Quote: For what it's worth,  I believe the Lions were the only team that would have drafted Ezekiel Ansah in the top 5 of the draft.   The Lions coaching staff coached him at the Senior Bowl.   Without that opportunity,   Ansah's very limited football background would have been difficult for G.M.'s around the NFL to pull the trigger.  

 

 Even with the Senior Bowl opportunity for the Lions,  it was a gutsy decision by G.M. Martin Mayhew to take him at # 5.    A decision,  along with an overall 2013 Draft and UDRFA crop that likely saved Mayhew's job after the decision was made to fire Jim Schwartz following the 2013 season.  

 

In addition to what you've said, there is no guarantee that Ezekiel would have been so production in another situation.  The Lions have had a stacked DL since 2013 which definitely helps a raw guy like Ansah develop favorably.  

 

I thought and still think Joeckel was the best pick we could have made at #2 without a trade down.  It was an awful draft at the top and hindsight is less relevant than usual looking back at how poorly all those top picks are doing at the moment.

 

Six of the top eleven picks in the 2013 draft were offensive linemen and only a couple of them have worked out.  The vast majority of professional scouts were dead wrong that year.

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