Is anyone honestly surprised by this?
For all the self-assured bravado put forth from the Lions' brain trust of Tom Lewand and Martin Mayhew about how a deal to keep Ndamukong Suh in Detroit was inevitable, a foregone conclusion, did anyone that has followed this team for any length of time expect this to turn out any other way than it did?
Since the end of the 2013 season, Lewand and Mayhew have told anyone who would listen that Suh wanted to be here, that a new deal was imminent, even though they cut off negotiations with him before the start of last season. Even though every word from Suh's mouth indicated he didn't have any great desire to remain in Detroit. Even though J.J. Watt set the market for a man who told the Lions that he wanted to be the highest paid defensive lineman in the NFL. And yet, nothing could shake Lewand and Mayhew's optimism that a deal was forthcoming to lock up Suh.
It almost makes you wonder how anyone could have been so delusional. Then you remember: This is the Lions we're talking about. An organization (and much of the time, a fanbase) that is delusion, personified.
And instead, we're watching possibly the most dominant defensive player we've ever seen on this team become a free agent in his prime, which simply doesn't happen, and walk away for absolutely nothing. The last time a free agent of this magnitude hit the market, it was Reggie White in '92, over 20 years ago. What's more, with Nick Fairley's eventual departure, there will be absolutely nothing to show for the draft classes of 2010 and 2011 on this team.
That's not even the worst part of it, though. Anyone with half a brain could have seen this coming, between Suh's public statements indicating it was never about anything other than the money, and the salary-cap magic worked on his deal to keep Calvin Johnson and Matt Stafford here, which would have the effect of more than doubling the amount of money it would cost to slap the franchise tag on him, to an impossible $27 million.
Yet, in all of this, the Lions made absolutely no attempt at a backup plan of any sort. They passed on Aaron Donald in last year's draft, who only went on to be Defensive Rookie of the Year with the Rams, to draft a pass-catching tight end who can't catch passes. They declined Fairley's entirely affordable option, and now he's likely going to get overpaid elsewhere. On top of that, C.J. Mosley and George Johnson have both been linked to other teams as well. And the defensive linemen who've even been so much as rumored to be connected to the Lions?
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Jared Odrick has already agreed to a deal with Jacksonville. Stephen Paea is headed to Washington. The Broncos, Colts, Jets, and Saints have all expressed strong interest in Kendall Langford. And the Lions...
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That's the problem with the inept management of this franchise. Completely ignore the obvious issues that lead to something like this, and end up getting caught with your pants down come free agency. It's going to take one hell of a draft this year, or some under-the-radar free agent pickups, to make up for a blunder of this magnitude.
And if Lewand and Mayhew can't do that, then this needs to be their last offseason making decisions for this team.
