Dave Sears Lines Up With Monti Ossenfort

Over the weekend, By signing Dave Sears, the Detroit Lions’ Director of College Scouting, to the position oof assistant GM., the Arizona Cardinals made a significant move to fuse Monti Ossenfort’s alignment of the the player personnel and scouting departments.

Dave Sears was MO’s former scouting colleague in Houston during the early 2000s.

What Monti Ossenfort and Dave Shears share most in common: longevity.

• Oseenfort was a valued member of the Patriots’ scouting system from 2006-2019.
• Sears was a valued member of the Lions’ scouting system from 2007-2023

What Monti Ossenfort and Dave Shears also have most in common: assisting their teams in drafting (and signing undrafted players) highly productive starters on the offensive and defensive lines.

OL —-Ossenfort’s Fab 5:

• LT Nate Solder/Isaiah Wynn/Nicholas Petit-Fere
• LG Joe Thuney’Alex Karras
• C David Andrews/Ted Larsen
• RG Shaq Mason
• RT Marcus Cannon/Cameron Fleming

OL —-Sears’ Fab 5:

• LT Taylor Decker/Reilly Reiff
• RG Larry Warford/Jonah Jackson
• C Frank Ragnow/Grahan Glasgow
• G Laken Tomlinson
• RT Peni Sewell

DL —- Ossenfort’s Fab 5:

• OLB Trey Flowers
• LDE Deatrich Wise, Jr.
• NT Teair Tart
• RDE Malcolm Brown
• OLB Chandler Jones

DL —- Sears’ Fab 5 :

• OLB Kyle Van Noy/James Houston
• LDE A’Shawn Robinson
• NT Alim McNeill
• RDE Ndamukong Suh
• OLB Aiden Hutchinson

In 10 years as Cardinals’ GM the only productive starters along the OL and DL lines he drafted were:

• LT D.J. Humphries
• OLB Haason Reddick
• DE Zach Allen

Other Notable Players Drafted (UCFAs) by Ossenfort’s Teams :

• K Steven Gostkowski
• S Brandon Merriweather
• LB Jerod Mayo
• S Patrick Chung
• S Devin McCourtey
• TE Rob Gronkowski
• LB Dont’a Hightower
• LB Jamie Collins
• CB Logan Ryan
• S Duron Harmon
• QB Jimmy Garoppolo
• LS Joe Cardona
• QB Jacoby Brissett
• LB Elandon Rogerts
• RB Sony Michael
• LB Ja’Whaun Bentley
• LB Chase Winovich
• RB Damien Harris
• QB Jarrett Stidham
• DT Bryan Cowart
• P Jake Bailey
• G Aaron Brewer
• WR Treylon Burks
• CB Kristian Fulton
• CB Caleb Farley
• CB Roger McCreary
• P Ryan Stonehouse

Other Notable Players Drafted (UCFAs) by Shears’ Teams :

• WR CalvinJohnson (HOF)
• QB Matthew Stafford
• LB Tahir Whitehead
• CB Darius Slay
• S Quandre Diggs
• WR Kenny Golladay
• CB/KR Jamal Agnew
• TE T.J. Hockenson
• CB Jeffrey Okudah
• RB D’Andre Swift
• WR Amon-Ra St, brown
• WR Jameson Williams

Dave Shears’ last NFL Draft with the Texans in 2006 was one of the most fruitful drafts in NFL history:

1 —- DE Mario Williams —- 4 PBs —- 191 games

2 —- LB DeMeco Ryans —- 2 PBs —- 140 games

3 —- T Eric Winston —- 165 games

4 —- TE Owen Daniels —- 2 PBs —- 131 games

2023 Detroit Lions Free Agents (whom Dave Sears may play a role in attracting to Arizona):

• WR D.J,.Chark, 26, 69.6
• RB Jamaal Williams, 27, 73.5
• C/G Evan Brown, 26, 64.8
• NCB Will Harris, 27, 63.7, 66.9 coverage grade
• DE John Cominsky, 27, 68.3, 4 sacks, 44 pressures
• CB Mike Hughes, 25, 59.9
• ILB Alex Anzalone, 28, 58.5
• LB Chris Board, 27, 64.4
• LB Jarrad Davis —- 61.4
• S DeShon Elliott, 25, 66.5
• DE Austin Bryant, 26, 51.2

At this time of year, one would imagine that Dave Sears has very in-depth scouting reports on the top players in this year’s draft. Monti Ossenfort was more involved in player personnel the past few years with the Titans —- a role in which one spends a great deal of time on adding free agents and making roster moves and waiver wire claims, etc.

But the other key part of being a player personnel director is one in which the DOPP relies heavily on the director of college scouting and the entire scouting department.

This is why, MO’s adding of Dave Sears to be his wingman an effort to hasten and strengthen the organizational alignment that MO is aspiring to accomplish.

Yes, and with plenty of work to do in re-building the Cardinals lines on both sides of the ball, this is why Dave Sears “lines up” in Arizona with a whole lotta MO building on his and the organization’s side.

What seems significant to you about the hiring of Dave Sears?