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No Lion QB Harrington remains high on Detroit draft boardPosted: Friday April 19, 2002 3:59 PM
ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- With the Carolina Panthers having told North Carolina defensive end Julius Peppers that he's their guy, the Detroit Lions are unofficially on the clock for Saturday's NFL draft. And if I read Matt Millen correctly Friday afternoon, the Lions president and CEO seemed to be saying at least three things about his team's crucial No. 3 pick in the first round: 1. That the Lions first and foremost want to solicit trade offers for their selection, which is now in effect where the draft begins. Teams coveting either Texas cornerback Quentin Jammer or Oregon quarterback Joey Harrington must at least put in a call to Detroit, which seems to think it's phone will be ringing come Saturday morning. 2. That while Harrington is the popular pick, even within the Lions organization, he may not be the smart pick for the franchise given its many other needs. Jammer represents both the wiser and safer choice, in that it would allow Detroit to fill a huge need, and then get to the business of addressing voids at defensive end, linebacker and running back. 3. That said, Harrington remains a real possibility for Detroit, for one of two reasons. Either it's too risky to pass on a quarterback who could be special, or the Lions will never get the trade package they're seeking for the No. 3 pick if they don't make everyone believe they're willing to take Harrington.
How's that for all over the (draft) board? Welcome to the intrigue before the NFL draft, at T-minus 20 hours or so and counting. All in all, Millen was fairly forthcoming about Detroit's draft thinking during the course of a 15-minute mid-day interview at the Lions' spacious and sparkling new team facility. 'Tis the season for blowing smoke, but I went into the interview thinking Jammer was almost certainly the choice and came out of it believing that a trade down or the selection of Harrington both were options getting serious consideration. Here are some of the highlights of what Millen had to say about his team's options:
"I know Peppers is negotiating with Carolina right now. If that's true and they do go that route, then I know there's interest in the corner and the quarterback. So then we'll just have to see how much interest there really is. Because it's one thing to say we have a lot of interest. But your a lot is not my a lot. But there will be phone calls." Who are the likely trade candidates? Dallas, in their quest for Jammer, Oakland, which has a pair of first-rounders, and possibly Seattle, which has made noise about moving up. Cincinnati has been mentioned, but the Bengals aren't thought to be high on Harrington. Millen said No. 5 San Diego, which covets Jammer, hasn't called, and Washington, which has its eye on Harrington, doesn't have enough ammo to get into the top six, let alone the top three.
The Cowboys definitely have been in contact with Detroit, but No. 6 Dallas also is investigating a move down in the draft. Who would the Lions target if they swung a deal with the Cowboys and then somehow saw both Jammer and Harrington taken off the board in the first five picks? Most likely Oklahoma safety Roy Williams, who Millen considers the game's next Ronnie Lott. One other interesting rumor regarding a draft-Harrington movement surfaced in Detroit on Friday. Both owner William Clay Ford and his son, Bill Ford Jr., made the less-than-a-mile drive from Ford's world headquarters to take part in a final draft preparation session at the team complex. Speculation had Ford Jr. pushing to draft Harrington, perhaps in an attempt to further energize the Lions fan base as the franchise opens the new Ford Field this season. There was that 2-14 stinko of a last season at the Silverdome. But as strong as all the pro-Harrington talk was Friday, I got the feeling Millen also was consciously laying the groundwork for the reasoning behind not selecting the quarterback who went 24-4 as a starter and finished fourth in the Heisman voting. If the Lions do indeed stick with second-year man Mike McMahon at quarterback, they've got to be able to sell the move. Millen's pitch would seem to be that the Lions didn't pass on Harrington as much as they went for Jammer, a player who was a better fit for Detroit's current situation. "Whatever we do at that pick, it's not going to be a reflection on who you don't take," Millen said. "It's where we're at and how do we get better now? I always laugh when I see it written like team bypassed so and so. Well, that's easy to say in hindsight. But what it means is we chose so and so, because at that time, that's where we were at. OK?" OK, but Millen still knows that if his Lions take a pass on Harrington, and then don't win while Harrington turns into a star in this league, it'll be the one draft-day decision that will forever be linked to his Detroit administration. That's the big crap shoot when you're picking No. 3 and staring at the choice of whether to QB or not QB. "The reality is it's an important pick because it's one chance that you have to make losing work for you," Millen said, repeating one of his favorite current lines. "And heaven knows we had enough losing last year. "It's a high pick, which means you're going to have an impact player. Or you're going to have an opportunity to turn it into something more. We have a lot of holes to fill. So we have some decisions to make. But we're not different from any other team that lost last year." Hmmm. Impact player. Opportunity to turn it into something more. Lot of holes to fill. Sounds like Harrington to me. ... Or a trade down. ... Or, more likely, Jammer. Thus, Friday ended the same way it began. With the Lions owning the No. 3 pick, and three very distinct options. Don Banks covers pro football for CNNSI.com.
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