Detroit Lions Draft 2017: Players Who May Fall to Lions’ Second Round Pick

Joe Mixon: RB, Oklahoma

The physical gifts of Joe Mixon make him the best fit in this draft for what the Lions do. He is certainly not a saint off the field, the incident where he broke a woman’s face is the reason he will fall in the draft. What Mixon did is awful. He has dealt with the legal entanglement and the team that brings him in will be getting a top fifteen talent at a discount. This is not a prediction that the Lions bring Mixon aboard in the second round. It is also not an endorsement of taking him, but as a player Mixon’s value greatly exceeds pick 53 in the draft.

Mixon is a rare college running back with undeniable talent and few miles of wear on his body. Mixon’s red shirt year year actually increases his value. His 6’1, 228 lb frame is ideal for an NFL running back. Mixon has the one cut downhill running ability to properly run many zone runs the Lions have failed to execute. He also has elite pass catching ability out of the backfield. He has been incredibly productive in college. Mixon trailed only Christian McCaffrey in all purpose yardage in 2016. That was despite sharing the Oklahoma backfield with Samaje Perine, who you will see later in this series..

At his pro day he put up 21 bench reps, and ran a 4.43s 40 yard dash. He also dropped a 4.25s short shuttle time, a 35” vertical jump, and a 9’10” broad jump. At the Combine his performance would have been fourth in the 40, sixth in bench reps, fifth in the short shuttle, and tenth in the vertical jump among his position group.

Joe Mixon has the resume on the field, and working out to put him in the top ten prospects of this draft. He also has a videotape that would lead some to say that he should never find work above the level of a day labourer for the rest of his life. His actions are unacceptable, and if the interview Bob Quinn had with Mixon led him to believe there is any chance greater than zero of Mixon repeating those actions, there are a lot of good running backs in this draft.

The Lions running back group is not very good. Bob Quinn has said he likes his group, but he also met with an incredible number of running backs at the combine. Their running backs coach has also been the guy running a lot of running back drills at various pro days. Ameer Abdullah is on a two surgeries in two seasons career arc. That has done nothing to silence questions about whether he would be durable enough to play all three downs at the NFL level. Abdullah has only a year remaining on his rookie contract. His best fit long term may be as a kick returner and change of pace back.

Behind Abdullah Theo Riddick managed a career high yards per carry in 2016, but that was a paltry 3.9 YPC. His cap number increases sharply after 2017 and he also missed six games in 2016 with injury. Fan Favorite Zach Zenner managed even fewer YPC than Riddick despite some bursts of solid play late in the season. His straight forward  style does not fit the profile of what Jim Bob Cooter wants his backs to do.

Next: Prospects Who May Fall to Lions' First Round Pick

Dwayne Washington showed a painful to watch lack of vision. Despite his eye popping play in the preseason, he faded completely when pressed into action against real NFL players. Mike James had one really good game against Seattle in 2013, but his career has since fizzled. Mixon will immediately be at the top of the running back group if selected. He would be a great value in the second round.