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New ESPN Stats & Information resources have allowed us to provide a new layer to discussions about offseason player movement, spawning the kind of questions I haven't always been equipped to answer. Let's address another while we have a moment.

This inquiry came during our SportsNation chat Tuesday as well as via the mailbag. Many of you want to know how Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will receive $40 million in cash this season, and a total of $62.5 million over the next three years, and still count only $12 million against the 2013 salary cap.

It's actually pretty simple. Here's how it works out:

Most of Rodgers' $40 million in 2013 compensation comes in the form of a $35 million signing bonus. Although he will receive the cash this year, NFL accounting rules allow the salary-cap hit to be pro-rated over five years. So that means $7 million of it will count against the 2013 cap.

Rodgers has a $4.5 million base salary and a $500,000 workout bonus, all of which counts against 2013 by NFL rules. When you add the pro-rated portion of the signing bonus to the base salary and workout bonus, you get $12 million.

Next up: How a bill becomes a law.

Our annual draft analysis includes a category entitled "File it Away." I used it this year to discuss the Detroit Lions' failure to draft a receiver or an offensive tackle, but I want to follow up with a second scenario that could have more lasting impact in the NFC North.

Recall that the Green Bay Packers' original second-round pick was originally the No. 55 overall selection. As it approached, many of us were wondering if the Packers planned to draft a running back, and as it turned out, they would have had their choice between Alabama's Eddie Lacy and Wisconsin's Montee Ball, among others.

But the Packers traded out of the position, moving to the No. 61 overall pick in exchange for an additional sixth-round draft pick from the San Francisco 49ers. The Denver Broncos drafted Ball at No. 58, leaving the Packers to select Lacy at No. 61.

We might never learn whether the Packers preferred Ball or Lacy if given a choice. Brian Gutekunst, the Packers' director of college scouting, told reporters only that the Packers knew there would be a player they liked at No. 61. But it's worth noting that the Broncos chose Ball because of concerns over Lacy's injury history.

"It was a close call, no question," John Elway, the Broncos' executive vice president of football operations, told reporters. "You're talking about two great backs. The bottom line is, we looked at the medical. It came down to the medical side."

Lacy had toe surgery following the 2011 season, forcing him to miss spring practice in 2012. He dealt with an ankle sprain during the 2012 season and was limited during predraft workouts because of a hamstring injury.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Michigan State's Le'Veon Bell at No. 48 overall because of Lacy's toe injury. The report suggested the injury was more serious than some realized and that it required a fusion of bones.

Dozens of similar scenarios occur in every draft, but it will be worth monitoring how those decisions work out for the Steelers, Broncos and Packers. Did the Steelers and Broncos miss out on a more talented player because of unrealized concerns? Or did the Packers' tradedown leave them with a less desired prospect? We'll file this one away.

It appears that Erin Henderson has moved from a fallback option to the Minnesota Vikings' top choice to be their middle linebacker.

Speaking to reporters during a pause Tuesday in offseason workouts, Henderson said coaches have told him he likely will open organized team activities (OTAs) at the position. Henderson has bulked up to 248 pounds in preparation for the assignment, which comes after a five-year career on the outside.

We've always considered Henderson a possibility for this role, but coach Leslie Frazier suggested in March that the team wanted to find a long-term answer in the draft. That plan, widely believed to be focused on Notre Dame's Manti Te'o, went awry when the Vikings deemed three other players more valuable. After drafting defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd and cornerback Xavier Rhodes at No. 23 and No. 25, respectively, the Vikings traded away their second- and third-round picks to draft receiver Cordarrelle Patterson at No. 29.

Free agency remains a possibility for filling the role held by Henderson's brother, E.J. Henderson, before his departure after the 2011 season. (Jasper Brinkley, the 2012 starter, signed with the Arizona Cardinals in March.) We should note that OTAs are the time when NFL teams experiment with position changes before making final determinations for training camp. Sometimes they work. Other times, they are scrapped.

