Tahir Whitehead took over the middle linebacker role for the Detroit Lions last season, and by all accounts, his play slipped compared to in the past.

This offseason, though, the Lions drafted Jarrad Davis with the thoughts that he will be their starting linebacker in the middle next season. That move would in turn bump Whitehead back outside, which might not be for the worst as Pro Football Focus showed.

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As the site tweeted, their grades for Whitehead differ greatly from when he played outside in 2015 compared to last season when he played the middle.

Lions LB Tahir Whitehead will reportedly return to OLB in 2017 after spending 2016 at ILB. pic.twitter.com/kFrOVU9YUo — Pro Football Focus (@PFF) May 4, 2017

Clearly, this could be the reason the Lions went with Davis in round one knowing full well he could play the middle. While he can also play outside, it seems doubtful the Lions would put him in that position to start his career.

Detroit also now has a bit more depth on the outside with Jalen Reeves-Maybin, so the linebacker picture could be coming into easy focus heading into the summer.