The NFL draft won’t be held for another three months, but an important part of the selection process will begin today for the Lions. Coach Jim Schwartz and his staff will lead the North team in its first practice at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala., where the Senior Bowl will be played at 4 p.m. Saturday. Schwartz will get to spend plenty of time getting to know potential draftees. “You’re having breakfast with them. You’re riding the bus over to practice with them. It’s not just 15 minutes,†Schwartz said on the Lions’ Web site. “At the (NFL scouting) combine, you get 15 minutes to interview. When you bring guys (to team headquarters) before the draft for physicals, you’re spending eight hours with them, nine hours with them." “We’re with them for a week, so by the time the week’s over, we know them pretty well.†Source: Detroit Free Press
