Detroit Lions Weblog

Jim Schwartz Has His “Moment” As Lions Head Coach As Lions Get Pole Axed By the Mediocre Ravens

Sometimes, even the Lions’ awfulness can surprise you. Entering today’s game, I fully believed that the Lions would likely get embarassed, I just didn’t realize that my prediction (31-7) would wind up being too conservative. A 48-3 loss to the Ravens, where the Lions defense allowed the Ravens to generate 548 total yards, and the Lions offense was so impotent that the team didn’t even bother to throw (or seemingly consider throwing) Drew Stanton out there to the wolves, as the game continued to drift away.

Raise the Bar? Pound the Rock, No? Uhm, It's Correctable? This One Might Not Be In the Coaches Manual.

The most unexpected fact about today’s was that the Lions defense could be so bad, given the fact that the Ravens offense is just okay and not dominant. The Lions tackling, especially when RB Ray Rice carried the ball, was deplorable. They made Ray Rice look like the second coming of Gale Sayers, as he was most often seen streaking into the Lions secondary, nearly untouched.

Ray Rice Would Like for the Lions to Become Division Foes

Jim Schwartz twice showed the frayed signs of a rookie head coach becoming overwhelmed by the chaos and disorder that his charges had exhibited. Schwartz actually called a time out with the defense on the field, during the 3rd quarter, in hopes of motivating the team to dig it’s heels into the ground, and stop the Ravens from continuing their drive. The Ravens scored a touchdown not much later.

Schwartz began his press conference making it clear that he was unhappy:

“There’s not anybody going live with this, are there? You might want to have a delay if you’re going live.”

Schwartz didn’t use any profanity, but was obviously frustrated by his team’s play.

“It’s not us. It’s not going to be us. There’s going to be some accountability for this,” he said. “I thought the team was ready to play. Obviously, I was way off the mark right there.”

Schwartz also mentioned several times that the Lions would not practice for the next two days and that he and his coaching staff would view the game tape and that there would be accountability addressed on Wednesday.

To view the entire bitter and angry post game press conference, click here

Daunte Culpepper made it abundantly clear that the Lions need to consider adding one, and maybe two back-up Qb’s for Matthew Stafford this off-season, if not sooner. Culpepper is awful, and his days in the NFL are clearly drawing to their close.

Today’s game was not the kind of homecoming that Schwartz could have wished for. Schwartz is nearing a crucial crossroads as a Lions coach. In his first season, it is already beginning to feel like every other Lions season that has ever went down in flames. If Schwartz is truly going to make a difference for this organization, now is the time when things had better not get away from him.

I Could Have Went To A Maiden Show, Bro!

Facing Arizona at home next Sunday will not be any easier. Kurt Warner could throw for 500 yards, if the Lions defense plays as ineptly as it did today. Lions fans, at least the few that are left standing at this point, will be left inconsolable.

Why Wasn't I Born a Soccer Fan?

One thing that will be interesting to watch this week, after Jim Schwartz’s press conference, is whether he will stick to his statements about holding players accountable? With three games left, it would not be surprising to see a few players who no longer fit into their future plans being shown the door. Each member of the Lions should be made to wear this:

The Ravens Cashed in Many Lions Player's Coupons Today

Continuing the Ndamukong Suh Lovefest

The Black Heart Gold Pants blog (dedicated to the Iowa Hawkeyes), published an incredible statistical comparison that bears no explanations after examination:

The following season stats for defensive lines, submitted for your examination.

Line #1
98 Tkl, 23.5 TFL, 9.5 Sk, 20 QBH, 5 PBU, 0 Int, 1 FF, 3 Blk

Line #2
112 Tkl, 33 TFL, 14 Sk, 48 QBH, 5 PBU, 0 Int, 1 FF, 0 Blk

Line #3
116 Tkl, 25.5 TFL, 15.5 Sk, 10 QBH, 7 PBU, 0 Int, 2 FF, 0 Blk

Line #4
82 Tkl, 23 TFL, 12 Sk, 24 QBH, 10 PBU, 1 Int, 1 FF, 3 Blk

key: TKL=tackle, TFL=Tackles for Loss, QBH=Quarterback Hurries, PBU=Passes Broken Up, INT=interceptions, FF=forced fumble, and Blk=blocked kicks

Line #1 = Alabama.

Line #2 = Florida.

