Detroit Lions Weblog

Harrington to be hampered by “flu” bug?

As if Joey Harrington needed any more difficulties, he apparently woke up with flu-like symptoms this morning. The team has had him on an IV bag and trying to nurse him to health. It has become apparent that his play will again be hampered today, if he can go at all. I hope that this illness is legitimately the flu and not him folding uder the pressure he is currently under for the sake of the entire organization.

Kevin Jones Rookie Rushing Class Stats

Player——–G—ATT—YDS–YDS/G—AVG—TD
Kevin Jones-12—178—859—71.6—–4.8—–3
Julius Jones–5—121—533—-106.6—4.4—–6
Stev.Jackson-12-100—496—41.3—–5.0—–2
Mew.Moore—7–64—–376—53.7—–5.9—–0
Mau.Hicks—-6–65—–283—47.2—–4.4—–2
TatumBell—-11–38—-211—19.2—–5.6—–3
LarryCroom-7—-29—–76—10.9—–2.6——0
GregJones—13–28——74—5.7——2.6——1

Kevin Jones Rushing Success-Lions Offense Still Sputters

With the success of Kevin Jones rushing the ball the last 5 games (632 yds), it would stand to reason that the Lions would also be successfully controlling the game and hold an edge in each game’s time of possession. I think that there may be no better indicator of the overall failure of this offense to perform well than it’s inability to dominate the time of posession in lieu of Jones’s performance. The last two games, the Lions have a marginal edge in Time of Possession. The fact that Jones had his two best two performances as a pro and the Lions were unable to hold a distinct edge is an even stronger indictment of how bad this offense has been.

Game—–Jones by half–Lions T.O.P–Opp T.O.P.
Vs.Jags1—13/43 yards—15:59——–14:01
Vs. Jags2–6/38————7:45———22:15 (+5:28 O.T.)
TTL——–19/81———–23:44——–41:44

Vs.Vikes1–15/95———18:04———11:56
Vs.Vikes2–4/5————9:32———-20:28
TTL———19/100——–27:36——–32:24

Vs.Colts1–9/83———–16:05——–13:55
Vs.Colts2–3/16———–12:43——–17:17
TTL——–12/99———-28:48——–31:12

Vs.Cards1-11/105——–13:31——–16:29
Vs.Cards2-15/91———16:48———13:12
TTL———26/196——-30:19———29:41

vs.Pack1–23/118——–19:53——–10:07
Vs.Pack2–10/38———10:38——–19:22
TTL——–33/156——–30:31——–29:29

Must Read Internet Journalism!

I have been indulged by reading two articles about the Lions current quarterbacking/personnel woes recently. Tom Boogaart, Staff Writer from the Lion’s Fanatics, provides us with the details of the “Mike McMahon Imperative”, a treatise on the reasonable necessity to see how well Mike McMahon performs alongside Lion rookies, Roy Williams and Kevin Jones (click here).

Equally topnotch, and consistently one of the more inciteful writers on All Things Lion, Doug Warren, Columnist for Lions Fans.com, writes “Who’s In Charge” (hopefully not Charles), a virtual gauntlet thrown over the Lions continual failures in negotiating the interaction of Coaching and Front Office authorities and responsibilities. Good stuff.

I prostrate humbly.

Lions vs. Vikes

In a week of turmoil, after rampant speculation that the Lions were going to make a Quarterback change as the season approaches it denouement, this is a big opportunity for Matt Millen, Steve Mariucci and lastly, free-falling Joey Harrington to establish that this franchise has a perceptible direction and that the interminable “rebuilding process” this franchise has been engaged in can be termed at least, a mild success. As a lifelong Lions fan, my expectations for this week’s game are understandably quite low. Other than the emergence of a real, live, breathing rushing attack, there has been little to celebrate about the performance of this team over the last three-fourths of this season. That being said, this is still a winnable game against an intra-divisional foe, so at the very least the Lions have something to play for.

