Detroit Lions Weblog

Lions Sign Safety Dante Wesley, Injuries Loom Large This Week

The Lions have experienced enough issues with their secondary, that they are beginning to tinker with their personnel there, in hopes to improve their fate. The Lions released rookie S Randy Phillips and re-signed S Dante Wesley, who had previously been with the team in camp.

In Wesley, the Lions are gaining more dependability in special teams play, and could also open the door for rookie S/CB Amari Spievey to garner more playing time, if the veteran Wesley ends up mostly a special teams contributor.

In the Mayhew-era, it is a close race to determine which player has been a bigger bust, WR Derrick Williams or S Amari Spievey. Obviously, the perception of these players are premature, but the Lions could clearly use contributions from each of these players.

Oh My, What's On My Hand!?

The Lions have several important players who it remains in question whether they will be able to play or not. Matthew Stafford is out and WR Nate Burleson is not likely to play, either. Hobbled young players LB DeAndre Levy and S Louis Delmas are likely to play.

Jahvid Best, NFL Rookie of the Month

In what likely constitutes the best news of the week for the Lions, the NFL rookie of the month, Jahvid Best, is optimistic about his chances to play Sunday:

“My toe is doing good, I’ve got to take it day by day,” Best said. “I’ll give it a go tomorrow and see how it feels. It’s gotten a lot better, better than I thought it was going to get. It’s looking real good right now.”

The Lions Are Excited That Best Won the NFL Rookie of the Month Award

Even though Best will likely be available, the Lions likely will still have to be able to succeed without him, since he will still be limited. With the injury to Aaron Brown, Kevin Smith is increasingly likely to see his first action ofthe season, even if that remains on a limited basis too.

Here’s Hoping That Louis Delmas Experiences His Own “Lambeau Leap” on Sunday

The Lions need to be as close to full strength as possible to face the Packers, given the fact the Lions are amid a 21-game road losing streak, and haven’t won in Green Bay since 1991.

Should Jim Schwartz Be Held Exempt from Enmity, After His 2-17 Start as Lions Coach?

The Detroit News’ Lynn Henning is one of my favorite Detroit sports writers (mostly for his coverage of the Detroit Tigers). In yesterday’s paper, Henning pre-emptively addresses the growing disdain Lions fans have for embattled Lions head coach Jim Schwartz, after his inauspicious 2-17 beginning to his career.

Despite any disadvantages the Lions organization may have presented to Schwartz in the immediate post-Millen era, one has to wonder, how long can Schwartz be absolved from being held accountable for the teams current poor start. According to
Henning, Schwartz still needs forebearance:

But it would be a mistake of monstrous proportions — then again, in keeping with some past Lions history — to view Schwartz as a failure or to believe anyone of human construct could do any better with the 2010 Lions. Because coaching isn’t the problem with Detroit’s NFL team anymore than coaching was a problem during the 1960s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s or through the first decade of a tawdry timeline.

It still comes down to players. And not until Schwartz and a solid front office assumed stewardship less than two years ago did that fundamental need — player personnel — begin to tip in the Lions’ favor.

I understand Henning’s reasoning, but Lions fans have heard that tune before. The results ultimately speak for themselves. If the Lions road losing streak becomes 22 games after a loss in Green Bay this weekend, where they haven’t won in 19 years (getting outscored 501-258), Schwartz will have been head coach for 11 of those 22 consecutive road losses.

Will Choosing to Play For a Field Goal Be Schwartz’s “Taking the Wind”-Moment in Future Lions Lore?

Henning wants us to believe that Schwartz can coach, and says that it will bear out, if we just remain patient (hey, what are a few more losses after the team has gone 3-40 in it’s last 43 games):

It should continue to move in a northerly direction as long as Schwartz, Martin Mayhew and Shack Harris are in charge of draft day and the free-agent landscape.

And then you’ll see something startling, at least in the context of this week’s flap over a Sunday timeout Schwartz didn’t take:

The new guy can coach, after all.

Which he can.

But he can’t do it until the folks that he and Mayhew and Co. have delivered are joined by other NFL-grade performers, of which the Lions had about six when those gents took control.

Henning says that he believes that Schwartz can coach, but never does anything but proceed to discuss personnel, and the improvements that the Lions have made during Martin Mayhew’s brief tenure as the team’s executive in charge of personnel. Henning states that Schwartz is worthy of a significant amount of credit for the success that Mayhew has enjoyed.

But do not, for a moment, underestimate Schwartz’s role in personnel, and how his influence has helped craft two consecutive strong drafts and some serious progress on the free-agent front.

No one in Allen Park appears to be overly concerned with who gets the credit. But it’s critical to remember that Schwartz knows what personnel he needs to make the most difference, short term and long term, with his team.

Of course, part of the underlying implication is that Mayhew, as a constituent of Matt Millen, could not be talented (or lucky) enough to make astute personnel decisions without Schwartz’s considerable input. Regardless of Schwartz’s supposed personnel acumen, the Lions have got some serious problems, which reflect upon the effectiveness of the team’s coaching staff.