Line #3 = Texas.

Line #4 = Ndamukong Suh. By himself.

If this guy doesn’t win the Heisman tomorrow, it’s an absolute travesty. That is all.

As we all know, the Heisman went to Alabama’s Mark Ingram, in spite of Suh being, by far, demonstrably the best college football player this season.

Ndamukong Suh had 24 fewer tackles than the entire Texas defensive line, 10 tackles for loss fewer than the entire Florida defensive line, 3.5 sacks fewer than the entire Texas defensive line, 24 fewer Qb hurries than the entire Florida defensive line, three more passes broken up than the entire Texas defensive line, one more interception than all three team’s defensive lines, one less forced fumble than the entire Texas defensive line, and tied Alabama’s entire defensive line with three blocked kicks! Folks, these are among the best defensive lines on the best teams in all of college football.

There was a SUH-rfeit amount of evidence for Suh's Heisman Candidacy

I have no qualms with the Ingram selection, but these stat comparisons blow me away, completely. It is not like Suh’s stats are inflated by a preponderance of weak competition or an inordinate amount of luck, as far as I am concerned.

During Matt Millen’s reign of ineptitude, there was only one player whose performance measureably exceeded expectations, warts and all. That player was DT Shaun Rogers. It is not unimaginable that Ndamukong Suh could far exceed the performance of Rogers as a pro, even if Rogers still possesses considerable talent.

Rogers Destroyed the Broncos, Could Suh Destroy the LEAGUE?

There will be a lot of very good players available in the April 2010 draft, but there will be few players who possess the same upside, measureables, and performance as Suh, let alone, in any draft. The Lions should hope that something as fortuitous as Suh’s eventual selection would befall their franchise moving forward.

Alex Karras Belongs in the Hall of Fame!

These Lions greats would clearly support the selection of Suh, even if he could potentially usurp their status among the team’s all-time greats.

An All-Time Great Lion, Doug English

Pro Football Weekly Discusses Former Lion Jack Christiansen

One fact that many Lions fans cling about the team is that it was once a successful and healthy franchise in the 1950’s, even if many of the people who hold that time dear aren’t even old enough to have actually seen those teams play. At any rate, the lore of the Lions past resonates with many fans.

Lions Hall of Famer Jack Christiansen

Pro Football Weekly recently did a feature on Lions Hall of Fame DB and return specialist, who had an analagous impact on the fifties game with his game-breaking, playmaking ability as players like Devin Hester, Percy Harvin and company are having on today’s game.

The House Where Lions Roared

Mike Beacom had this to say about Christiansen:

Few return specialists in the history of the game of football have performed well as position players. The game has come to accept this. Chicago’s Devin Hester has worked hard to break this rule, but since his offensive workload has increased his productivity in the return game has sharply declined.

Hester was a defensive back in college, and the Bears are trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, with the added bonus of a struggling Qb that the team is heavily vested in. Hester’s return game has suffered since, like Beacom said.

Detroit Lions great Jack Christiansen is a true exception to the rule. One of the game’s deadliest return men, Christiansen returned eight punts for touchdowns during his eight-year career. Only two other men — Rick Upchurch and Devin Hester — have matched his record for most punt returns for a score in a single season (four), something Christiansen did as a rookie in 1951. That year he took two punts back in an October contest against the Los Angeles Rams (the second proved to be the game-winner) and he took two back on Thanksgiving Day in a 52-35 win over the Packers. And as difficult as it is to believe, Christiansen’s second season may have been better; he averaged 21.5 yards per punt return that season.

Teammate Jim David once stated that opponents started to re-think the punting game due to Detroit’s difference maker. “All I know is that, by the time I came into the league, the other teams had gone to the spread punt formation in order to contain Chris.”

I attended a game at Ford Field a few years ago against the Bears, that the Lions miraculously won, when Hester was just breaking onto the scene. As a Lions fan, I was still left breathless each time Hester touched the ball, as the Lions struggled and failed to contain him. You can only imagine coaches in the 50’s, where the game was a lot less wide open, being determined not to allow a returner to defeat them, and pulling their hair out if the returner had any success whatsoever.

Christiansen was both the vocal leader and the guy others could follow by example. Not particularly big, even for his era, Christiansen’s best asset was his nose for the football; picking off passes came as easily as returning punts. In 1953, he led the league with 12 interceptions and 238 return yards. Only one man (Oakland’s Lester Hayes) has since recorded more than a dozen interceptions in a single season. Christiansen had eight interceptions in both 1954 and ‘56, and in 1957 he led the league for a second time in the category by notching 10.

