Lions Seventh-Round Pick on Teams That Avoided Him: 'They're Gonna Pay'

The Lions had all the swagger of a tranquilized sloth in 2008. It's hard to blame them, really, given their 0-16 season -- at some point, even the most cocksure player on that roster (no, not Dan Orlovsky) had to feel pretty defeated. So as with all new coaches who inherit beaten-down teams, Detroit's rookie head man Jim Schwartz has set about trying to change the attitude in Motown.

Schwartz wants more hard-nosed players, and guys with a little bit of attitude. Something tells me he's going to enjoy linebacker Zack Follett, a seventh-round draft pick of Detroit's last weekend.

Now that that isn't the case, what's his response to those teams that passed over him?

"They're gonna pay for it," says Follett. "I'm gonna go out there and hit their players and take them out of the game.

"But I'm excited. They're going to give me a good shot over at the Lions. They're the ones who put their neck out and drafted me."

It's probably fair to question a seventh-round pick's ability to "take out" guys in the NFL. Perhaps the following highlight video, though, will convince you he's capable.

Follett played outside linebacker at Cal, and Detroit has Julian Peterson and Ernie Sims as almost-certain starters in its 4-3 scheme. Still, Follett might be able to carve out a role as a backup or on special teams for a talent-starved Lions squad. He's a bit undersized, and had some injury issues in 2007 and again before the NFL scouting combine, but what he lacks in pure ability, he makes up for in effort.

Oh, and attitude. That's certainly something Detroit could use a little more of.