Henderson has been an outside linebacker since his college career at Maryland, but the Vikings have used him at times as the "mike" in nickel situations over the past two seasons. At the moment, at least, their roster has more candidates to fill in Henderson's outside position than it does to compete in the middle.

Possibilities to play outside include veterans Marvin Mitchell and Larry Dean, along with rookie Gerald Hodges, a fourth-round draft pick from Penn State. We'll see how it goes.

Perhaps you're aware of a series of tweets from former Green Bay Packers safety LeRoy Butler. They open a can of worms that we don't normally wade into here on the NFC North blog. This week, however, it seems appropriate.

To bring you up to date, Butler tweeted that a Wisconsin church canceled a speaking engagement (worth $8,500) because he had tweeted support for NBA player Jason Collins. Earlier this week, Collins became the first male athlete from a major American professional sport to announce he is gay.

According to Butler, the church gave him the option of keeping the gig if he deleted the tweet, apologized and "ask God [for] forgiveness." Butler said he declined. In a subsequent interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Butler declined to name or provide an approximate location of the church.

A number of us have already discussed this -- quite civilly, I might add -- Tuesday morning on Twitter. Butler is a prominent former NFC North player who has maintained a public profile and has always been willing to utilize his freedom of speech. At the same time, of course, the church involved has every right to operate as it sees fit and under accordance with its core philosophies.

I don't think that a simple tweet of support would threaten the church's theology, especially if it isn't a part of the speech, but I'm nowhere close to an expert on such matters. In the end, the episode is a reminder of how complicated, divisive and multi-layered this issue remains even after Collins' momentous announcement.

The full tweets for those interested:

Another in a periodic series examining the roles of NFC North newcomers:

We have all debated the potential for Ziggy Ansah's immediate impact as a Detroit Lions defensive end in 2013. Ansah was a late arrival to football, a late bloomer on the NFL scouting scene and was drafted based on his athletic potential rather than his college body of work.

With that in mind, I thought it would be worth looking at how a few other NFL teams have approached the rookie years of pass-rushers drafted under similar circumstances. For various reasons, we can classify the New York Giants' Jason Pierre-Paul, the San Francisco 49ers' Aldon Smith and the Seattle Seahawks' Bruce Irvin in a similar category with Ansah.

Each player has his own story, but generally speaking, all three were drafted in the first half of the first round with limited résumés but extensive projections based on their physical attributes. The chart shows that none of them started a game and each played less than half of his team's defensive snaps. But even with that controlled playing time, they still combined to post 26.5 sacks between them as rookies.

The Lions have bid farewell to both of their 2012 starters at defensive end, Cliff Avril and Kyle Vanden Bosch, so there is plenty of opportunity for a rookie to earn a starting job. Veterans Jason Jones and Willie Young are also in the mix, and the Lions drafted an imposing defensive end in 6-foot-7 Devin Taylor who could also compete for playing time.

If nothing else, we know a template exists for a developing pass-rusher to be used in a focused way while still having a highly productive rookie season. I wouldn't be too worried about whether Ansah will be on the field for the first play of games. More important to me is if he is out there for the most important ones -- and if he can influence them.

Earlier: The Minnesota Vikings know they need to have a plan for receiver Cordarrelle Patterson's rookie season.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

In our pre-draft Inside Slant podcast, Mike Sando and I agreed it would not be surprising if the Detroit Lions used a draft pick on a tight end.

While they are set for the 2013 season with Brandon Pettigrew and Tony Scheffler, both incumbents are entering the final year of their contracts. It's reasonable to expect the Lions to re-sign one but probably not both for 2014.