The safety logged 46 interceptions in just 89 games. His career average of .517 interceptions per game ranks as one of the highest per-game totals in league history (as a comparison, active career interception leader Darren Sharper’s average is .320 per game).

Of course, this meant that teams needed to know where Christiansen was at all times. Said Cleveland’s All-Pro split end Mac Speedie in a 1984 article, “We had a standard rule when we played Detroit. ‘Don’t throw in his area and don’t punt to him.’ “

Those Were the Days

In some ways, the Lions are still desperate for a player of Christiansen’s caliber. The Lions return game, once an organizational strength (Mel Gray, Desmond Howard, Eddie Drummond, etc.) has languished during recent seasons and most Lions fans are painfully aware of the team’s struggles in it’s secondary. To combine hall of fame abilities in two aspects of the game, defense and special teams, does make Jack Christiansen a particularly rare brand of ballplayer. In an era when teams want “multidimensional”-players, Christiansen is an archetype for what teams are hoping to find in their athletic players now.

Gunther Cunningham On The Lions Defense, ESPN Blogger on Lions Drafting Suh (Conjecture)

The Lions defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham effusively praised the performance of his defense in last week’s game against the Bengals in a recent press conference. He believes that the team has come along ways towards understanding and executing the concepts of the team’s new defensive scheme:

“We got obliterated early in the year, and it was because nobody knew what they were doing,” the Lions’ defensive coordinator said. “They gave you the (impression) they did, but you could see they were struggling to get the job done and play the right way.

In practice last Thursday, I saw a clear light of what could be, and Saturday night … I said, ‘If you play like you practiced on Thursday and Friday, we’re going to do OK.’ And they did.”

Cunningham does a nice job of trying to soften the weak early season performance of the Lions defense:

“I think everything got better in the Cincinnati game,” Cunningham said. “That’s one thing we’ve been stressing, to improve every day no matter what happens. There was a big jump we made with the mental approach to that game and the whole group of players that were out there.”

Gott In Himmel!!

Cunnigham did concede that his safeties have struggled with the most basic of cover-2 zone coverage concepts, which is preventing receivers from going deeper than they are, and getting behind them:

The safety was Marvin White, who let Ochocinco slip past him and catch that 36-yarder. White did the same thing on Thanksgiving, allowing Packers receiver Donald Driver to catch a 68-yard bomb that set up a touchdown.

“One of the rules of thumb in the secondary is, you leave the quarterback with your eyes,” Cunningham said. “If you feel a player pressure you up the field, do you look at the ball or the receiver? Well, if the receiver’s got me beat, I look at the receiver and run with him and then make the play as he goes up. He’s done that twice now, once a couple of weeks ago and once in this game.”

ESPN NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert wrote an interesting article which considered whether the Lions could possibly select Nebraska DT Ndamukong Suh in April. He realizes that it is incredibly early to be definite, but suggests that their is a possibility that the Lions could end up with Suh, especially if one or two teams who draft before them decides to a select a QB based on need:

Kiper:”It’ll be hard to drop Suh. His tape is stunningly strong evidence. That said, many players will rise and fall as the senior all-star games — that’ll be the first chance for many pro scouts to see guys like Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow under center — bowl season, the combine, and pro days take place. Again, this isn’t yet about draft position. That changes everything, because of need. This is a raw ranking of the top NFL prospects, with juniors not in the mix unless they are in the top 15 or 20.”

Indeed, at this early date, the best the Lions can hope is that the teams above want to draft a franchise quarterback. That would elevate at least one player — McCoy, Tebow, Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen, Washington’s Jake Locker or Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford — ahead of Suh.

You might blanch at the thought that one of those quarterbacks could be a No. 1 or No. 2 overall pick. But when it comes to quarterbacks, normal draft rules and practices are cast aside.

Seifert breaks down the teams who might and might not consider selecting Suh, if they draft ahead of the Lions. Seifert provided the Lions best case scenario:

This might be the best December scenario for the Lions to draft Suh: Getting the No. 2 overall pick behind St. Louis. The Rams could certainly use Suh, but Marc Bulger’s injury problems and their own home attendance woes might motivate them to consider a quarterback at No. 1 overall.

