Report: Leshoure pleads guilty to lesser charge in marijuana case

Lions running back Mikel Leshoure was in a Berrien County courtroom Friday and plead guilty to possession of marijuana and paid a $575 fine, according to Julie Mack of Mlive.com.

Leshoure was originally charged with possession of marijuana, second offense, but a plea bargain reduced the charge to possession of marijuana, first offense. Leshoure’s sentence was $575 in fines and costs.

Leshoure’s lawyer, Joseph Lavigne, told the judge Leshoure is in a 24-month program that initially requires him to be tested two or three times a week for drug use, according to the article.

It’s unclear if Leshoure will face a suspension from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

Fairley named one of the 10 most pivotal players in NFL this season

ESPN NFL Insider Bill Polian’s list of 10 pivotal players in the NFL this season includes Lions defensive tackle Nick Fairley.

Fairley showed flashes of brilliance as a rookie last year, but dealt with a broken foot all season. Fairley suffered the injury the second day of training camp and missed the entire preseason and the first four games of the regular season. He missed six regular-season games in all and was never 100-percent.

“Fairley could be the missing piece in making the Detroit defense dominant,” Polian wrote. “If the big Auburn alum can reach his potential, a trio of him, Ndamukong Suh and the emerging Corey Williams could make the Lions’ D-line extremely hard to handle up the middle and wreak havoc on the pocket (which will help an improving secondary).

“I still think the Lions need more from the running back position to be legitimate title contenders, but if Fairley steps up, an already improved defense will be taken to another level.”

Fairley has been participating fully in the offseason training program and the Lions have huge expectations for their first-round pick last year.

Twentyman reports that – according to League source – Broyles, Lewis, Whitehead and Greenwood have agreed to terms

Tim Twentyman posted on Twitter earlier today that, according to a League source, the Detroit Lions have agreed to terms with second-round WR Ryan Broyles, fourth-round DE Ronnell Lewis, fifth-round LB Tahir Whitehead and fifth-round CB Chris Greenwood.

Twentyman reported that all the players have agreed to four-year deals.

Rookies arrived in Allen Park today for the team’s mini-camp to be held Friday through Saturday at the team’s practice and training facility.

Lions agree to terms with rookie linebacker Travis Lewis to four-year deal

The Lions have agreed to terms with seventh-round pick Travis Lewis on a four-year contract, according to league sources.

Lewis’ deal is worth $2.16 million.

Under the new rules of the collective bargaining agreement, all draft picks get four-year deals, with first-round picks receiving a fifth-year option.

Lewis (6-2, 227) was the 223rd-overall pick in the draft and is the first of the team’s eight draft picks to agree to terms on a rookie deal. He finished with 446 career tackles at Oklahoma.

Detroit’s rookie mini-camp begins Friday at the team’s Allen Park facility and all eight picks will be in attendance.

Calvin Johnson Madden 2013 cover revealed

The day before the NFL Draft, Calvin Johnson was announced the winner of the 2013 Madden Cover vote.

Today, less than two weeks later, the cover has been revealed by EA Sports.

The cover features a photo from the photo shoot done immediately following the unveiling. Johnson has his hands out, ready to catch a pass, with key landmarks from the City of Detroit (Ford Field, the Renaissance Center) in the background.

What do you think, Lions fans?

Lions host free agent S Chris Crocker

The Lions hosted free agent safety Chris Crocker for a visit on Tuesday.

Crocker, 32, is a 10-year veteran, who spent the last four seasons with the Bengals. He started all 16 games for the Bengals last season with 61 tackles, 3.5 sacks and five passes defended.

Jason La Canfora of NFL Network reported that Crocker is scheduled to visit the Cardinals on Wednesday.

For his career, Crocker has 476 tackles and 10 interceptions.

National Football Post puts Schwartz at the top of head coach power rankings

Joe Fortenbaugh of National Football Post put together his list of head coach power rankings that will be “a jumping-off point for a regular feature that (they will) be running during the 2012 season.”

Detroit’s very own Jim Schwartz tops the list after three full seasons with the Lions, taking the franchise from 0-16 to its first playoff berth since 1999.

Said Fortenbaugh, “He may not have a Vince Lombardi Trophy on his mantel just yet, but nobody has done more with less in such a short time span than Jim Schwartz …”

Read his full reasoning behind Schwartz’s top spot.

Backus is on schedule recovering from bicep surgery

Lions left tackle Jeff Backus says he’s right on schedule in his recovery from offseason bicep surgery he had four months ago.

Backus injured his right bicep in the second half of the team’s playoff loss to the Saints and had surgery shortly afterward in January.