The Lions did in fact draft a tight end. Alabama's 278-pound Michael Williams, taken in the seventh round, was considered one of the best blocking tight ends in the draft. The Lions didn't acquire anyone who seems equipped to take on a pass-catching role in their offense, but as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News points out, the Lions are making considerations elsewhere. They have converted receiver Dominique Curry, who spent 2010-11 with the St. Louis Rams, to tight end. I'm not sure how reasonable it is to expect Curry to contribute at the position in 2013 and beyond, but it illustrates the Lions' recognition of the future need they have at tight end.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• The Lions are not concerned about the weight of third-round guard Larry Warford, who got as heavy as 350 pounds as a senior at Kentucky. Justin Rogers of Mlive.com has more.
• Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler on the team's new emphasis on offensive lineman and pass protection, via ESPNChicago.com: "It's definitely a point of emphasis. We're not going to let the quarterback get hit. We're not going to go into games unsure about protections."
• The Bears are hoping for good things from rookie free agent Zach Minter, a defensive tackle from Montana, writes Adam L. Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times.
• Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel profiles Green Bay Packers draft pick Nate Palmer, an outside linebacker from Illinois State.
• Weston Hodkiewicz of the Green Bay Press-Gazette takes a look at another Packers draft pick, defensive lineman Josh Boyd.
• Here is a list of the 16 undrafted free agents the Minnesota Vikings agreed to terms with, via Vikings.com.
• Ben Goessling of the St. Paul Pioneer Press checks in with new Vikings backup quarterback Matt Cassel.
• Early reviews of the Vikings' stadium design have sparked hopes and fears, according to Doug Belden of the Pioneer Press.

So while we have a moment, let's close the loop on a discussion we've been meandering through for years. What is the Green Bay Packers' annual costs for retaining quarterback Aaron Rodgers and linebacker Clay Matthews for the majority (if not entirety) of their careers?

The chart provides the details in cap terms. Rodgers and Matthews will account for 15.2 percent of this year's $123 million cap allotment. It's difficult to project future percentages without knowing the team-by-team cap number for those years, but it's worth noting that the highest combined year for the pair is in 2017 at $35.85 million.

Relatively speaking, that's a reasonable sum for two elite players. For context, consider that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is scheduled to count $31.5 million against the 2017 cap on his own.

ESPN.com's power ranking committee convened this week because, well, why not? NFL teams have made it to the other side of the bulk of player acquisition season. Let's take a look at how NFC North teams stack up:

5. Green Bay Packers
Trending: Up one since March
Comment: Everyone seems to approve of the Packers' draft, which brought a different kind of defensive disruptor in Datone Jones and the promise of a more balanced offense thanks to running backs Eddie Lacy and Johnathan Franklin.

13. Chicago Bears
Trending: Down two since March
Comment: The Bears worked to address two of their biggest needs, offensive line and linebacker. I'm guessing the national perspective will largely be influenced by the surprise of guard Kyle Long at No. 20 overall. I love the way @madstatistician described post-draft fan and media analysis of a draft via Twitter. We tend to "set arbitrary rankings" of players "and then grade teams on deviations from those rankings."

17. Minnesota Vikings
Trending: No change since March
Comment: There continues to be an odd split on the Vikings from voters. Dan Graziano voted them at No. 8, while all other voters had them at No. 17. Consensus at the moment: The Vikings aren't a playoff team.

24. Detroit Lions
Trending: Down two since March
Comment: Has everyone forgotten the Lions' free-agency momentum? Worried that Ziggy Ansah won't be ready to help soon enough? Not sure from this vantage point.

The first in a periodic series examining the roles of NFC North newcomers:

By all accounts, the Minnesota Vikings traded away a unique talent last month when they shipped Percy Harvin to the Seattle Seahawks. The Vikings were not, however, ready to abandon the offense they built around Harvin's open-field running ability during the first half of last season.

So they devised a two-pronged plan for replacing Harvin in the 2013 draft. Option A was to find a way to select West Virginia all-purpose man Tavon Austin. As the first round began last Thursday, according to general manager Rick Spielman, the Vikings were mulling trade-up possibilities from their positions at No. 23 and No. 25 overall.