On Offense, the Lions have to have their best game in about 10 weeks. The offenses ability to score points (preferably touchdowns), reduce turnovers, and control the ball and time of posession not only provides them with command over the outcome of the game against a not-so-good defense, it also keeps one of the league’s finest offenses off the field. It has not become unreasonable to expect that Kevin Jones will easily rush for one hundred yards or more, especially against the not-so-stout Vikings rushing defense, yet, one has to wonder if the Lions will finally be able to utilize his prowess for the course of an entire game as opposed to just one half. Joey Harrington is walking into a firestorm on Sunday. If during the first couple of posessions, Lion fans see Harrington making the same throws he has been throwing over the last few weeks, he will be booed mercilessly and it would not be unreasonable to hear chants for the summoning of Mike McMahon. Harrington will be throwing against a secondary which has been severely hampered by the injury of it’s best player, Antoine Winfield, and will have it’s depth questioned with the loss of backup defensive back, Ralph Brown. The Lions should attack this secondary and attack often with multi-receiver sets, so that the Vikes understaffed secondary is exposed. Most importantly, the Lions butterfingered receivers need to catch the ball and exhibit a reckless abandon that is not often seen from them. I think a good performance in the passing game, could establish the Ford Field denizens as a major factor in the outcome of the game as well as break the spirit of the slumping Vikings and increase the likelihood that the team will continue to fail/fold down the stretch. Steve Mariucci, with all playoff hopes nearly snuffed out, must call plays with the same aggression and lust for the kill that it has lacked for nearly the entire season. Quite honestly, except for the importance of future evaluation, these games mean very little. What would this team have to lose by opening up it’s offense and going for the jugular? I would rather see the Lions offense lose, and yet be exciting and imaginative, than watch it continue it’s labored, calculated march of “dink-and-dunk” passes that inspires little of either confidence or excitement.

The Lions defense faces a great challenge. With little to play for, the woes of the offense, and continually being placed in positions in which it must perform at high levels to keep games remotely close, it’s performance has faltered a bit down the stretch. In a winnable game, the front seven must pressure all-pro Daunte Culpepper and hope they can generate some turnovers. They also must prevent him from having the opportunity to get comfortable in the pocket. Otherwise, the Lions “Bend, Don’t Break” philosophy on defense gets transformed in a terminal “Prevent defense”, where offenses can pick them apart like a pack of vultures picking over carrion. Those vultures, salivating over the Lion’s defenses tasty morsels have also been able to utilize big plays to defeat them. The Lions secondary must have it’s best performance of the year to prevent the trio of Marcus Robinson, Randy Moss, and Nate Burleson from embarassing them in front of the home faithful. The linebackers and safeties will also need to tighten up their “red zone” coverage so that Viking’s Tight End, Jermaine Wiggins, is unable to be a factor in the game’s outcome.

Reiterating what I said earlier, it is hard to imagine a good performance from the Lions, even with many factors in this game pointing in their favor. With the franchise again appeared headed towards some off-season crossroads, this game has taken on an increased importance. That increased importance usually translates into disappointment for Lion fans and I say it is quite likely that the Lions will provide their end of the bargain yet again.

Vikings 27 Lions 21

Lions VS. Vikings Tales of the Tape

30.Detroit Offense vs./ 27. Minnesota Defense
Yardage
Yards 3,482/4,661
YPG 267.8(30th)/358.7(27th)
Scoring
PTS 231/313
PPG 17.8(25th)/24.1(24th)
Passing
YPG 159.9(28th)/229.8(25th)
TD 15(21st)/23(25th)
Sack 31(15th)/33(9th)
INT 9(5th)/7(29th)
Rushing
YPG 107.9(21st)/128.8(23rd)
TD 5(31st)/12(20th)

19. Detroit Defense vs./ 3 Minnesota Offense
Yardage
Yards 4,399/ 5,146
YPG 338.4(19th)/395.5(3rd)
Scoring
PTS 285/328
PPG 21.9(18th)/25.2(7th)
Passing
YPG 217.1(19th)/276.4(2nd)
TD 24(27th)/31(2nd)
Sack 31(12th)/37(23rd)
INT 13(18th)/11(11th)
Rushing
YPG 121.3(21st)/119.2(14th)
TD 8(10th)/7(27th)

Turnovers
Team—–Takeaways————-Giveaways
———–INT——FUM-TTL——INT—–FUM-TTL—DIFF +/-
10.DET—13——-9—-22——-9——–5—–14—/+8
23.Vikes-7———9—-16——11——–9—-20—-/-4