I am going to use my own analysis, assuming that the Lions will get one more win, in their remaining four games (I actually believe that they will lose out, and go winless in their remaining four games but for the sake of comparison I am saying that they will win one more). The four teams who are most likely going to remain in the top four draft slots are: 1) Cleveland Browns 2) St. Louis Rams 3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4) The Lions. None of the four teams are particularly exhibiting signs of life, however, they each have games remaining that they could potentially win.

Week 14: Jets Vs. Buccaneers: The Bucs are home against Jets backup Kellen Clemens. Is this a winnable game for Tampa Bay, which could help the Lions significantly? The Bucs may have two remaining winnable games, by the way.

Week 15: Browns at Kansas City: Both teams are awful, you just don’t know when two poor teams are matched-up. Bad teams usually lose on the road, though.

Week 17: Here is where it gets fun. This could be billed as a draft sweepstakes for Suh. Here are the matchups:

Bears at Lions: Improbable, but the Bears are really, really bad and on the verge of disarray in both coaching and personnel.

Jacksonville at Browns: The Jags should be called “Jacksonville and Hyde” since they are one of the most inconsistent teams in the league.

Atlanta at Bucs: The Falcons have almost completely disintegrated down the stretch. Their faint playoff hopes could be a distant memory upon arrival in Tampa.

Niners at Rams: The Niners are similar to Jacksonville. Week-to-week, you are never really sure how well they will play. Their even more remote playoff chances should be finished off by this point.

Obviously, these remaining games will dictate the odds the Lions have for being able to select Suh. If I were going to project, this is what I believe will be the final draft standings and who I believe they will select:

1. St. Louis Rams 1-15: Jake Locker
2. Cleveland Browns 2-14: Jimmy Clausen
3. Detroit Lions 3-13: Ndamukong Suh
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 3-13: Gerald McCoy

ein Kerl wie ein Kleiderschrank!

So this little execrise in wish fulfillment, may or may not actually play out, but it sure is fun to consider!

Can the Patron Saint of Lost Causes Aid the Lions in their Pursuit of Suh?

The Return Of Ernie Sims Imminent?

The Lions have major personnel needs throughout their entire roster. In comparison, their linebackers corps is replete with talent, especially if they are able to re-sign veteran MLB Larry Foote. Julian Peterson remains under contract for a couple of more years, and it will be interesting to see in an “un-capped”-era how the Lions will treat large contracts, since there will likely be fewer free agents available. Peterson has become increasingly effective, as the season has moved forward.

The biggest question mark there is, as the off-season approaches, what will the Lions do about their undersized, former first round draft pick Ernie Sims? Sims has been injured for a good portion of this season, and it remains to see if he will be “Wally Pipped” by rookie DeAndre Levy, who has been effective in Sims’ place.

There have been rumblings that the Lions would have attempted to trade Sims at the NFL trade deadline, had he not been injured. The Lions new front office selected Levy, and Sims came with the organizations Millen “leftovers”, even if Mayhew was likely involved in the selection of a fellow former Seminole in Sims. The Lions also have young players like Zach Follett and Jordan Dizon who could both eventually press for playing time, too.

In my opinion, the Lions should embrace the surprising depth and versatility that they could potentially field by retaining Sims. Four starting linebackers, with a bolstered defensive line (after the selection of Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy in April) could give the Lions a much more potent front seven next season. Foote and Peterson aren’t getting any younger, Levy and Sims could allow the Lions to have the insurance policy necessary to compensate for either of them breaking down in the future.

Will the 3rd or 4th round draft pick that they would receive from a “Tampa-2″ team in exchange for Sims prove all that beneficial next April? Especially, with fewer descendants of Tony Dungy currently utilizing that defense, as many of those coaches in his coaching tree wash out and get replaced (is Lovie Smith next?)

Why Should I Leave the Motor City?

Obviously, if a team makes the right offer, it would be hard for the Lions to pass up. They have so many needs that they have to address, they would strongly consider it. Sims’ return may actually bolster his off-season stock, assuming that he is healthy and effective, and finds his way into the defensive playing group.

Here are Jim Schwartz’s thoughts:

“Ernie has made really good progress. He still wasn’t 100 percent during the weekend, but he’s trending up,” Schwartz said.

