with Best possibly retiring this offseason, would you be opposed to drafting him in the first, or possibly trading up for him in the second?

Depending on how signing FA's go, I wouldn't be opposed to it. He is a small, fast elusive back that we would be able to utilize as an awesome weapon in Linehans system

Not a bad thought.... I know we need to fix the OL(amongst other positions as well) but with Best 'possibly' retiring due to medical concerns.. I wouldn't be against it.

When did the "Best is retiring" rumor get started and where did it come from?

I believe it's just speculation at this point, nothing concrete. Some believe(like myself) that with the head injuries suffered going back to his days at Cal and the 2 seasons with us. It seems like that he would consider medically retiring due to them.

yes with the rate of his concussions its clear that his brain moves around a little too much for the game of football. all the medical experts I have seen talk about him and his concussions say he would be at risk of more tha just a headache should he continue.the next concussion could kill him...and he has shown to be very prone to concussions..

James would be a bad move in my opinion. James has homerun capabilties but I don't like his ability to produce on a regular basis in the NFL. He plays in a gimmicky offense that gets him the ball in space for the most part. He rarely is asked to run between the tackles andisn't going to move a pile. At least Johnson did a little bit of everything at ECU. Look at what happened in the BCS game when the Ducks and James faced an Auburn defense with NFL caliber players. The Lions or any team could get a similar player like Demps later in the draft.

If David Wilson enters the draft I'd rather see him drafted with the Lions' 2nd round pick. Wilson would better fill the role of an all purpose back and also provide return ability on special teams.

Intriguing...but NOOOO. We've have got to upgrade this offensive line first..THEN worry about running backs. Like people have said, RBs are a dime a dozen.

I'm betting LeShoure comes back and is the teams every down back next year. James wouldn't be a BAD pick as he could be used in open space with that home run threat that he is. All that said, I am very well aware that the team also needs to upgrade the o-line.

I definitely don't think we should draft him at the expense of the OLine, and only if Best doesn't come back and he is the BPA

I am with you there.

There isn't any way I'd draft a RB early for the third year in a row. Maybe in the 4th or 5th, but not before then. There's too many other positions that need addressing first. Besides, James just said this weekend that he hasn't made a final decision yet about entering the draft, despite what the media reported.

Drafting a running back in the high rounds again takes us right back to being Millen-esque, only with backs instead of receivers.

Backs don't have to come out of the first round to be productive. Plenty of productive backs in the NFL are taken in the middle rounds. And also, there are usually pretty good backs available in free agency, where as quality offensive tackles are not. The Lions have to upgrade their offensive line. We have LeShoure, we have Keiland Williams, we have Kevin Smith, we have Mo Morris. We have enough backs.

Agree 100%. There a so many RBs that have been taken in rounds other than the 1st. If we go ANYTHING offense, it HAS to be offensive line. God I sure hope the front office realizes how badly we need O-line help.

Given the nature of the league (where two or three back tandems is now the norm) and the Lion's recent luck, I would actually support the Lions making it a rule to draft a running back nearly every year.

That said, certainly not in the high rounds. But spending a 4/5+ on a back almost every year might be an intelligent move.

If Mayhew has taught me anything, its that he's going to take the best player on the board, regardless of depth. Now I don't think they'd stretch for a RB, but it will have to depend on how our scouting department and front office ranks the players. We might view someone higher due to what we believe is a need, but they won't reach for that player if they have him ranked much lower.

Our current position would make C/G a viable choice, but we'll have to see how offseason rounds out and how the combines and evaluations go. Senior bowls just around the corner.