The St. Louis Rams crushed Option A by moving to No. 8 overall and drafting Austin at a position the Vikings couldn't reasonably hope to reach. So the Vikings pivoted to Option B, which in their minds was the best alternative -- by a long shot -- for finding a receiver with Harvin's multi-positional skills.

Can Tennessee's Cordarrelle Patterson, whom the Vikings acquired with the No. 29 overall pick, be a playmaker as a receiver, from the backfield and as a returner? At 6-foot-2 and 216 pounds, Patterson has a body type closer to that of a conventional receiver. (Austin is 5-foot-8 and Harvin is 5-11). But after watching the way Tennessee used him last season, the Vikings are confident Patterson has a similarly unique skill set.

"We felt that besides Austin, he was the most explosive playmaker with the ball in his hand in the draft," Spielman said. He also said Patterson is "magic" as a returner and added: "We feel this guy can do just as much as Percy can as a returner."

Unless you watched Tennessee last season, you probably wouldn't have guessed that Patterson put up 308 rushing yards last season, some on the type of bubble screen passes/pitches the Vikings used last season with Harvin. The first chart shows that Austin was more successful in all areas, but the Vikings considered Patterson's production remarkable considering he did not arrive on campus after transferring from Hutchinson Community College until just before the start of summer practice.

"My strength is when the ball is in my hands," Patterson said. "Whether it be on a kick return, on an end around. I feel like when the ball is in my hands, I’m a special player. I’m still working on my route running, learning coverages and stuff."

Spielman said the Vikings have already discussed "having a specific game plan of how we'll be able to develop" Patterson. The obvious answer is to use him in a relatively simple schematic package that capitalizes on his open-field running ability, much as they did with Harvin. As you might recall, Harvin gained more than three-quarters of his receiving yards after the catch last season (528 of 677), according to ESPN Stats & Information.

That approach makes sense for a number of reasons, including the revelation that Patterson was a raw and only occasionally effective downfield receiver during his one season with the Volunteers. Tennessee quarterbacks completed only 51.7 percent of their passes targeting Patterson last season, including only nine of 31 attempts on passes that traveled 15 or more yards past the line of scrimmage. The chart provides further details and comparisons to the rest of his teammates.

Let's be clear. Patterson has the size and speed, having run his 40-yard dash at the scouting combine in 4.42 seconds, to be a good downfield receiver. (He also had a vertical jump of 37 inches). But if he struggled in that area on a relative basis at the college level, it stands to reason that he won't elevate immediately against NFL defenses.

Consider this report from our friends at Scouts Inc. , which is not that much different than Patterson's own assessment: "[E]xtremely raw as a receiver in terms of route-running and reading coverages on the fly. There are questions about how much of an offense he can absorb right away, and his hands have been inconsistent on tape. He can immediately make an impact as a return man, and if the Vikings can find creative ways to get him touches, Patterson can still make a difference as he develops as a receiver."

So if we had to guess at the Vikings' plan for Patterson, it would start as a kickoff returner and include the kind of passes, pitches, and tosses near the line of scrimmage that Harvin excelled at turning into big gainers. By the end of the season, perhaps Patterson would have developed beyond that. But this is a player whose expectations should be viewed on a long-term horizon.

For now, as the Vikings did with Harvin, the best thing to do is to put the ball in Patterson's hands and let him do his thing.

The draft is over. Organized team activities (OTAs) are a week or more away from starting. Most mandatory minicamps won't take place until next month. Training camp is three months away. What could we possibly find to discuss in this week's SportsNation chat? I'm sure you/we/them will think of something. See you right here at 2 p.m. ET.

We're Black and Blue All Over:

Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Rob Demovsky of the Green Bay Press-Gazette made important points in analyzing the new contract of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers will count $12 million against the 2013 salary cap, an increase of only $2.25 million more than what he was due to count under his previous deal. That leaves the Packers with $13.5 million in salary-cap space remaining in 2013.