QB Comparison
Player——ATT—CMP—PCT—YDS—YDS/G—TD/INT—RATE
Culpepper-446—-311—69.7—3729–286.8—-31/10—–108.9
Harrington-366—-201—54.9—2174–167.2—-15/8——-772

Running Backs
Player—G—ATT—YDS—YDS/G—YDS/ATT—LNG—TD—FUML
Smith—-9—115—533—-59.2—–4.6———-38—–2—–1
Jones—-12–178—859—-71.6—–4.8———-74—–3—–0

Injuries
Lions: Out: Drummond Ques: Bryant Prob: Backus, A. Lewis
Vikes: Out: C Matt Birk, CB Ralph Brown Doubt: Antoine Winfield CB

What Might Have Been, Part II:David Carr

David Carr hasn’t been the most dominating player at his position by any means, yet, with a career that has been inextricably linked with Joey Harrington’s because both quarterbacks were members of the same draft class, his performance bears a worthwhile comparison to our Pal Joey.

Player—G—QBRate-CMP/ATT–PCT–YDS—YDS/G
Carr—–41–72.1—-644/1132–56.9–7671–187.1
Joey—–43–66.2—-725/1349–53.7–7348–170.9

Player–Yd/ATT–TD/INT
Carr—-6.8——31/40
Joey—-5.4——44/46

Andre Johnson-What Might Have Been?

Andre Johnson has become a remarkable receiver in a short time. This USA Today graphic compares the top 5 all-time receivers at the same stage of their careers. This graphic reveals a lot about the decision to select Charles Rogers over Andre Johnson:

Through each players 1st 29 games:
Player——-Years—–Rec—-YDs—-TDS
A. Johnson-2003-4—-137—-2,028–9
J. Rice——1985-6—-123—-2,294–17
Cris Carter-1987-8—-64—–1,140–10
TimBrown–1988-90—56—–900—-5
AndreReed-1985-6—-90—–1,196–11
ArtMonk—-1980-1—-104—-1,433–8
C. Rogers–2003-4—-22—–243—–3

I know some people crow about the fact that Rogers has been injured. Irregardless, Johnson’s performance speaks for itself.

Harrington Stats; some are particularly eye-opening.

Harrington Career Passing
Season-G–QB Rate—CMP–ATT—PCT—YDS–YD/G-YD/ATT–TD/INT
2002–14—59.9——–215–429—-50.1–2294–163.9-5.3—–12/16
2003–16—63.9——–309–554—-55.8–2880–180.0-5.2—–17/22
2004–13—77.2——–201–366—-54.9–2174–167.2-5.9—–15/8

Career by Half
1st Half-42-71.0——-367—655—-56.0–3772–N/A–5.8—–24/22
2nd Half-40-61.7——-358–694—51.6–3576–N/A—5.2—–20/24

2 MIN Left 38-63.4——108–209—51.7–1155–N/A—5.5—–7/8
in Half
When:
Ahead—–21-67.9——149—264—-56.4–1531–N/A—5.8——7/9
Tied——-36-65.0——136—-257—-52.9–1238–N/A—4.8——9/8
Behind—-38-66.1——440—-828—-53.1–4579–N/A—5.5——28/29
Conditions:
Grass—-13–54.4——183—-387—–47.3–1779–136.8–4.6—–9/13
Cold——2—54.1——25—–58——43.1—244—122.0–4.2—–1/1
Precip—-2—51.7——52—–103—–50.5—526—263.0–5.1—–2/5
Windy—-6—46.6——86—–199—-43.2—-846—141.0–4.3—–2/6
Indoors–25–69.1——438—778—–56.3—4387–175.5–5.6—-27/28
Month
Sept—–11—67.9—–177—-337—–52.5—1883–171.2—5.6—15/13
Oct——-10–73.9—–173—-317—–57.5—-1849-184.9—6.1—11/10
Nov——14—57.6—-260—-498—–52.2—-2561–182.9—5.1—11/20
Dec——8—-72.8—–115—-213—–54.0—-1055–131.9—5.0—7/3

All Joey, All the Time (92.1/92.7 WQTX FM interviews)

Jim Brandstatter, color commentator for the Detroit Lions, was a guest this morning on the Landau & Chase show this morning. Invariably, as you would expect, the discussion mostly featured talk about the performance of “Champagne” Joey Harrington:

