Well, I am still on vacation until early next week - actually been sick for last three of four days, so it hasn’t been much fun. Look for my offseason review by mid to late next week. Anyways, word comes that the Detroit has signed another linebacker, Alfred Fincher.

Fincher was also a 3rd round draft pick (like other free agent signee Gardner earliers) from 2005. He played college ball at Connecticut. He has spent all three seasons with the New Orleans Saints though not as a starter. He spent the last half of last year on injured reserve with after sustaining a concussion. Eventually, he was waived towards the end of the season.

The Lions seem to be taking some relatively cheap shots here at some project players at a position they desperately need some help. Fincher was contributing more to the Saints than Gardner was, so he may actually have a shot at some playing time at linebacker if he can fully recover from the concussion. 7 games is a lot of missed time for a concussion - it must have been pretty severe. Add in the offseason and he should be ready to go come camp.

I haven’t seen terms of the contract, but I suspect we didn’t have to pay a whole lot to get him. I think this is a respectable play at getting some quality players at a cheap price. It doesn’t hurt to bring em into camp and try em out. This assumes, though, that we still go after a linebacker early in the draft. I think it would be a mistake to assume either of these two players would be full time starters. The Lions simply have to get better at this position and while Gardner and Fincher may help, alone I don’t see them as being enough.

One sign that the Lions are still serious about drafting a LB high in the draft was that they did have Tennessee LB Jerod Mayo in for a visit. He is considered one of the top LBs in the draft.

Back to being sick on my vacation though I am greatly improved…

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, but I am currently in the middle of long needed vacation. I had hoped to get my report card on the Lions free agency season thus far up before I left, but unfortunately just ran out of time. I don’t really see much chance to get it done while on vacation either. It will be near the top of my list once I return.

In the meantime, the Lions have made another off season move. This time, they have acquired free agent linebacker Gilbert Gardner. Last season, Gardner played sparingly for the Tennessee Titans. In fact, since being drafted in the 3rd round in 2004 by the Indianapolis Colts, Gardner hasn’t seen a whole lot of action. In fact, he is joined the ranks of those who have failed to live up to expectations in the draft.

The Lions certainly are no strangers to those kinds of draft picks having made many false steps in the draft in the past years. I can only assume that Gardner is a bit of a reach and perhaps a project to see if they can revitalize what the Colts saw in the guy coming out of college. Despite our weakness at linebacker, I don’t see him playing a large role unless he shows the form of old. At best, he may see some special teams action. I hope this doesn’t convince the Lions that they don’t need to spend one of their early picks on a linebacker.

Back to my vacation…