Rookie DeAndre Levy has been starting in place of Sims and has 23 tackles over his last three games. Levy is fourth among rookies with 63 tackles this season.

When Sims has been healthy enough to start this season, he’s started at one of the outside linebacker spots. It’ll be interesting to see if Levy has done enough over the course of the last three weeks to supplant Sims as the starter.

“We’ll see where we get as this week goes, what the field conditions are and the weather and things like that,” Schwartz said. “All that stuff will probably play in.”

This remain one of the few intriguing personnel situations in the lead up to April’s draft, and potentially the only one where they could deal from out of a rare position of strength (at least for this organization!).

Who Says that My Season Has Gone to the Dogs?

Week 14 Preview: Lions Vs. Ravens, Will The 18-Game Road Losing Streak End?

The Lions are deeply entrenched in an awful 18-game losing streak and face a reeling, yet tough opponent in the Baltimore Ravens. In particular, the Ravens offense has sputtered during recent weeks, and their defense is no longer the difference-making force that it once was. That being said, considering just how bad the Lions defense actually is, I expect that QB Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense will have no problems finding productivity on Sunday.

Joe Flacco Dreams About Throwing Deep Passes Against the Lions

The Lions will also be at a disadvantage on offense, too. Matthew Stafford will mercifully get a one week vacation (at least) to avoid getting beaten up worse, especially with his injured left shoulder still flaring up. The Lions will call upon Daunte Culpepper, who gets the benefit of the Lions actually announcing that he will be Sunday’s starter. Culpepper is hungry to strut his stuff, so that he can prove that he belongs in the NFL beyond this season, likely with a new team.

As I mentioned earlier, the Ravens defense is more middle-of-the-pack than they are dominant at this point. The Ravens will likely have both DE/LB Terrell Suggs and S Ed Reed back, which makes their defense more daunting for the Lions to face than they would have been one week ago. Even though the Ravens defense is no longer dominant, they still only allow their opponents to rush for a meager 97.3 yards/gm. It is safe to expect that the Lions will be operating out of a lot of third-and-long yardage situations against the Ravens Sunday.

The Ravens 3-4 generates a fair amount of pressure (26 Qb sacks) and the Lions don’t really want to test Daunte Culpepper’s mobility and ability to throw on the run, so I expect that the Lions receivers will try to run shorter pass routes and for the Lions to attempt to get the ball out of Culpepper’s hands quickly.

The Ravens CB’s, Dominique Foxworth, Lardarius Webb, and Frank Walker are beatable. The Lions will hope that when the Ravens need to blitz, that they will utilize more man-to-man coverage, rather than zone blitzes, in hopes of matching Calvin Johnson against one of the Ravens CB’s. Johnson will face bracket coverage and draw a large portion of the Ravens secondary’s attention all day, since the Lions other receivers have proven so incompetent through 13 weeks. The Lions need one of their tight ends or other wide receivers to take some of the attention away from Johnson, so that the Ravens rangy and active safeties, Ed Reed and Dawan Landry, will have to wait just a blip longer to react when Culpepper is passing.

Offensively, I expect that the Ravens will be pound the ball with RB’s Ray Rice and Willis McGahee, to set up vertical play action pass routes that the Lions have not proven that they can stop. Between communication breakdowns and breakdowns in fundamentals (i.e. safeties letting receivers get behind them while playing cover-2, among the worst of all football sins) the Lions secondary has been an unmitigated disaster again this season.

The Lions nonexistent pass rush (21 sacks) has also impaired their defense, and the Ravens have only allowed 22 sacks (The Lions have allowed 36 sacks). Lions fans will get their first chance to view what could have been, or Ravens right offensive tackle Michael Oher, whom the Lions passed over to select TE Brandon Pettigrew. Gosder Cherilus better be ready to play one hell of a game, or he will become a center of Lions fans derision, joining Jeff Backus as players that Lions fans would most like to see replaced. Especially with the amount of camera time that Oher is likely to draw, after having his life dramatized in the movie “Blind Side”.

When Will I Be Loved

The Ravens receivers, Derrick Mason, Mark Clayton, Demetrius Williams and Kelley Washington, are far from scary, but the Lions secondary does have a way of turning average players into all-pro’s, and there is no reason to expect any different this week.

If Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense turnover the ball to the Lions, the Lions may be able to remain competitive into the second half. Otherwise, the toothless Lions offense will be mired all day behind their Qb Daunte Culpepper’s considerable struggles. This could be the final proof that the “hay has left the barn” in Culpepper’s once promising NFL career. Ravens 31 Lions 7

OL Maurice Williams Fails Physical, Culpepper Will Start After All

There was a small measure of excitement among some Lions fans when the announcement was made that the Lions had signed the recently released OL Maurice Williams, a former first-round draft pick of the Jaguars and a native Michigander. Williams represented experienced depth, and a potential “buy low” candidate, who could have provided high rewards, if he were healthy and engaged. Unfortunately, the ravages of time have taken their toll on Williams. He failed the Lions team physical, which subsequently lead to the team adding another offensive lineman, from the Browns practice squad, Corey Hilliard.

In some ways, I am glad that the Lions chose Hilliard. The Lions need young, projectible players, who may help them in the future. The Lions have been repeatedly reduced to grabbing veteran, over-the-hill, “stop gap” replacements for their offensive line for years now. It is high time that they find some guys who could potentially develop into contributors and possess at least a moderate amount of upside.

The Lions decided to announce that Matthew Stafford would not start Sunday, because he has not sufficiently recovered from the injury that has hindered him in his last two games. This news is no shock, the Lions should know better than to be too careless with their young Qb. The announcement that Daunte Culpepper would start Sunday is indicative of a few things. First, the Lions must really believe that Drew Stanton’s fledgling career is over. Playing Culpepper after a 2-10 start to the season, when he is likely to leave the team as soon as the season is completed, indicates that the team sees no future for Stanton beyond this season, either.

There comes a time when a former second round draft pick deserves a shot, in my opinion. I don’t expect Stanton to ever develop into a player who can compete with Matthew Stafford, but the pendulum has swung. The Lions 2009 season is a loss. They have inched almost imperceptibly forward, but not far enough that any additional victories this season will mean much, as far as organizational growth goes.

At this point, the Lions need to begin their scouting and evaluatory stages of the season. They need to evaluate which players, if any, will have future value to the franchise. In my opinion, Daunte Culpepper’s value is capped, due to the brevity of his future with the team. On the other hand, Drew Stanton could provide the Lions with a capable backup, and one less player that they need to find to improve their roster during the next “uncapped” off-season.

Matt Millen, Why Me!?!

Matthew Stafford will return soon enough. The Lions on the other hand, need not stand idle. They need to keep trolling for talent, by any means necessary.

Another Reason Why Chad Ochocinco is My Favorite NFL Player

Chad Ochocinco is a master of manipulating the media and tweaking the staid NFL, “No Fun League”-establishment with his creative and fun touchdown celebrations.

Ochocinco, who had a pretty good post-touchdown celebration planned against the Lions last Sunday, with the sombrero and poncho combo that he wore after scoring (and was subsequently fined). If he is actually able to score against the Vikings, and achieve the creme de la creme of TD celebrations as he intimated in a press conference with the Minneapolis media, he will be my favorite NFL player.

Here is Ocho’s blow by blow:

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco outlined his plans for a celebration Sunday at the Metrodome on a conference call with Twin Cities reporters Wednesday morning.

Ochocino had tweeted on Tuesday that when he scored he was going to steal the horn used by the Vikings mascot and use it. “I’m going to steal it from what’s his name? Ragnar?” Ochocinco said. “You better give it to me. If he doesn’t give it to me I’m going to MMA him. Why are laughing? I’m serious. I’m dead serious. You know when I say something I’m serious.”

Ochocinco, who declared he was all about fun until game time, got excited when told Ragnar had a motorcycle. “It’s just going to be a fun game,” he said. Asked if he had a motorcyle license, Ochocinco said, “I don’t. Maybe they can include that in the fine.”

Will Ragnar Elude Ochocinco?

It is refreshing in some ways to see a player, find harmless ways to enjoy himself each and every Sunday. Obviously, the celebrations are self-serving and fuel the continued attention that he receives, but no one can question his ability or desire to be a very good NFL player. I have always hated that Viking horn, and it would not hurt my feelings in the least if he were actually able to get a hold of that ridiculous and annoying horn. Go for it Chad!