Brandstatter told the hosts that he wondered if Joey was struggling with his confidence. He thinks that Harrington is “gripping the ball too tight” and being too inconsistent. He stated that early on, the coaches seemd to think that if they could consistently establish the run that it would open all kinds of opportunities in the passing game. The Hosts asked Brandstatter who he thought Mariucci should start this Sunday and for the remainder of the season. He believes they should continue to play Harrington, if they do decide to make a change the team could be “playing with fire”. He said that even if McMahon could give them a sort of lift, that the last thing this team needs is a quarterback controversy. Brandstatter also thinks Harrington gives the Lions a better chance to win even if McMahon provides an interesting option. The hosts then questioned him about the play of Kevin Jones. Brandstatter said that Jones has become more patient, he’s letting the blocks develop and exploding through the hole instead of trying to bounce out to the outside and beat the defense to the edge. He also said that is has become obvious that the coaching staff is finally willing to commit to the running game, at least more so than earlier in the season. Brandstatter said that on Sunday, in Lambeau, the receivers should have been excited their were some instances where they were being covered man-to-man and they didn’t make the most of those opportunities. Brandstatter also said they need to “come down” with the ball more often when they are open, “not to exonerate Joey”. Brandstatter also stated that the receivers and QB have to work hard to help each other out. No QB throws every pass perfectly, if the receivers don’t make plays the QB will start “pressing”. The hosts asked Brandstatter when he thought things should begin to change in this rebuilding process? Brandstatter said if things don’t start to turn around next year that people are going to become real impatient. If the Lions are not playoff contenders next year the organization will have to start questioning the direction of the process. Brandstatter also stated that he believed their defense was really hurt by the loss of Boss Bailey for the season. With Bailey’s skills and abilities he is a “difference maker”. He believed that it hurt early on in the season for the Lions to have to depend on the play of Alex Lewis and Teddy Lehman, even though each player has improved dramatically in the process.

Later in the morning, Fred Heuman had the Lions play by play voice, Mark Champion, guesting to discuss many of the same topics:

Heuman stated that initially he was very excited about the draft of Harrington. He qualifies that by saying that each time he sees Harrington play, he likes him less and less as a player. He said also that Rob Rubick mentioned yesterday that receivers are partly resposible for Joey’s slump he wanted to know Champion’s feelings on Harrington. Champion responded by stating that he is not sure “of the spark Harrington provides in the huddle.” Champion also mentioned he wondered about Harrington’s mechanics mentioning that even in practice Joey has a tendency to throw behind his receivers. He thinks that receivers are beginning to get frustrated and posssibly losing their concentration. He says the whole thing is becoming increasingly perplexing to Mariucci, because they have lately established one of the best running games in the league (at least in the first half of games, wink) and yet are so unsuccessful on offense. Champion also mentioned that if the Lions believe they are going to decide to keep Mike McMahon next season that maybe now is the time to go to him as the starting QB. If they are not going to keep McMahon, all they will be doing is providing him with the opportunity to audition for another team. He said that it might be necessary to make the move just to shut Harrington down for the year so that he can let go of any stress or frustration he may be suffering from. One point Champion stressed about the play of Harrington was that overall, his stats aren’t that bad. He just questions Harrington’s ability to make plays when plays need to be made (i.e the red zone, third downs) Champion said that he thinks that may be a teamwide issue. He emphasized the importance of Keith Smith’s dropped interception that would have almost surely been a touchdown and momentum defining play in the game. He also said that sometimes when QB’s are out of sync, it really affects the receivers. He feels that dissension is beginning to emerge in the locker room over Harrington’s play. In particular as an example, he mentions the reaction of an unnamed receiver to Harrington Sunday even though he refused to mention specifics. Champion also stated that the Lions have sorely missed Charles Rogers and that he believed he and Harrington had developed a special rapport.

My favorite comment from the last 24 hours in regards to Harrington came on Steve Szaban’s Fox Sports show. He had a guest, NFL insider from USA Today, Larry Weissman. They were taking calls from callers in regards to players, teams, etc. A caller from Detroit asked Weissman about Harrington. Weissman, said that all season he had come to Harrington’s defense but now is starting to give up on him. He said that Harrington “plays like a guy wearing paper trousers.” I don’t really know what that meant but it was sure funny!