What Just Happened? Episode three of Inside the Den
I might be at a new home, but the What Just Happened series has come with me. For the new people, What Just Happened is my reaction series. You'll see this every Sunday right after the game. It's all about those immediate thoughts on what just happened. Hence the question, what just happened? Tonight I'm […]
I might be at a new home, but the What Just Happened series has come with me. For the new people, What Just Happened is my reaction series. You'll see this every Sunday right after the game. It's all about those immediate thoughts on what just happened. Hence the question, what just happened? Tonight I'm reacting to episode three of the Lions Inside the Den series.
As always, I have thoughts on this episode, these are those thoughts:
Just wait Brad
Of course Rod Wood made a joke about Holmes waiting five minutes. The NFL got upset with Holmes after he turned the Lions draft card in way too fast when they drafted Penei Sewell. Holmes waited, but he didn't wait very long.
The Cardinals trade
This was awesome. We got to see the phone call with the Cardinals that saw the Lions trade down from six. Before they made the call, you see Holmes, Dan Campbell and Rod Wood discussing whether they should do it and risk not getting Jahmyr Gibbs. Campbell said "trust your gut." They did and it wound up working out.
The video we saw of Holmes slamming the table was not right after they drafted Gibbs. It was them celebrating the fact that they could draft Gibbs. That's a cool development.
Nick Saban sure loved Jahmyr Gibbs
Dan Campbell talked about a phone call he had with Alabama coach Nick Saban a few days before the draft and Saban raved about Gibbs. He said things like "of all the transfers, he gets it the most." He also talked about how Gibbs never said no and and never complained about anything. Super high praise from a coach that's coaches some of the best players in the league.
The Jack Campbell discussion
The Lions seemed a little unsure about the idea of taking Campbell that high. At least that's how I took it. Holmes double and triple checked with Dan Campbell before they agreed to make the pick. It was a risk, but they clearly felt confident in taking that risk. Dan Campbell agreed with Holmes every single time.
Riding with Barry and Calvin
The legends showed up for the episode. It was cool to see them meet the rookies. Barry introduced himself as "Barry, Calvin's buddy." You got to love the two legends being a part of the team on such an important day. Especially Calvin since there was a time when it seem like he would never be a part of the team again.
Hearing Calvin talking about playing with Dan Campbell was pretty cool. You don't get to hear about Campbell the player often. Barry Sanders is also a really bad three point shooter apparently. That's ok. We know he can dunk.
The Branch trade
I love watching trades work out. You have this idea of how it all goes down from watching movies and stuff, but it's totally a calm situation. They're trading picks liek they're trading Pokemon cards or something. Seeing all the discussion that went into it was awesome and seeing Holmes call up the Packers to make the trade was a sight to see. The Lions watched Branch the whole time and made their moves to go get him.
Mike Disner is invaluable
We don't talk about him a lot, but this episode really showed just how important COO Mike Disner is to this team. He's not only cap wizard, he's also a master of helping the Lions figure out trade value. Every time the Lions were looking to make a trade, they were looking in Disner's direction. He's like Brad Holmes' Jonah Hill from Moneyball.
Brad Holmes really wanted Brodric Martin
We've heard him say it a few times. "Let's get the players we want and get the hell out of here." Holmes clearly didn't want to waste any time or take any chances when it comes to Brodric Martin. He called damn near every team with a third round pick to try to get back into the round so the Lions could take him. He started making calls at 77. Martin wasn't picked until 96. That's pretty telling. Martin was not projected to go very high in mock drafts. He had a seventh round grade. The Lions clearly saw something that everyone else didn't.
Antione Green hung up Dan Campbell
Green was so excited to get drafted that he didn't even wait to talk to Dan Campbell. He hung up and started celebrating. That's funny.
Featured image by Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
