Detroit Lions Weblog

First Pre-Season Game, Are Miami the Lions South?

Friday night’s pre-season game against the Denver Broncos was surprisingly well-played and welcomingly encouraging. The Lions were not spectacular, they were aided by several Denver turnovers, but they were very opportunistic and showed some backbone by not allowing Denver to score in the red zone a number of times throughout the game.

Ernie Sims was active all over the field and quickly made his presence known on both defense and special teams. Shaun Bodiford also made some impressive catches and did a good job on special teams. Dan Orlowsky increased his stock, he looked impressive and seemed to have command of the offense. Orlowsky is providing very strong competition with Josh McCown that should benefit the team tremendously in the event of an injury to Jon Kitna.

Charles Rogers continues to be an enigma. He committed a penalty on offense (illegal motion), and looked visibly slow and unenthusiastic, almost lethargic, while he saw very limited action in the game.

What is it with the Dolphins? They sign Andre Goodman, trade for Joey Harrington, and now sign “Big Daddy” Dan Wilkinson. What’s next, trading for Artose Pinner to backup Ronnie Brown?

First Pre-Season Game Vs. Denver

I have the good fortune of having tickets (Thanks Whitey!) to attend tonight’s pre-season game between the Lion’s and Denver Bronco’s. I am very excited about the prospects of viewing the unveiling of the 2006 Detroit Lions.

Obviously, it is quite early in the season and the football team that will take the field this evening will be a very different one from the one that begins the season. That being said, this team should immediately have a different intangible feel about them. The impact of the new coaching staff’s early impressions upon the players should be visible. If expectations hold true, this team should be more disciplined, physical, and hopefully, talented than recent ones.

It is likely that the starting offense will play the entire first quarter. With injuries to Rex Tucker and Damien Woody, the team will not feature a full unit of starting offensive linemen. The first team will probably run a more “vanilla” version of the complete offensive game plan. Still, one would hope, that the new offensive system will look sharp and the new QB’s will have a visible command of the offense.

The defense will be somewhat injury depleted, too. They will be missing several defensive linemen and linebackers. Hopefully, they will be noticeably more aggressive and surer in their tackling abilities (even with the absence of several key contributors). I also am looking forward to seeing if the Lion’s pass rush from the edge of the defense will immediately supply more consistent pressure than it has in other recent seasons.

Pre-season games hold little glamor and can be quite ugly. The first one probably is the most prone to struggles, mistakes, etc. With that factored, I am still anxious to see what Lion’s team may emerge for it’s fans to see this evening.

Shaun Bodiford, Remember that Name

In yesterday’s entry, I mentioned a young, undrafted Free Agent Wide Receiver named Shaun Boddiford. His name is actually spelled Shaun Bodiford, and he is providing Lion fans with an inspiring back story to this year’s training camp, if you read George Sipple’s article in today’s Detroit Free Press.

Bodiford, who has impressed the Lion’s in his brief tenure with the team, is the reason many of us are drawn to professional sports. He has overcome many obstacles, albeit different ones, in his life which many of us may be able to relate to in our own lives. He is fully seizing his opportunities that he has been given and not squandering them. In today’s professional sports world, it is abundantly obvious that many athletes don’t realize the wonderful and brief chance that they are being given. Bodiford, whether he makes the team or not, is a fine example of someone who really understands that his future is in his own hands.

While Frank Davis, Mike Furrey, Scottie Vines, and Shaun Bodiford remind us why we are fans of professional sports, the sports world itself is entering a brave new world. The proliferation of performance enhancing drugs, the continued big business style aggrandizement of pro sports, and the unabated off-field personal struggles of many professional athletes all serve as a means of questioning the credibility and worth of the entire professional sports enterprise.

The NFL’s new commisioner, Roger Goodell, will have to address this complicated brave new world, the milieu of the NFL, and find a way to guide the greatest professional sports league in the world through this arduous terrain. Players like Bodiford, who have proven they have the stamina and fortitude to face many challenges, may serve as a fine model for Mr. Goodell to draw from.

Rookie F/A WR Boddiford and WR Martinez Dart up the Depth Chart, Mike Williams and Charles Rogers Plummet, CFL and Arena Leagues Looming?

Today’s report in the Detroit newspapers in regards to the Lion’s depth chart for it’s Wide Receivers should come as no surprise to Lion’s fans, at least in the increasingly puzzling ability for Lions wideouts Mike Williams and Charles Rogers to falter before any expectations.

While Mike Williams and Charles Rogers embark upon their R. Jay Soward-like downward career spirals, unknown commodities like Shaun Boddiford and Glenn Martinez have entered the conversation as players who, against all odds, could make the team’s final roster. It appears that Roy Williams and Corey Bradford will serve as first team receivers until further notice.

