WR William Franklin: Lions Cut WR; Sign UDFA Ryan Kees
by Nate Caminata of RoarReport.com, May 15, 2009 at 4:39pm ET
William Franklin Profile
The Detroit Lions released tackle Junius Coston and WR William Franklin on Friday. Franklin, a third-round pick of Kansas City last year, was in a heated competition at WR, and became even more expendable after the team drafted Penn State's Derrick Williams in the third-round of last month's draft.
The team also inked undrafted rookie free-agent Ryan Kees. Below is an excerpt from Scout.com on Kees ...
"Defensive end Ryan Kees is hopeful that he'll get a chance to show an NFL club what he can bring to the table. A three-year starter at St. Cloud State, Kees started his collegiate career off with a bang. "My very first play from scrimmage was a sack, so that was really cool," he told Scout.com. Elected team captain twice, the defensive end plays with good technique and brings a lot of intelligence to the football field. The mechanical engineering major, who also minored in biology, was one of 15 finalists in the nation for the Draddy Award, commonly referred to as the "Academic Heisman". The 6-foot-5, 276-pound lineman likes his chances of making an NFL roster. "I have a really good body size. I can put on a lot of weight and still maintain my athleticism," he said. "I work my hands well and I've got good pass-rush technique. I'm also able to stop the run and have good breakout speed and acceleration, especially for my size. At the Cactus Bowl, Kees drew interest from a number of teams that included the Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers
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