Detroit Lions Weblog

Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On!

Wow! You take a day or two off and the walls come caving in. First, last night’s announcement of the four game suspension of DT Shaun Rogers is nearly catastrophic for a defense that appeared to be showing signs of developing some continuity and improved play. Rogers, who has battled sleep apnea and weight-related health issues, claims he purchased an over-the-counter weight managing supplement from a GNC that unfortunately contained a banned substance, according to the NFL. Rogers’ loss combined with the continued recovery from a toe injury by NT Shaun Cody will be very detrimental to the depth of the Lions defensive line rotation. In their absence, Cory Redding will continue to play Defensive Tackle and run-stuffing Marcus Bell will play Nose Tackle. I expect that on passing downs, that Bell will be supplanted by veteran Tyoka Jackson or the versatile Jared DeVries. The Lions will also have to consider adding a defensive tackle to add to their depth. I expect that either of DT’s Cleveland Pinkney or Damian Gregory will be receiving a call from Matt Millen very shortly.

The other bit of unfortunate news is that RB Shawn Bryson was placed on injured reserve yesterday. Bryson, a versatile, effective blocker and pass-catcher, will be missed. The Lions are going to have to look at playing Marcus Pollard or Casey FitzSimmons in more of an H-Back type of role with the loss of Bryson along with the lingering hamstring problems for FB Corey Schlesinger. They may also need to add another Fullback to the roster. The team did add RB Arlen Harris, who played with the team during the pre-season. Harris, who played under Martz in St. Louis, can provide some of the versatility of Bryson but will not be as consistently effective as Bryson has been in the past. The Lions will become much more dependent upon RB’s Kevin Jones and Brian Calhoun to be able to contribute in blitz pickups and will miss the consistent lead blocking of Bryson and Schlesinger.

The Lions were able to bring LB Teddy Lehman off of the PUP list and decided to release veteran WR Scottie Vines after he was activated. I was hoping that Vines may be able to provide additional contributions in the passing game, but the Lions appear content attempting to develop WR’s DeVale Ellis and Shaun Bodiford. Vines exhibited a lot of promise last season but appeared to never be part of the new regimes long range plans.