The Detroit Lions found themselves in a terrible position this offseason when their legendary wide receiver Calvin Johnson retired, giving them a gaping hole in their offense. Sure, the Lions did sign Marvin Jone's but even his former team, the Bengals, decided to get rid of him and find some new wide receivers in the draft rather than overpay for his lukewarm production.
Another thing to take note of is that Jones is very injury prone, and if Lions fans were tired of Calvin Johnson getting dinged up, then they are going to absolutely hate Jones. The Lions went through a similar situation when Ndamukong Suh left in free agency and signed with the Miami Dolphins. Sure Suh is a productive, dominant player, but the Lions scheme and players is what emphasized his positive traits as a player.
Want proof? Suh only recorded six sacks last season, along with 61 combined tackles and no forced fumbles. Now at 28 years old, Matt Stafford has only gotten better, but until the Lions either build up this offensive line through quality drafting or sign some offensive linemen who can protect him, that won't matter. Plus, when you factor in that Stafford has never gone a season in the NFL without having one of the best, if not the best, wide receiver in the National Football League, well then that is a recipe for trouble.
Stafford's solid season in 2015 could make him quality trade bait as the Lions look to rebuild this roster. Stafford started in 16 games, completed 398 out of 592 passing attempts, completed 67.2 percent of his passes, gained 4,262 yards through the air, and recorded 32 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Those are solid numbers, but this offense has completely changed, and without Johnson, Stafford is less likely to be more productive than he was in 2015.
The Lions have taken another step in the wrong direction, and this is why trading for a solid player and a couple of draft picks could be a smart move in the long run. Think about the Lions draft position this year. They have the 16TH overall pick and are not guaranteed to find a top 10 prospect this season. But if you add in the Denver Broncos' first and third round draft picks, the Lions could come away with a ton of quality players in this draft.
Theoretically, if Detroit traded Stafford, they could come away with Paxton Lynch and one of the best receivers in the 2016 NFL Draft. Teams looking for a franchise quarterback may do their best selling the farm and investing in Stafford then allowing him to remain with a rebuilding franchise.
