The Lions have acquired 29-year old RB Ronnie Brown from the Eagles for 28-year old RB Jerome Harrison and a 7th round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.  Brown played in six games for the Eagles this year and he carried the ball 13 times for 38 yards (2.9 ypc).  Brown has now played in 82 games in his first seven years in the NFL and he has carried the ball 1,141 times for 4,853 yards (4.3 ypc) with 36 TD runs.  He has also caught 184 passes for 1,491 yards (8.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs so far in his career.  Jerome Harrison played in 4 games for the Lions this year and he carried the ball 14 times for 41 yards (2.9 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 3 yards.  This was a good deal for the Lions as Ronnie Brown is more apt to handle a heavy workload, should Jahvid Best need to miss some time due to his concussion.

UPDATE:  (8/19/2011) – This deal has been voided due to health concerns involving Jerome Harrison.  So Harrison has been returned to the Lions.

The Lions have acquired 24-year old cornerback Alphonso Smith from the Broncos for 25-year old TE Dan Gronkowski.  Smith played in 15 games as a rookie for the Broncos last season and he had 14 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and he defensed 3 passes.  He also returned 10 punts for 47 yards and 4 kickoffs for 75 yards.  Gronkowski played in 2 games as a rookie for the Lions last season catching 1 pass for 4 yards.  This was a outstanding deal for the Lions as Smith has a upside that Gronkowski could only dream of.

The Lions have acquired 24-year old DE Lawrence Jackson for an undisclosed 2011 draft pick presumed to be a late rounder.  Jackson played in 16 games (10 starts) for the Seahawks last year and he had 32 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 passes defensed and 2 forced fumbles.  He has now played in 32 games (24 starts) in his first two years in the NFL and he has 61 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 2 passes defensed and 2 forced fumbles.  I love this pickup for the Lions as Jackson was a 1st round pick in 2008 and he has a nice upside.

The Detroit Lions have acquired 27-year old TE Tony Scheffler and a 7th round pick from the Broncos.  The Lions moved 25-year old OLB to the Eagles with the Broncos getting a 5th round pick from the Eagles.  Scheffler played in 15 games for the Broncos last season and he caught 31 passes for 416 yards (13.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has now played in 57 games in his 4 year NFL career in which he has caught 138 passes for 1,896 yards (13.7 avg) with 14 TD grabs.  He will give Matt Stafford another weapon to use in the passing game as he is a good receiver.  25-year old OLB Ernie Sims is leaving the Lions for Philly and I think he will play well for them as long as he can stay healthy.  Sims played in 11 games for the Lions last season in which he had 49 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 pass defensed.  Sims played 4 years with the Lions appearing in 59 games in which he had 421 tackles, defensed 5 passes, he had 2.5 sacks, forced 4 fumbles and he had 1 interception.  I like this trade for the Lions as they add more help for the offense.

The Lions have acquired 26-year old guard Rob Sims and a 7th round pick in 2010 from the Seahawks in two separate deals for 26-year old DE Robert Henderson and a 5th round pick in 2010.  This was another outstanding move for the Lions as Rob Sims will be the starting left guard in 2010.  Sims played in 14 games (all starts) for the Seahawks last season.  He has now played in 45 games (34 starts) in his 4 years in the NFL.  He is a clear upgrade for the O-Line.  Robert Henderson did not play last season for the Lions and he has yet to play a game in his NFL career so they didn’t mind giving him up.  Essentially moving down two rounds to get Sims is a great move for the Lions who continue to rebuild.

The Lions have acquired 30-year old QB Shaun Hill from the 49ers for a 7th round pick in 2011.  Hill played in 6 games for the 49ers last season in which he completed 87 of 155 passes (56.1%) for 943 yards with 5 TD passes and 2 INTs (79.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 8 times for 70 yards (8.8 ypc) last season for the Niners.  Hill has now played in 19 games in his NFL career in which he has completed 322 of 522 passes (61.7%) for 3,490 yards with 23 TD passes and 11 INTs (87.3 QB Rating).  Hill also carried the ball 46 times for 197 yards (4.3 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  This was a outstanding trade for the Lions as Hill will be a good backup for Matt Stafford in 2010.  Hill might not have the strongest arm in the league but he gets the job done.

The Lions have acquired 25-year old cornerback Chris Houston from the Falcons for a 6th round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft and a conditional 7th round pick in 2011.  Houston played in 12 games for the Falcons last season and he made 47 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, he defensed 9 passes and he had 1 interception.  Houston has now played in 44 games in his NFL career and he has made 166 tackles, he has defensed 34 passes, forced 1 fumble and he has 3 interceptions (one returned for a TD).  I love this trade for the Lions as they continue to fill needs for the 2010 season as Houston has a nice upside.

The Lions have acquired 29-year old DT Corey Williams from the Browns for a future late round pick (5th or  6th rounder).  Williams played in all 16 games for the Browns last season and he finished up with 31 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 4 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 4 passes defensed.  Williams has now played in 88 games in his NFL career and he has made 199 tackles, 21.5 sacks, forced 6 fumbles, defensed 11 passes and he has 1 interception.  Williams will likely shift back inside where he truly belongs as the Browns miscast him as a DE.  I like this move for the Lions as it gives them more options on draft day because they won’t be forced to take one of the DTs at the top of the draft.  I sense a trade down to get more picks after the Browns/Lions trade.

UPDATE:  The Lions will also receive a 7th round pick in 2010 from the Browns in this deal and they will give up a 5th round pick in 2010.  I like this move for the Lions.

The Detroit Lions have acquired 30-year old linebacker Julian Peterson from the Seahawks for DT Cory Redding and a reported 5th round draft pick.  This was a outstanding trade for the Lions as Peterson will give them some toughness and playmaking ability at linebacker.  Peterson played in all 16 games for the Seahawks last season and he made 86 tackles, defensed 5 passes, had 5 sacks and forced 4 fumbles.  Peterson has now played in 127 games in his NFL career and he has made 643 tackles, defensed 52 passes, has 46 sacks, forced 16 fumbles and he has 8 interceptions. 

Cory Redding is a bit overrated as he has not lived up to the big contract the Lions gave him.  He played in 13 games for the Lions last season and he made 38 tackles and had 3 sacks.  This was a outstanding trade for the Lions.

The Lions have acquired 32-year old cornerback Anthony Henry from the Cowboys in return for 36-year old QB Jon Kitna.  This was a good move for the Lions who were probably going to cut Kitna anyway soon.  Henry played in all 16 games for the Cowboys last season and he made 50 tackles, defensed 5 passes, had 2 sacks, forced 1 fumble and he also had 1 interception.  Henry has now played in 118 games in his 8-year NFL career in which he has made 462 tackles, has defensed 103 passes, has 2 sacks, forced 5 fumbles and he has intercepted 29 passes (3 of which he has returned for TDs).  Henry will immediately upgrade the Lions’ secondary regardless of whether he plays cornerback or safety in 2009.

Jon Kitna had his ups and downs in Detroit but he won’t be missed too much.  He played in 36 games in his three years with the Lions completing 795 of 1,277 passes (62.3%) for 9,034 yards with 44 TD passes and 47 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 65 times for 253 yards (3.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  This was a good trade for the Lions as they really needed to shore up the secondary.