Williams and Rogers, highly-paid former first rounders, had better realize that the jeopardy their careers are currently in. Unless playing in an indoor 7-on-7 league or the CFL suits their future desires, their time in the NFL may be growing short. The Lions have had some spectacular flame-outs from their first round draft selections throughout the years, but Rogers and Williams may prove to be the most boldly luminescent. If I were a betting man, which I am not, I would lay my stake behind players like Boddiford, Martinez and Vines to emerge from this training camp on the team’s roster. The team can no longer afford to carry any dead weight, no matter the cost.

Damien Woody Breaks His Hand, First Pre-Season Game Friday Night

Lion’s Guard Damien Woody has recently suffered a broken hand and will likely miss 2 weeks of camp. Woody, a former All-Pro, is an integral member of the Lion’s offensive line. With Rex Tucker already injured, players like Barry Stokes and Kelly Butler will be thrust into an immediate opportunity to prove their future worth to the organization.

The Pre-Season begins Friday for the Lions. They will face the Denver Broncos at Ford Field in what promises to be a highly-charged atmosphere. The team’s unveiling of new offensive and defensive schemes, as well as an entirely new coaching staff whose decisions will be viewed publicly for the first time that night. The Lion’s will feature new starting QB Jon Kitna on display, along with highly-touted rookies like LB Ernie Sims and DB Daniel Bullocks. I expect a renewal of the latent perpetual optimism (which is subsequently married to an underlying sense of impending disater and doom) which comes with the onset of each new season for Lion’s fans. This optimism can be easily stirred in long-suffering fans, especially if rewarded with marginally decent to very good pre-season performances from the team. Lion’s fans are so hungry for quality football that any signs of an emergence from their losing doldrums could easily re-kindle a spark of excitement around the team.

It is also apparent, that under the right circumstances, that the Lion’s could very well contend in the relatively weak NFC North. Personally, I’ll accept mediocrity as a bridge to better things, but it is not beyond the realm of comprehension that the Lions could meaningful games near the end of the season.

“Killer” Kowalski’s Training Camp Notes

MLive.Com’s Tom “Killer” Kowalski’s reporting is an excellent resource of info for all things Lions. Some of his most recent entries to his blog provide intriguing information about Lion’s personnel matters at training camp.

First off, it is very good news to read that Rex Tucker isn’t seriously injured. Tucker has an extensive injury history and the Lion’s hope that he can stay healthy enough to provide a steady veteran upgrade at Right Tackle. With Kelly Butler’s previous starting experience, he could easily slide back into a starting spot, yet, you hope that the reason for his gaining a starting role would come from a significant improvement in his play and not due to injury.

The news that TE Casey FitzSimmons has been playing mostly with the first team is a little surprising. FitzSimmons, who looks like he could be a quality player with his skill set, has never quite put his game together for any consistent amount of time. Hopefully, with his abilities and a new offense, he will find an opportunity to really stand out.

It is encouraging to here that Stanley Wilson, Jr. has emerged as a backup to Fernando Bryant. Matt Millen has received some criticism for selecting Wilson, Jr. , a talented project, in the 3rd round of ‘05 since he contributed so little during his inaugural season. Wilson, Jr. has the coveted size of a prototypical zone defense corner so hopefully he has found the new defense as an adequate fit to his abilities.

Another defensive back, rookie Dee McCann, seems to have lifted some eyebrows early in his career, even if he won’t likely contribute immediately. I have seen numerous references to McCann’s instinctive nose for the ball. Hopefully, he can build upon that ability and provide solid depth to the Lion’s secondary.

Sims Signs, Boss is Back, Rogers and Cody Already Injured

It is awesome to hear about the kind of impression that Ernie Sims is already making in training camp, so quickly after signing his contract. I have a very strong feeling that Sims will soon become a fan favorite with his relentless and total lack of abandon on the football field. Kudos to Tom Lewand for getting Sims into camp early so that he start preparation for the season and hopefully, become a starter and solid contributor.

It is also encouraging news to hear that Boss Bailey is back in camp and healthy. Bailey, who is being shifted to the middle (I inaccurately reported he would be on the strongside), appears to be very excited about facing the challenge of a new position. With all of Bailey’s ability, if he can stay healthy, I think Henderson could groom him into a player along the lines of Jonathan Vilma from the Jets. It is very important for Bailey to finally get onto the field.

It is alarming to hear that Shaun Cody (knee sprain) and Shaun “Big Baby” Rogers (shoulder) have gone down to injury. Luckily, neither injury appears serious. That being said, without Cody or Rogers in the line rotation, the Lions would be facing a severe drop-off to DT’s Marcus Bell, Tyoka Jackson and DE’s Cory Redding and Jared DeVries would likely have to slide over, too. As much as the offseason can generate fretting and consternation (player’s inability to keep themselves from getting arrested, failing drug tests, vehicle accidents, etc.) , it has to really cause some severe indigestion to see one of your better players drop into a heap, like a pile of dirty clothes in the back corner of a closet. Poor Cleveland, the loss of C LeCharles Bentley will severely hinder their ability to improve significantly this season. A similar type of injury could be ill-afforded by the Lions, either.