Ranking Bob Quinn's 8 Worst Decisions as Lions General Manager

Bob Quinn's failed tenure with the Lions came to an end Nov. 28, when he, along with Matt Patricia, were dismissed by the team's principal owner Sheila Ford Hamp.

Quinn had done far too much damage to the roster to earn a sixth year on the job as the franchise's general manager.

His time in Detroit will forever be marked by a myriad of misfires he made, including numerous mistakes in both free agency and the draft.

Without further ado, here is my ranking of the eight worst decisions he made while running the Lions.

8.) Signing Jesse James

Quinn signed the former Pittsburgh Steelers tight end to a four-year, $28.5 million deal in March of 2019.

It became a non-sensical move only a month later, after the Lions drafted T.J. Hockenson in the first round (No. 8 overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft.

Since, Hockenson has become a reliable red-zone target for Matthew Stafford, and James has become a player that barely sees the field.

He recorded just 16 receptions for 142 yards, and found the end zone zero times a year ago.

Now, to be fair, he's been more productive in his second year in the Motor City, with two touchdowns to his name.

However, he still only has 12 catches and 116 yards on the season.

For what he's produced, Quinn could've acquired him or someone else at a much cheaper price tag.

7.) Signing Halapoulivaati Vaitai

This signing had "bad" written all over it from the start.

Vaitai previously had served as a career backup with the Philadelphia Eagles, with no more than 10 starts in a single season.

Yet, Quinn thought it would be smart to ink him to a five-year deal worth $45 million, with $20M guaranteed.

And what has Vaitai done to repay the Lions for the generous contract: Diddly squat.

He's played in just seven games in 2020, and when he has played, he's had defenders constantly go right around him and get to Stafford.

To make matters worse, he's performed so poorly at right tackle -- the position he was signed this offseason to play -- that he's been moved to right guard.

And no matter where he's lined up, he's seemingly been outplayed by other Detroit offensive linemen, most notably swing tackle Tyrell Crosby.

It's been a rough first year for Vaitai, who's now on injured reserve, in the Motor City, and subsequently, the next regime might be looking to move on from "Big V" and his albatross of a contract.

6.) Drafting Jahlani Tavai in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft

Quinn reached for the University of Hawaii product when he took Tavai at No. 43 overall in the 2019 draft, and everyone knew it from day one -- beside for Quinn.

The former Detroit general manager reportedly took him so early, because he heard rumblings that if he and the Lions didn't, the New England Patriots would have.

Boy, did he get played by Bill Belichick, his former boss in New England.

Since being drafted, Tavai has been one of the worst linebackers in the entire league, and as a result, is rapidly becoming a draft bust.

There looks to be no chance of saving Quinn on this one.

Tavai is easily one of the worst picks he ever made in five years of running the front office in the Motor City.

5.) His handling of the running backs room

Quinn's putting together of the running backs depth chart this season is not something that should be replicated.

Going into this past offseason, he already had incumbent No. 1 back Kerryon Johnson, Detroit's 2018 second-round pick, and backups Bo Scarbrough and Ty Johnson on the roster.

That clearly wasn't enough to satisfy Quinn, though.

He proceeded to take two running backs in the 2020 NFL Draft -- Georgia product D'Andre Swift in the second round and New Mexico State product Jason Huntley in the fifth round.

Quinn wasn't done yet with his shuffling of backs, either.

Huntley was left off the 53-man roster, and was, in fact, waived by Quinn & Co. on the NFL's roster cut-down day Sept. 5.

On the following day, the Lions inked veteran back and future Pro Football Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson, who had just been cut by the Washington Football Team, to a one-year deal.

Releasing Huntley was a surprising move, and resulted in a waste of a fifth-round selection by Detroit's front office.

The acquisition of Peterson, who's currently 35 years old and on the downside of his career, also came out of nowhere.

As much as A.P. has been a productive goal-line back, with six touchdowns to his name, the Lions could've instead gone in a younger, cheaper route, and kept Huntley.

They could've also just made Ty Johnson, a sixth-round draft pick of the organization in 2019, a bigger part of the backfield.

Instead, Quinn & Co. cut him after three games this season.

Johnson was subsequently picked up by the N.Y. Jets, and he might just be starting to find his groove as an NFL running back.

He's coming off a career-high, 104-yard day on the ground in Week 13 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

You can also look at it this way for Detroit.

Instead of burning a draft pick on Huntley, the organization could've signed an undrafted free agent to go along with Swift and the Johnson duo.

The name that comes to mind right away is Jacksonville Jaguars rookie back James Robinson, who was undrafted out of Illinois State.

Robinson has played in 12 games, and has amassed 968 rushing yards and nine total scores, including two as a receiver.

He's also averaged an impressive 4.6 rushing yards per attempt and 80.7 rushing yards per game.

This is one example of how the Lions didn't need to select a second running back in the 2020 draft.

Quinn & Co. could've instead allocated the draft capital used on Huntley toward a position of greater need, such as a pass-rusher.

There's an argument to be made that Detroit should've even passed on Swift, although he's been productive when healthy, and focused on upgrading the pass-rushing department with the pick.

No matter how you slice it, it can be easily said that Quinn bamboozled his handling of the running backs room in Motown.

4.) Drafting Teez Tabor in the second round in 2017

Selecting Tabor, a defensive back out of Florida, with the No. 53 overall pick in the 2017 draft was arguably Quinn's worst draft pick as general manager.

Tabor proceeded to play in just 22 games, which included five starts, in two years with the Lions, and never recorded a single interception or even pass break-up.