Lions Head Coach Schwartz Remains Stubborn About Stafford, But We’ll See if He Actually Plays

The Lions and Matthew Stafford have made it plain that he is their franchise Qb moving forward. Stafford clearly has proven that he is both tough and willful enough to face the challenge of leading the Lions to somewhere near NFL respectability, in the future. As Stafford continues to take beating-after-beating each week, with an injured non-throwing shoulder, there is a rising sentiment among both the fans and media that the Lions should put him on ice, abandoning the current season and banking Stafford for the future.

Fox analyst Brian Billick said: “I question the judgment of him still even being in the game.”

The Lions were trailing by 16 with 3:41 left, facing fourth-and-3 at the Cincinnati 28.

“Everybody’s going to have an opinion,” Schwartz said Monday. “Everybody’s going to have judgment on it. The only opinion that matters is ours and what’s in this organization. I don’t do well with holding a finger up to the wind and seeing which way the wind’s blowing. We’re not going to ask the audience.
“It goes back to what we talked about when we were drafting. Polls aren’t important. Critics aren’t important. It’s what we believe and what matters most to us, and I know the situation. I’m there on the sideline with him during the game. I’m very comfortable in our decision to play him and keep him in that game. … We have a chance to win that game.”

Like A Lion Lead to The Slaughter?

Thus Spake King Pyrrhus. Week after week, the beatdowns that the Lions have subjected Matthew Stafford to have escalated and the cumulative effect has clearly begun to take it’s toll. Hopefully, the organization is undertaking a ruse, which forces the team’s opponents to game plan for both Matthew Stafford and Daunte Culpepper (Oh No, Not Daunte!), since the game plan for each player would be so dramatically different(I am being facetious here).

Tom “Killer” Kowalski is among the many imploring the Lions to protect there most prized commodity, especially against the Ravens:

Schwartz has to do the smart thing and take Stafford out of the equation immediately. While it might be true there is nothing structurally wrong with Stafford’s left shoulder that would affect his throwing motion, it’s crazy to believe Stafford isn’t affected in some fashion by the constant pain.

There’s also the strategic angle. The Lions need to get one quarterback ready for this game and give him most of the snaps in practice during the week. This would be true for any NFL game, but it’s even more vital when he opponent is the Ravens, who bring pressure and blitzes from a wide assortment of formations.

That pressure is yet another reason sitting Stafford this week makes sense. Schwartz said Monday the fact they are playing the Ravens will have nothing to do with his decision.

Kowalski makes an excellent point. Even if the Ravens are no longer the force defensively that they once were, they pose a challenge for a poor Lions offensive line, with the Lions currently possessing no running game to be spoken of (with apologies to Kevin Smith), and a limitlessly talented receiver, who is neutralized by the their complete lack of complementary players who can make teams pay for devoting all of their attention to the aforementioned, limitlessly talented receiver.

In the end, I will be very surprised if Stafford is eventually able to play. I think that he will make every effort to get onto the field, but in the end, the Lions will start Daunte Culpepper, and not Drew Stanton (another public relations disaster for the Lions, wating to happen!) and meekly lose their 19th straight road game to the Ravens this Sunday.

Stafford Has Proved His Point, Let’s See Stanton

The Lions may finally have the QB with the toughness and leadership ability to lead them moving forward. Matthew Stafford has made it clear that is one stubborn, tough-minded, sonofabitch. He has earned our respect, even while his rookie struggles have been less than pretty at times.

At this point, if the Lions are smart, they will put Stafford on ice, even if he can’t damage his shoulder any more than he already has. That being said, having him get rag-dolled by opponents repeatedly, in games that they have little chance of winning, is senseless. He has been spiked off of the turf enough, and proven to everyone that he will get up and keep asking for more. Stafford will not back down.

Any Guesses on Matthew Stafford’s Favorite Non-Football Avocation?
The Lions defense is historically bad. Even if the Lions were to proffer a “perfect” game from it’s offense, which will never happen, their defense makes it highly improbable that the Lions could actually find their way to victory in that hypothetical game. It is time for the Lions to examine whether or not Drew Stanton can remain beyond this season as the team’s top backup and clipboard holder, since Stafford, whether he ever capitalizes on his potential, or not, is the man for the next five seasons, at least.

The Lions need to begin their evaluation process leading into the off-season. This season has been another awful failure, new coach and players be damned. There have been glimmers of hope, but that is a loser’s lament. The Lions need to re-trench and protect their organizations most salient asset, Matthew Stafford. Beyond that, the rest is perfunctory.