“It’s just building back the strength and getting back into the football stuff,” Backus told Detroitlions.com.

He’s been rehabbing at the Lions’ training facility the entire offseason and has been participating in the offseason training program the last three weeks.

Backus, who was drafted by the Lions in the first round of the 2001 draft and has started 177 consecutive games at left tackle, signed a two-year contract with the team this offseason.

Backus says his workouts have been adjusted a bit because of injures and his age (34), but says physically he’s feeling great.

“I’m not in there doing some of the things the younger guys are doing, but I think at this point in anyone’s career 12 years in, they’re workout is a little bit different.”

When the Lions start organized team activities later this month, Backus will be on the field but said he doesn’t know how much he’ll participate, knowing that being 100-percent for training camp is the real goal.

“The goal is to just get stronger, get my peck stronger and my bicep stronger and once I get into OTAs be smart about things and see how it goes,” he said.

“Coming off surgery, it’s about working myself in. I feel great right now. There hasn’t been any setbacks or limitations, it’s just about getting stronger.”

Source: Lions interested in RB Ryan Grant

In a move to bolster their running back position, the Lions have extended a contract offer to former Packers running back Ryan Grant, a league source confirmed.

Lions running backs Mikel Leshoure and Jahvid Best are coming off season-ending injuries last year and Grant would add an experienced veteran to a group that also includes Kevin Smith, Joique Bell and Keiland Williams.

Both Leshoure and Best are expected to be fully healthy for the Lions this year, but it’s not a bad idea to add as much depth at the position as possible.

Grant shared running back duties with James Starks last season. Starks carried 133 times for 578 yards (4.3 average) and one touchdown; Grant carried 134 times for 559 yards (4.2 average) and two touchdowns.

Grant, 29, rushed for 4,016 yards and 25 touchdowns during his 63 games with the Packers, adding 92 receptions for 726 yards and two touchdowns.

He rushed for consecutive 1,200-yard seasons with the Packers in 2008 and 2009 before missing all of the 2010 season with an ankle injury.

Grant has yet to accept the Lions’ offer.

Lions particularly excited about a couple undrafted free agents

The work didn’t stop for Lions general manager Martin Mayhew or president Tom Lewand when the draft ended Saturday night. The Lions instantly hit the phones to try and sign undrafted rookies to free agent deals.

With rookie mini-camp beginning in nine days, the Lions have agreed to terms with a number of rookie free agents, according to various reports.

The Lions won’t officially announce their undrafted rookie free agent signings until those players have taken a physical and signed their contracts. However, in an interview with Mike O’Hara and Ken Brown on WJR last night, Mayhew did single out Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore and Houston receiver Patrick Edwards as two players he’s particularly excited about.

“The winningest quarterback ever, 50-3,” Mayhew said of Moore. “The guy is very talented (and a) very cerebral quarterback and understands the game, son of a coach. He has a good arm and is very accurate.

“He anticipates things really well. That’s the one thing our scouts and coaches really talked about. He really knows where to go with the ball and he gets the ball there before the receiver comes out of his break. The guy is very talented and we were very fortunate to be able to get him.”

The Lions typically bring in more than three quarterbacks to training camp, but Moore looks to have a great opportunity to make the roster behind Matthew Stafford and backup Shaun Hill.

Edwards (5-9, 172) had over 4,500 receiving yards and 43 touchdowns in four years at Houston. He also scored two touchdowns returning punts.

“This guy has also been one of the productive guys in college football the last couple seasons,” Mayhew said of Edwards. “He had (1,752) yards receiving last year, 19.7 yards average per catch and he’s going to be one of our free agents that’s really another talented offensive weapon.

“He’s very fast. That Houston offense throws the ball around quit a bit. He was one of those run-and-shoot receivers. He caught like 89 balls last year, I think, so he caught a ton of balls. He’s been a three-year starter for them. He has over 4,500 yards in his career. He’s another guy who we think has a really good chance.”

Here is the unofficial list of the Lions’ undrafted rookie free agents thus far:

QB Kellen Moore, Boise State

WR Patrick Edwards, Houston

WR Troy Burrell, Wayne State

WR Jared Karstetter, Washington State

TE Alex Gottlieb, William & Mary

OG Rodney Austin, Elon

OT Quinn Barham, Penn State

OG J.C. Oram, Weber State

LB Carmen Messina, New Mexico

LB Ronnie Sneed, Kentucky

DT Michael Cosgrove, Idaho

DE Eddie McClam, Old Dominion

K Derek Dimke, Illinois

CB Alonzo Lawrence, Mississippi Golf Coast Community College

G Pat Boyle, Temple

TE Austin Wells, Northern Iowa

RB Stephon Greene, Penn State