Class of 2006 Selected! President & CEO Matt Millen Pleased with his Crop of Young, Talented Players

Class of 2006 SelectedPresident & CEO Matt Millen Pleased with his Crop of Young, Talented PlayersBy Chrissie ZavicarDetroitlions.comApril 30, 2006 ALLEN

Class of 2006 Selected
President & CEO Matt Millen Pleased with his Crop of Young, Talented Players
By Chrissie Zavicar
Detroitlions.com
April 30, 2006 

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- After all of the planning, prepping, waiting and speculating, the 2006 NFL Draft has come to a close. 

The Detroit Lions put together a solid draft, picking up players in areas they felt needed to be strengthened with a focus on the defensive side of the ball. 

For the first two picks in the draft, President & CEO Matt Millen and the Lions chose linebacker Ernie Sims out of Florida State and safety Daniel Bullocks out of Nebraska, hoping to add speed and agility to a Detroit defense that has the potential to be very strong in 2006. 

“[Sims] was a guy that was rated very, very high on our board – higher than a lot of people," said Millen. "I was really happy (to get) him. [Bullocks] can rock back and forth; he can play strong and weak. You can get him down in the box and he’s big enough. He has great speed; he has good range; very good instincts; he’s a good tackler. This kid also has some cover skills. 

"There’s a couple of things that we had targeted that we wanted to get. There were some positions and we hit the positions that we intended to get." 

Detroit’s focus on defense is a bit of a switch, as the Lions haven’t drafted a defensive player in the first round since 1999 when they selected Chris Claiborne (ninth overall). 

Millen and Head Coach Rod Marinelli are happy with the players they selected, looking to add depth to a defense that is already strong, but could use young speed to plug up holes. 

"I think the good thing in this draft, we had some needs and some holes and I think we came out of it filling them," said Millen. "You can’t ask for more than that in the draft. Now, they’ve got to go out there and decide what they’re going to be but I like them." 

The Lions didn’t stop adding defensive players once their first two picks expired. They also added cornerback Alton McCann out of West Virginia in the fourth round and linebacker Anthony Cannon out of Tulane as their final pick in the seventh. 

“Cannon, talk about production," said Millen. "He’s not a big guy, he’s a fast and quick guy. In terms of production, I don’t know if there’s anybody more productive than him.” 

In addition to looking at defenders, the Lions also selected three offensive players including two offensive linemen – drafting offensive tackle Jonathan Scott in the fifth round and offensive guard Fred Matua in the seventh.  

Both played in top collegiate offenses in 2006, with Scott blocking for Texas QB Vince Young and Matua blocking for USC QB Matt Leinart. 

Lions Offensive Line Coach Larry Beightol is pleased to have both players. 

“I think he's a terrific pick, especially where (in the draft) we've taken him,” said Beightol regarding Scott. “He's a big, athletic guy. If there's one thing that probably held him back from going earlier, I think it's his overall body strength, but that's something he can improve upon. All he's got to do is get in the weight room, get with some good strength coaches like we have here, and improve his overall body strength. 

“We think Fred is just a real good prospect. We're surprised he was there when we picked in the seventh. He played on certainly a great college team, great offensive team, and he's been 37-2 as a starter at USC.” 

The Lions third-round pick, running back Brian Calhoun, wasn’t an expected selection, but he brings with him solid credentials from the University of Wisconsin. Calhoun has the capabilities to strengthen the Lions in many areas as he not only has the ability to gain rushing yards, but he can catch the ball out of the backfield and he is a solid return man. 

“He can; he’s got excellent hands," said Millen in regards to whether Calhoun could play in the slot. "If you move him out you can do a lot of motion stuff with him; you can get him out of the backfield. He’s got a lot of quickness. I looked at the versatility of the player; I looked at the skill set and we can fit it in a lot of places. He can be a third-down back; he can be an every-down back if you need him to be; he can get outside, he can return. There’s a lot of things there. It was just a real attractive pick sitting there.” 

All in all, the Detroit Lions came away with a solid group of players in this year’s draft. The selections were not only top players, they are purposeful players who will fill up vacancies left by Detroit players who have left in free agency. 

The Lions also selected players they feel exemplify a good character off the field; players who will represent Detroit respectfully and with a fire to play the game of football. 

“I thought we had good value through the draft and I also thought we got good football players," said Millen. "Now, we’ll see how they do up here but there’s a lot of skill in that group.”