Martin Mayhew and the Lions looked at a Reggie Bush replacement and some help in the secondary during day 2 of the NFL Draft from Chicago. And with former Lion Chris Spielman announcing Detroit’s second round selection, Detroit opted for Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah with the 54th overall pick.
Abdullah obviously should be pretty familiar with Lions fans having played in the Big Ten for four season. Lions fans should also be familiar with what Abdullah can do on the ground as the former Cornhusker finished his career at Nebraska with a school record in all-purpose yards (7,186 total, 4,744 on the ground, 690 through the air). He was also pretty impressive at the combine running the 20-yard shuttle in 3.95 seconds, the three-cone drill in 6.79 seconds and the 60-yard shuttle in 11.18 seconds. Abdullah further offers the Lions some flexibility on special teams as a kick returner, something he did with regularity at Nebraska while drawing comparisons to Darren Sproles.
The knock on Abdullah, and it’s a pretty big one considering his position are his small ands and inability to hold on to the football. Obviously his fumbles will need to be remedied if Abdullah is going to transition into a serviceable NFL back and turn Mayhew’s track record of second round busts around.
In the third round, the Lions moved up eight spots to the 80th overall pick to select Stanford cornerback Alex Carter. In that process, Detroit gave up their third round pick (No. 88) as well as the fifth-round pick (No. 143) that was originally acquired by the Denver Broncos to move back in the first round.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vru7ow3D-QI
As a three-year starter for the Cardinal, Carter stands at 6-feet and 196 pounds. Accumulating 146 tackles, two interceptions and 18 pass breakups during his time at Stanford, it’s thought that Carter will begin his NFL career with the Lions as a corner however it’s thought that he could eventually move inside to safety.
