Tuesday open thread: What positions should the Lions avoid in the first round?

On Monday, we presented the latest SB Nation mock draft that had the Detroit Lions selecting tight end O.J. Howard with their first round pick. Prior to that mock draft, only one mock in our database of 250+ had the Lions selecting the tight end out of Alabama. Your response to the pick was... less than enthusiastic.

Though most agree the Lions are definitely in need of an additional tight end on the roster, Detroit fans are understandably gun shy after the selection of Eric Ebron at No. 10 overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. Still, there were some that believed the pick made sense, considering the value of Howard at 21st overall.

With every team, there are positions that shouldn’t, or wouldn’t be filled with the first round pick, regardless of the talent available in the draft. So today’s Question of the Day is:

Which positions do you want the Lions to avoid with their first round pick?

My answer: Let’s get the obvious answers out of the way: The Lions can’t and won’t pick a quarterback, fullback or any special teams player in the first round. Those positions aside, the only position I would really staunchly against is center and wide receiver. Sure positions like running back, tight end or strong safety aren’t particular positions of need, but I believe if the right talent is there, a solid argument could be made for adding them to the roster. Detroit could use a three-down back, they would benefit from a well-rounded tight end and more talent in the secondary is never a bad thing.

As for center, the Lions already have two more-than-capable players at the position, so it would make no sense to draft one in the first round or, really, anywhere in the draft.

While the Lions aren’t exactly set at wide receiver, they have already invested a lot of money in Golden Tate and Marvin Jones. Matthew Stafford has plenty of offensive weapons in the passing game, and I don’t see anyone in particular that would be worthy of a first-round pick anyways.

Your turn.