The Detroit Lions 'O-Line mock drafts' train keeps on rolling the farther and farther along in the offseason we get, with new names being thrown into the pool all the time. National Football Post's new 2012 NFL Mock Draft was released on Wednesday and once again, it's a name we've not seen too much if at all before for the Lions.
NFP have the Lions going with Stanford offensive tackle Jonathan Martin with their 23rd overall selection, yet another guy to keep Matthew Stafford as protected as possible going into a very important year for the Lions.
Getting a potential franchise left tackle at 23 has to be a thrill for the Lions. Martin is an athletic pass blocker who needs to get stronger, but has the talent to hold his own in space vs. the pass game.
Jeff Backus might be gone in free agency so the more offensive tackles the Lions can look at to replace him, the better off the Lions will probably be in the future.
NFP currently have Martin ranked as their fifth best OT on the board, with a score of 6.6 on their grading scale and obviously a belief that he can play left tackle at the next level.
For more on the Lions, check out Pride Of Detroit. For more on the draft in general, check out Mocking The Draft or just head to the SB Nation NFL hub at sbnation.com/NFL.