So what will the Packers do with that money?

Silverstein estimates it will cost the Packers between $5 million and $6 million to sign their draft class, leaving about $7 million in surplus. NFL rules allow teams to push any leftover cap space into next season, which would give them a $7 million head start on 2014. It could also be used to sign other players to extensions. Cornerback Sam Shields and/or defensive tackle B.J. Raji could be squeezed in this year as well if the Packers want to.

This season, Rodgers and linebacker Clay Matthews, who signed a five-year extension earlier this month, will count $18.71 million against the Packers' salary cap.

Continuing around the NFC North:

• Melissa Isaacson of ESPNChicago.com doesn't mind that Chicago Bears general manager Phil Emery is willing to add players who have been considered character risks in the past.
• Bears free-agent defensive lineman Israel Idonije visited the Tennessee Titans on Monday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter via Jeff Dickerson of ESPNChicago.com.
• Bears fullback/tight end Evan Rodriguez was cleared of wrongdoing for his role in an incident in Miami last month, notes Dickerson.
• The Detroit Lions had pre-draft interaction with nearly every player they drafted this year, according to Justin Rogers of Mlive.com.
• It's fair to expect Lions defensive end Ziggy Ansah to be a force off the edge as a rookie, according to ESPN's Mel Kiper via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press.
• The Star Tribune presents some clues about the Minnesota Vikings' new stadium design culled from a recent environmental impact statement.
• Could Chris Kluwe's activism play a role in getting released by the Minnesota Vikings? Ben Goessling of the St. Paul Pioneer Press looks into it.
• The Vikings released punter T.J. Conley on Monday, two days after using a fifth-round draft pick on UCLA punter Jeff Locke, notes Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com.

If this video tells you nothing else, you'll realize that ESPN analyst Todd McShay is a big fan of the Green Bay Packers' draft and running back Eddie Lacy in particular.

McShay cited "great draft management" as the Packers maneuvered to get Lacy in the second round while drafting "a better football player" ahead of him in defensive end Datone Jones. And in naming Lacy as the draft's most likely candidate for instant impact, McShay noted a secondary but importat attribute: advanced pass-blocking skills.

The Packers aren't going to play a running back they don't trust to protect quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and here's what director of college scouting Brian Gutekunst told reporters about Lacy: "He's 230 pounds. He's able to step in there and stop people when they're coming at him, so we feel really good about that, especially with some of things we do."

The Minnesota Vikings are continuing this offseason to dip into the larger NFC North talent pool. They signed former Green Bay Packers receiver Greg Jennings last month, and on Monday they announced deals with two players who spent last season with the Detroit Lions: defensive end Lawrence Jackson and cornerback Jacob Lacey.

Jackson had 17 sacks in three seasons for the Lions despite missing 11 games over that stretch. (Update: Jackson missed five because of injuries and the rest in weeks when the Lions made only three defensive ends active for games.) The Vikings are pretty set at defensive end this season with the return of Jared Allen, Brian Robison and Everson Griffen. But with all three members of that trio in the final year of their contracts, the opportunity exists for a player to step up in 2013 as a possible 2014 replacement.

Lacey, meanwhile, had trouble staying on the field last season and missed five games because of a knee injury and other ailments. Our friends at Pro Football Focus didn't find much to love about his performance with the Lions, noting opposing quarterbacks completed 68 percent of passes directed his way (No. 97 in the NFL) and that he allowed an opposing passer rating of 117.2 (No. 102). I would imagine Lacey will compete for the nickel job but at best will win the dime role in 2013.

Related: Jackson is a big believer in advanced statistics. He attended the 2012 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. Teammates have called him "LoJackrates," among other philosopher-nicknames.

I've reviewed the details of the Green Bay Packers' contract agreement with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and here's what we can say: Rodgers didn't take a hometown discount under the strict definition but the deal is quite manageable on a relative scale for elite NFL quarterbacks.

