks going to Detroit are off base.
No. I'm told nothing cooking there right now "@TankJared: Hakeem nicks a lion"
— Dave Birkett (@davebirkett) September 27, 2013
So there you have it. The Lions have not acquired Nicks, and per Birkett, there's "nothing cooking" right now. Could that change in the future? Sure. But don't believe everything you read on the Internet, especially when it comes to wide receivers potentially being traded to the Lions.