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…

A couple of days ago I handed out my end of season grades for the Detroit Lions Offensive unit. If you read that post, it’s pretty easy to see I wasn’t too happy and certainly let down by the offense this year. But how did the Defensive unit fare in my viewpoint? The Lions defense was supposed to struggle this year, so I took that into consideration when grading them this year. Again, my grades are determined as much for how they did against expectations as they are for simple performance. Well, let’s get to em…

Defensive Line: C-

The defensive line was supposed to be the anchor of a weak defensive unit this year. Sean Rogers and Kalimba Edwards were supposed to be heavyweights this year. They both were busts and I hope are not with the team next year. Early in the season, the Lions seemed to win or lose based on the play of the defensive line. When they disappeared, the Lions got blown out. The second half of the season, I think they were on the field, but one can never be sure. The lone bright spot on the line was DeWayne White who had half a dozen sacks and let the team in fumble recoveries. Unfortunately, he was never the same after his shoulder/arm injury midway through the season. We have to improve her next year.

Linebackers: D

Watching the Lions linebackers try to tackle was laughable this year. - except for Ernie Sims. Sims is a man amongst boys on the Lions. We need a few more of him. This grade would have been an E except for the stellar play of Sims. These guys were quiet all year. Baily, Lehman, Lenon and Lews just didnt make enough plays. In Marinelli’s scheme, these guys have it pretty simple, play the gaps. If the ball carrier got past the line, it was likely a CB or S making the stop - unless Sims was around. I wish we could clone Sims. This area needs to be addressed in the offseason.

Seconday: C

I really struggled coming up with a grade here. The coverage by the secondary was terrible. We gave up lots of yardage every game. Opposing quarterbacks had big days and lofty ratings. Still, the for much of the first half of the season, the Lions led the league in takeaways and were near the top in interceptions. This from a unit everyone knew was going to be bad. I give them credit for a better than expected first half. Unfortunately, the second half was pretty much what was expected. They were eaten alive. I think cornerback could be our number 1 need this offseason. I think we are okay at safety with Bullocks coming back from injury and the inspired play of Greg Blue the last few games.

Defensive Coordinator: C-

This is really for all the defensive coaches. You have to give them credit the first half of the season. The Lions went 6 - 2 largely because of big plays by the defense. However, throughout the season, the defense took too many stupid penalties that kept opposing drives alive. The anchor of the defense, the line, was bad all year. Why couldn’t the coaches get them to play?