Lions Ink Lehman And Jones For Multiyear Deals

The Detroit Lions announced another pair of crucial player signings on Wednesday, as rookies Kevin Jones and Teddy Lehman inked separate multiyear deals with the club.
Already in rapid-fire-acquisition mode after Tuesday’s signings of offensive linemen Kelly Butler (a sixth-round draftee) and Solomon Page (a free agent from San Diego), the Lions are steadily advancing toward their objective of striking deals with the entire 2004 rookie class before Friday, the club’s mandatory training-camp-reporting date for all rookies and veterans.
On the heels of his signing, Jones -- the No. 30 overall pick in this year’s draft – seemed overjoyed with his good fortune, as he can now fully compete for the Lions’ No. 1 tailback job, against incumbents Shawn Bryson, Artose Pinner and Olandis Gary.
“Best feeling in the world happening right now; I’ve been waiting for this all my life. (The contract) finally got done,” said the 5-foot-11, 227-pound Jones, a native of the Philadelphia suburb of Chester, Pa.
At Virginia Tech, Jones carried the ball 616 times for 3,475 yards – averaging a stellar 5.6 yards per carry – while leading the Hokies to a 26-13 record from 2001-03. These numbers were posted against rugged competition in the Big East Conference (Miami, Pittsburgh, Boston College and West Virginia) and other heralded powers, such as LSU, Florida State and Texas A&M. In 2001 versus eventual-national-champion Miami, Jones ran roughshod over the vaunted Hurricane defense, registering 160 yards on 24 carries.
Just an hour earlier, Lehman had signed his pact.
"It's what you've been waiting for all your life -- finally getting that ink on the paper," said Lehman, the 37th overall selection in the draft. "Yeah, it's all about football now."
Lehman, a 6-foot-2, 238-pound linebacker from Oklahoma, was a regular member of various collegiate All-American teams for the 2002 and 2003 seasons. Lehman’s rare combination of power, size and speed factored greatly into the Sooners’ re-emergence as a viable power --  including their national championship in 2000.
Per team policy, no monetary terms were disclosed involving the rookie contracts.

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