How Risky Was Halapoulivaati Vaitai Signing?
Signing right tackle Halapoulivaati Vaitai to a multi-year deal (a five-year contract worth $45 million) was certainly a risky acquisition from Detroit general manager Bob Quinn this offseason.
He's never started a full season's worth of games. And the most games he's ever started in a single season is 10 -- which came back in 2017 with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report went so far as ranking it No. 3 on his list of the seven "most risky" acquisitions of the 2020 NFL offseason.
As Moton writes,
"In 2017, Vaitai manned the left tackle spot for Jason Peters, who went down with a knee injury. He allowed seven sacks, per STATS (via the Washington Post). As a reserve over the last two campaigns, the 6'6, 320-pound tackle gave up six sacks.
Despite Vaitai's inexperience as a full-time starter and his lapses in pass protection, he ranks 20th in guaranteed cash ($20 million) among offensive tackles."
Instead of inking the inexperienced Vaitai to such a rich deal, Quinn & Co. could've instead targeted former Michigan State walk-on and a much more seasoned offensive tackle in Jack Conklin.
Conklin was the 10th-highest graded OT in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus.
The Cleveland Browns inked him to a three-year, $42M deal, with $30M in guaranteed money -- only $10M more in guaranteed "green" than what the Lions are dishing out for Vaitai.
If the Vaitai move works out, it will surprise a large sect of Lions fans and pundits alike.
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