He also allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete 63 percent of their passes against him and to record a passer rating of 143.3 -- yes, he really was that bad in pass coverage.

His last taste of NFL regular season action came back in Week 17 of the 2018 campaign against the Green Bay Packers.

Notable players that were taken after him include Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi, New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara and Washington Football Team cornerback Fabian Moreau.

3.) Not drafting a QB at No. 3 overall in 2020 draft

The Lions had the chance to nab Stafford's successor with the No. 3 overall pick in this past April's NFL Draft, and decided not to.

Instead, the franchise, with Quinn calling the shots, decided to select Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah.

To put it mildly, that decision hasn't worked out so far.

Okudah has been far from a standout cover corner in his first year in the league, while the two quarterbacks taken in the top 10 of the draft -- Tua Tagovailoa at No. 5 by the Miami Dolphins and Justin Herbert at No. 6 by the L.A. Chargers -- have had varying degrees of success.

Tagovailoa is coming off a career-best, 296-passing yard performance against the Cincinnati Bengals, and is 4-1 as a starter.

Meanwhile, in 11 games as the Chargers' starter under center, Herbert has already thrown for over 3,000 yards (3,224), to go along with 23 passing TDs and just nine interceptions.

On top of all that, Stafford is now 32, and has not been as consistently productive throughout 2020 as he was in the first half of last year.

A parting of ways could be on the horizon between Stafford and the Lions, and the organization presently has no internal candidate to replace the 12th-year passer over the long term.

All because of Quinn's erroneous decision to draft Okudah at No. 3 instead of Tua or Herbert.

2.) Not putting enough resources into the pass-rush department

It's almost been three full years since supposed defensive wizard Matt Patricia was hired by Quinn and the Lions to be the team's head coach, and fans and pundits alike are still asking, "Where's the pass rush?"

It was basically non-existent during the entire "Quinntricia" era. And it's not just because of players not performing, but also because of Quinn not properly addressing the pass-rush department throughout his five drafts with the organization.

For instance, when you look at Detroit's draft hauls since 2016 (Quinn's first year in charge), you'll find that he never took a defensive lineman or EDGE rusher in the first round.

You'll also find that he chose a defensive lineman only once in the first three rounds of a draft -- defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson in the second round in 2016.

Robinson, who's now with the L.A. Rams, has never recorded more than two sacks in a season, which came during his rookie campaign in Detroit.

After 2016, Quinn only selected one other player in the first three rounds that can be considered a pass-rusher -- EDGE defender Julian Okwara in the third round of this past year's draft.

Okwara, however, has only suited up for four games this season due to injury, and is presently on injured reserve with a leg ailment.

Then, there are EDGE rusher Austin Bryant, who Quinn drafted in the fourth round last year and has barely seen the field, and defensive end Da'Shawn Hand, who Quinn picked in the fourth round in 2018 and hasn't produced a single sack since 2019. Hand did produce three sacks as a rookie, but has failed to consistently stay healthy since.

There's also a case to be made that rather than taking a running back in the second round in two of the last three drafts -- Johnson in 2018 and Swift in 2020 -- Quinn should've taken a pass-rusher with one of those two picks.

Let's say he would've passed on Swift and instead selected a pass-rusher at No. 35 overall.

He could've then taken defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos, who went No. 38 overall to the Carolina Panthers.

And while Gross-Matos has just 1.5 sacks on the season, he does possess the second-highest pass-rush win rate percentage (14.2 percent) among all first-year players (min. 100 attempts), according to Pro Football Focus.

#IDP - Highest pass-rush win rate % among all defensive rookies per @PFF (min. 100 attempts):

1. Bryce Huff, DE, NYJ - 15.1%
2. Yetur Gross-Matos, DE, CAR - 14.2%
3. Alex Highsmith, ED, PIT - 13.9%
4. Chase Young, DE, WAS - 12.0%
5. D.J. Wonnum, DE, MIN - 11.0%#FFIDP
— Jon Macri (@PFF_Macri) December 8, 2020

The selection of Gross-Matos would've set up Quinn & Co. very nicely in the pass-rush department for years to come.

As time progressed for Quinn in his failed tenure with the Lions, it became clearer and clearer that he didn't put enough resources into the unit.

And it's one of the biggest reasons why he didn't succeed as the franchise's front-office "head honcho."

1.) Hiring Matt Patricia

Quinn hired Patricia in February of 2018 to replace Jim Caldwell as Lions head man.

Patricia proceeded to go 13-29-1 in nearly three full years on the job.

He alienated numerous players along the way, including Darius Slay, Quandre Diggs and Glover Quin.

And instead of effectively establishing his own culture inside the Lions' locker room, he tore down the one that Caldwell built, which the players had adapted to and fully embraced by the time of Patricia's hiring.

All in all, Patricia was an epic failure on the sidelines in Motown, and it ultimately cost Quinn his job.

More from SI All Lions:

For Quinn and Patricia, Drafting Jeff Okudah Was Ultimate Mistake

Aaron Jones Will Be a Problem for Detroit Lions Defense

Lions Interview Three Internal Candidates for General Manager

Trey Flowers Says Matt Patricia Is a Great Coach

Lions Hiring Robert Saleh Would Yield Two Draft Picks

BYU's Zach Wilson Is the Answer for Lions at Quarterback

Get the latest Detroit Lions news by joining our community. Click "Follow" at the top right of our SI All Lions page. Mobile users click the notification bell. Be sure to follow us on Twitter @DetroitPodcast.