In other words, it was a rare win for both sides.

The Packers had a key advantage over other teams who have negotiated mega-million dollar quarterback contracts recently. Rodgers had two years remaining on his previous deal, a structure that allowed the Packers to spread out a record-setting five-year extension over a longer period. That helped lessen the Packers' annual salary-cap hit, as well as their cash outlay, over the full seven years they now have Rodgers under contract for.

An elite quarterback's contract has the potential to cripple an NFL team. Rodgers' most certainly does not.

As the chart at the bottom shows, Rodgers' cap number won't exceed $20 million until 2017 and won't elevate beyond $21.1 million at any point. Compare that structure to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, whose new deal will count $25.3 million in 2015. Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco's deal will count $28.55 million against the cap by 2016, and the New Orleans Saints are looking at a cap hit of $26.4 million for Drew Brees by '16.

Of this there can be no doubt: The Packers and Rodgers agreed on a deal that won't be as onerous as those for Flacco, Brees and even Romo. Rodgers, in fact, seems likely to play the next seven years without a significant renegotiation, giving the Packers a long-range planning advantage.

With that said, it's difficult for me to classify the deal as an obvious hometown discount when it set a number of NFL records, including the payout over the first three years ($65.2 million). Rodgers will also tie an NFL record for single-year payout by receiving $40 million in cash during the 2013 league year. (As we discussed earlier, Rodgers really had no incentive to take a true hometown discount because there is no reason to expect it would change how the Packers do business with other players.)

The best way to view those aspects of the deal is as a tradeoff for agreeing to spread the payout of a five-year extension over seven years. In the end, the Packers have Rodgers signed to a seven-year deal worth a total of $130.75 million.

The annual average of those figures, $18.7 million, is less than what Flacco, Brees and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning receive. That, along with the manageable cap structure, are the biggest wins for the Packers. In return, Rodgers is getting a record-setting amount of cash now and over the next three years rather than await a backloaded payout that might never come. A win-win all around, if you ask me.

NFC North teams added dozens of intriguing young players over the weekend. They filled glaring holes and added to already-established strengths. Some areas remain weak, of course, while other selections created new storylines we hadn't anticipated.

So here's my post-draft plan. We'll use this post to lay out the unfilled holes and new storylines and then circle back over the next days and weeks as needed. I'll also sprinkle in some interesting and/or offbeat stories that emerged from the draft but would have been buried if I had posted them over the weekend.

Issue: The Green Bay Packers continued signaling potential change at left tackle.
Analysis: Coach Mike McCarthy said in March that the team needed better play from its left tackle position, manned last season by Marshall Newhouse. Then the Packers went out and drafted Colorado's David Bakhtiari and Cornell's J.C. Tretter in the fourth round. Bakhtiari has played left and right tackle; Tretter played tackle as well but might project as a guard. Saturday, McCarthy left all options open at the position -- including moving right tackle Bryan Bulaga back to the position he played at Iowa. McCarthy also said he is "really counting" on Derek Sherrod, the Packers' top pick in 2011 who hasn't played since breaking his leg late that season, to compete for the job. Don Barclay, who started four games last season at right tackle (plus another two in the playoffs), is also in the mix. Suddenly, the Packers have six legitimate possibilities to compete for the left and right tackle spots if they want. Moving Bulaga isn't as easy as it sounds, and there is something to be said for leaving him at a position he has excelled at. But it's telling that the Packers are even considering it.

Issue: The Packers drafted 11 players, but none of them were safeties.
Analysis: General manager Ted Thompson said afterwards that he has faith in incumbents M.D. Jennings and Jerron McMillian, who will compete to play alongside Morgan Burnett. We'll see if the Packers feel compelled to kick the tires on a veteran. Among those available are Quintin Mikell, Kerry Rhodes and Gerald Sensabaugh. Historically, the Packers' approach has been to evaluate younger incumbents first before seeking veteran replacements elsewhere.

