Detroit Lions draft 2018: Players to watch in the East-West Shrine Game
By Ash Thompson
Defensive tackles
UCF defensive tackle Jamiyus Pittman is a big man who could find a home late in the draft, or as an undrafted free agent. Pittman has been a stalwart of the Knights defense under now-departed head coach Scott Frost. The defensive tackle was one of UCF’s vocal leaders in their rise from 0-12 in 2015 to 13-0 in 2017. He is exactly the sort of underrated high character guy that Bob Quinn loves late in the draft. Pittman is number 95 on the East roster.
Sam Houston State defensive tackle P.J. Hall gets his first opportunity to play against real competition. When a gifted player only has tape against a low level of competition, you want to see them dominate. Hall’s tape does not disappoint. He was a man among boys at the FCS level of college football. He recorded 86.5 tackles for loss and blocked 14 kicks. You did not get something in your eye. You are not having a stroke. Those are actual statistics he put up. Hall has dizzying quickness to go with his size and power. That bodes well for his versatility at the NFL level. Hall is number 92 on the West squad.
Edge players
Miami’s Chad Thomas was a surprising sight on the shrine game roster when I first looked at it. Thomas is a 6’5″ 275 beast who was asked to do more than a little bit of everything by the Hurricanes. Any game tape of Thomas’ senior season shows him playing two-gap run defense on the interior, rushing the passer on the edge, and dropping in to pass coverage. He does all of that very well for a man of his size and he has drawn rave reviews from practices this week. He is my pick for the first player on either team to be drafted. Thomas will be wearing number 99 for the East team.
Justin Lawler out of Southern Methodist is a high effort guy with a motor that never stops. He wins battles with leverage and strength more than just jaw-dropping athleticism. Lawler is a pass rusher that engages with his blocker and then beats him with technique rather than just flying past. He is not a poor athlete, and I would expect him to outclass the weak tackle group that he will face on game day. Lawler will be wearing number 99 for the West crew.