The Lions recently released veteran WR Corey Bradford due to a rash of injuries to players on their offensive line. In order to generate a little more depth, they signed former Rams OL Blaine Saipia. Saipia, who is versatile (he plays all of the line positions and occasionally "jumbo" tight end), is familiar with all of the demands that come with playing in a Mike Martz-designed offensive scheme. The Offensive Linemen often have expanded responsibilities due to the fact that RB's and TE's are often running pass routes rather than helping with pass protection.
Bradford became expendable after apparently falling out of favor with the Lion's offensive coaching staff. Bradford, who can pose a dynamic down-field passing threat, has never exhibited good enough pass catching ability or consistency to rise above his journeymen status. The interesting element of Bradford's signing and eventual release is the fact that Matt Millen pursued Bradford's services not once, but twice in free agency. It is apparent that Millen (and current WR's coach Kippy Brown who coached Bradford in Texas) saw something in Bradford that most other NFL personnel men didn't see in him to choose to pursue a player with such limited career production. The painful aspect of Bradford's release is that the Lion's will be paying him $3 Million for his 3 games (or his 3 catches!) with the team. Under the circumstances of the team's long-standing mismanagement, this should be cause for considerable criticism of Millen's judgment.
The release of Bradford also means that the team is increasing it's expectations of players like WR's Mike Furrey, Az-Zahir Hakim, Mike Williams, and Shaun Bodiford. Bodiford in particular, as an unknown commodity in the offense, provides intriguing possibilities as a rookie undrafted free agent who has exhibited considerable potential in his short time with the team. Veteran wideout Scottie Vines will also soon be activated from the PUP list so he may be able to provide some consistent production down the line. With the Lion's early defensive woes considered, their likely will be a lot of opportunities for all of these receivers to establish themselves (and catch passes) as the team is forced to abandon the run and repeatedly throw the ball as it attempts to claw it's way back into games from sizable deficits.