Issue: None of the Minnesota Vikings' nine draft choices play middle linebacker.
Analysis: We should note that the Vikings used a seventh-round pick on Penn State's Michael Mauti, who has been projected as a middle/inside linebacker by some. But Mauti is recovering from his third career ACL tear and can't be counted on to fill any sort of significant role. Internal candidates include Erin Henderson, the strong-side linebacker whom the Vikings have said could play inside if needed, and 2012 seventh-round pick Audie Cole. The elephant in the room is veteran Brian Urlacher, who was reported at one point this spring to have had conversations with Vikings officials. Urlacher isn't anything close to the profile of the player general manager Rick Spielman typically brings in, but this is an extenuating circumstance. Remember, the Vikings used their nickel defense on 58.9 percent of their snaps last season. Whomever plays middle linebacker for the Vikings could be off the field for three of every five snaps.

Issue: The Vikings used a fifth-round pick to make Jeff Locke the first punter drafted.
Analysis: In the past five years, four punters have been selected with a fifth-round pick or higher. All four became their team's primary punters in their rookie seasons. There is every reason to believe the Vikings plan for Locke to replace veteran Chris Kluwe, perhaps as soon as they get a look at him during their rookie minicamp this summer. I know that Spielman said Locke was brought in "to compete" for the job, but that competition will be short and one-sided. NFL teams don't use draft picks on specialists unless they are certain they want to make a change.

Issue: The Detroit Lions didn't draft an offensive tackle after the departure of both 2012 starters.
Analysis: Riley Reiff, the Lions' top draft choice in 2012, will start at left tackle. The Lions' right tackle could be Jason Fox or Corey Hilliard. That still leaves the Lions thin along the line, especially at right guard if rookie Larry Warford isn't ready to step in right away. Regardless, Lions general manager Martin Mayhew made clear the Lions need to add more depth. "We're really young there so we'll look at some veteran guys there I think over the next few weeks."

Issue: The Lions didn't draft a receiver until the sixth round (Virginia Tech's Corey Fuller), but they almost….
Analysis: According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Lions told Michigan's Denard Robinson that they planned to draft him with the No. 136 overall pick. Mayhew had spoken before the draft about Robinson's potential as a "slash" player from the backfield and/or slot receiver position. Robinson, however, was selected at No. 135 by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Eventually the Lions used the No. 166 overall pick to select Notre Dame's Theo Riddick, who is not as explosive as Robinson but is a good receiver out of the backfield in his own right. Ultimately, the Lions finished this draft thin at the traditional receiver position given the injury rehabilitations of Nate Burleson and Ryan Broyles.

Issue: The Chicago Bears did not draft a quarterback, seemingly leaving Josh McCown as the primary backup to Jay Cutler.
Analysis: The Bears figured to be a candidate to draft a quarterback in part because of coach Marc Trestman's expertise in developing them and in part to end the cycle of searching for a veteran backup each year. In the end, the Bears couldn't justify drafting one given their limited number of picks. (They started with five and through trades finished with six.) Said general manager Phil Emery: "Things would have to line up perfect to take a quarterback with five picks." McCown was relatively impressive during a two-start stint to end the 2011 season, but overall he has played in a total of six games over the past five seasons. I wouldn't call this the Bears' most pressing need, and the Bears signaled as much with their draft results.

Issue: The Bears feel better about their tight end situation than most draft pundits.
Analysis: Many draft analysts thought the Bears would draft Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert if they had a chance, but they passed him up Thursday night in favor of offensive lineman Kyle Long. Eifert went one pick later to the Cincinnati Bengals. It's true that Eifert would have been a luxury pick given the free-agent acquisition of tight end Martellus Bennett, but in the larger sense he would have been another weapon for quarterback Jay Cutler's make-or-break season.