The Lions secondary still experiences too many awful communication breakdowns which lead to “explosion” plays and embarassingly easy TD’s for Lions opponents. This is not a new problem, but the frequency with which this has occurred during the “Schwartzingham” era, in the personnel group which Schwartz was brought to Detroit to immediately upgrade, is damning of his coaching, despite any personnel deficits.

The Lions continued inability to take adantage the incredible skill set of WR Calvin Johnson also speaks negatively of Schwartz and his staff. If the Lions are truly undermanned, they need to find the means to put the ball into their playmakers hands on offense. Obviously some responsibility resides with Johnson, but his lack of productivity (He has 14 catches in three games for 151 yards, which ranks 52nd in the league. He has one touchdown and one reception longer than 20 yards. He had only 67 receptions in 2009) and an overwhelming tendency to disappear during games should not ever be allowed to happen.

Is Schwartz the Lions Very Own Piece of Belichickian Magic?

Henning suggests that some of the league’s best coaches had to struggle before they finally found success in the NFL and seems to believe that the same will eventually happen for Schwartz.

Look at it this way when you consider Schwartz and where he is today.

Jeff Fisher was once a coordinator and Titans fans probably wondered if he could coach. Belichick was a former coordinator who was a mystery when Cleveland hired him as a head coach. Mike Holmgren, Sean Payton, Mike Tomlin, Mike Shanahan, Cowher, Parcells — on and on goes the list of coordinators who became good head coaches once they got players who could compete.

And the Lions, for all their obvious progress in personnel the past 24 months, can’t yet compensate for the fact they were at an ungodly deficit during their winless 2008 season.

All of which is nice, but the truth of the matter is, after a likely exceedingly ugly loss in Green Bay this weekend, Schwartz and the Lions embark upon the most important game of his brief tenure. If the Lions were somehow to lose a home game to the St. Louis Rams, then things could continue to take an even uglier course, as the season unfolds.

Many Lions fans do not have unreasonable expectations. They want the Lions to win most of the “winnable” games, play well on Thanksgiving, and rob a game or two from the game’s elite. If the Lions can’t beat the Rams and look respectable on Thanksgiving Day, then Schwartz’s job should not only come into question, but be placed in jeopardy. This franchise is not equipped to weather many more 2-14 seasons (or have the chance of ending the 0-16 perennially hanging over its collective shoulders.)

The Bubble of Positivity Has Now Officially Burst

Most Lions fans have had the inclination, after the team’s first two games, to view the team’s performance optimistically. There were tangible, yet faint, signs of improvement, which for many Lions fans, was cause for encouragement. After this Sunday’s very ugly loss, I am sure that, for most of those same fans, their collective bubbles of postivity have been burst, as the Lions looked very bad in their loss to a clearly overrated Vikings team.

Could the Lions Accomplish Two 0-16 Seasons in Three Years?

The Lions are at least 85% likely to begin their season 0-4 with another embarassing road loss (their 23rd in a row) to the Super Bowl-contending Green Bay Packers (where they have not won since 1991!). As difficult as it may be to consider, with the continued absence of Matthew Stafford, the one game on the Lions schedule which previously appeared to be a “gimme”, their second home game, against the St. Louis Rams, is no longer so obvious of a victory, as it was earlier perceived.

If the Lions were somehow to begin their season 0-5, where do you find another obvious victory on their remaining schedule? A whole chain of events could play out, beginning with their controversial close loss to the Chicago Bears, where Lions fans are again facing the sad reality of looking at a team who could win two or fewer games during the entire 2010 season. Perish the thought, but could the Lions actually become the first franchise to experience two 0-16 seasons, in three short years? Don’t rule it out.

The Bobby Layne Curse Continues, Beyond 50 Seasons?

In Sunday’s terrible loss, for a brief period, it looked like the Lions could, at least, remain competitive and keep the game close for the duration. Unfortunately, between penalties, turnovers, poor coaching decisions and the defense’s continued allowance of “explosion” plays, the Lions ended up looking clearly outmatched, by game’s end.

With a loss next weekend, Jim Schwartz’s 2-18 record, amazingly, would be the worst of any Lions coach, after their first 20 games.

Bo McMillin: Red Jerseys and 3-17 in His First 20 Games as Lions Coach

After three games, it is becoming clearer that Schwartz’s game and time management suffers from some serious flaws. The Lions have ran ill-conceived short yardage plays each of the last two games in crucial situations, which cost the team momentum and points.

Schwartz’s decision to try to convert a 4th down play, by running a play nearly identical to the one which had been unsucessful in the “jumbo” offensive package, instead of kick a field goal in the Eagles game, was costly.

Schwartz’s decision to have the offense to line up immediately and attempt to run a play, after gaining a first down in the Vikings red zone, and neglecting to use a timeout until three seconds remained, was just plain nonsense. The decision to settle for three points, on the road, in the Metrodome, where they have not won since 1997, was a loser’s gambit.

