Trey Flowers earned a massive free agent contract from the Detroit Lions, the prize of an early spending splurge by GM Bob Quinn. The former Patriot is expected to spearhead the pass rush while also bolstering the dramatically improved (thank you Damon Harrison) run defense.
Flowers is not much of a public figure or a media star. He does his work, doesn’t make dumb decisions off the field and keeps getting better every year.
Here are five things to know about the Lions new standout defensive weapon:
His name is not actually Trey
He’s gone by Trey most of his life, but his given birth name is Robert Lee Flowers III. Trey is a lot less of a mouthful.
He modeled his game after former Colts star Robert Mathis
Mathis was known for his devastating quickness and spin move off the edge during his prime years with the Colts. Flowers actually recalls him from before he made it big.
Flowers is from Huntsville, Alabama. That happens to be the home of Alabama A&M, where Mathis went to college while Flowers was just picking up football.
That’s a pretty good role model. Mathis, who also wore No. 98, bagged 123 sacks in his illustrious Colts career.
Pro Football Focus loves Flowers
I’ll let PFF tell you how much they love the new Lions pass rusher…
That’s an impressive all-around performance from Flowers on a team that ran the same basic defensive scheme.
He lines up all over the formation
There aren’t many spots along the defensive front where Flowers hasn’t played at least a few snaps over the course of his Patriots career. While he predominately plays on the edge, Flowers is capable of playing as a 3T in a 4-man front, an outside LB in a 3-3 front, and even nose tackle.
Per PFF’s positional snap charting, Flowers actually played 6 snaps as a slot corner in 2018. The addition of Justin Coleman probably precludes much of a need for the 260-something-pound Flowers to play in the slot, but it’s a wrinkle Matt Patricia can insert every so often.
Flowers has overachieved his draft profile and position
The Patriots tabbed the Arkansas end with the second pick of the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. That was generally where he was projected to come off the board.
His combine workout was decent but not really exceptional:
The commentary on his NFL.com draft profile didn’t hint at the prolific pass rusher to come,
While he might have room on his frame to add more bulk, he’s not as long as most 3-4 teams would like at defensive end. His aggressiveness at the point of attack is a plus, but he might have to come off the field on third downs. Limited athletic traits might affect his draft stock.
Flowers has safely proven he can stay on the field on third downs…