Schwartz gives the impression of someone who might be able to shape a winning team, but with his poor early performance, and the Lions lack of improvement, particularly on defense, he may not be around long enough to see it through.

Lions Coaches Never Are Truly Prepared for What Awaits Them

Unfortunately for the Lions, a depth and injury-riddled linebacker corps and secondary does not provide much cause for hope, given how undermanned those personnel groups entering the season. The Lions can’t win, if opposing QB’s are going to complete 65% of their passes, boast a high QB rating, and if the defense routinely allows plays of 50 yards or longer (much longer, in the Lions case).

There is no doubt, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Corey Williams, and defensive rookie of the year candidate, Ndamukong Suh are as good as advertised. The defense has even been able to generate takeaways. Aside from that, there is not much else to like about the Lions defense, especially with hoped to be stalwart players LB DeAndre Levy and S Louis Delmas being dogged by injuries.

The Lions need to win in week 5, in order for things to regain a more positive course in the organization, should they lose that game. The bottom could fall out.

Week 3: Lions Vs. Vikings Preview

When considering any Lions/Vikings game, especially while being played in Minneapolis, the fact that is the most prominent (and necessary to remember) is that the Lions have NOT won a game there since 1997. 13 years people…

At any rate, for all intents and purposes, this is the 0-2 Vikings Super Bowl. Brett Favre looks over-the-hill and is already being dogged by an assortment of injuries, which along with an undermanned receiving corps, also due to injury, has made the Vikings appear to be longshots to return to the playoffs.

Does Brett Have Anything Left in the Tank?

Enter the Lions. After resuscitating the careers of several QB’s during recent seasons, the most stinging of which is likely the Joey Harrington Thanksgiving game debacle, Michael Vick came to Detroit and absolutely lit up a weak and disorganized Lions secondary last week.

Here are Brett Favre’s career stats vs. the Lions:
—————–G QBRat Comp Att Pct Yds Y/G Y/A TD Int
vs Detroit 30 89.7 668 1057 63.2 7878 262.6 7.5 51 31

Favre continuing to complete 63% percent of his passes and matching or eclipsing his game average of 262.6 yds/gm should occur, with little or no difficulty. Even with an exciting, and sometimes devastating front four, which hearkens to the “glory days” of the fabled “Silver Rush”, Favre should make receivers like Hank Baskett and Greg Camarillo resemble Pro Bowlers as the Vikings dissect the Lions secondary, nearly at will.

“Bubba” Baker, the Sexiest Man Alive!

The Lions will likely roll the dice by game planning that Favre has lost a crucial step of quickness and a zip of velocity on his passes, and assume that he is hampered enough by his injuries, that they will allow the game to be put upon his aging shoulders. They will load the box, and attempt to limit stalwart Vikings running back Adrian Peterson from pounding them relentlessly into submission.

With the questions surrounding the credibility of the Vikings receiving corps, and a still effective Lions pass rush, the Lions could eventually frustrate Favre just enough with pressure that he will begin making costly errors. Under this scenario, the score will remain close until near the game’s end, giving the Lions (seemingly) a reasonable chance.

OMG, I HATE this guy!

Offensively, the Lions will need for their receivers and tight ends to have a particularly strong game. With the emergence of dynamic Jahvid Best, no team will be unprepared for his set of abilities, when they are playing the Lions. With the presence of the always formidable “Williams Wall”, Best and company are very unlikely to find much room availablefor big gains, anyway.

This is the game that Calvin Johnson needs to become the dynamic force that can break a defense and alter the game, in a crucial road game. Johnson’s disappearing act is growing thin, at least in these quarters, the blame for which resides mutually upon the shoulders of Scott Linehan and Johnson himself.

Megatron, Where Art Thou!?

At any rate, I am fully prepared for the re-awakening of Brett Favre and the Lions suffering yet another painful road loss, their 22nd in a row.

Vikings 31 Lions 20

My Sincerest Apologies

In All Humility…

Since April, I have struggled with computer issues, an overall lack of motivation and a general sense of indifference; after having written this blog for several years. At any rate, I had every intention of covering the Lions, celebrating their highlights and lamenting their lows, as the season approached.

I may be jumping into the water a little late, but my interest in this franchise has been reinvigorated, and never truly diminished, it just seemed temporarily dormant.

Obviously, the Jim Schwartz era, after the injury to Matthew Stafford and with the Lions continued struggles defensively, is reaching a critical stage. If the Lions are truly in the process of becoming respectably viable, even with their back-to-back close, hard fought losses to begin their 2010 season, the Lions need start to winning some games that most of us would expect that they would lose.

Matthew Stafford’s Injury:The Worst Case Scenario

The Lions defensive front four has certainly lived up to their advanced billing, and become both an exciting and disruptive force after two games. The unceasing, overwhelming efforts of Kyle Vanden Bosch, along with sure force of nature that is Lions first round pick Ndamukong Suh, has been a great joy to behold.

Ndamukong Suh Engulfs Michael Vick

That being said, it appears that the Lions defense is still impaired enough that it would appear that, in order to win, their offense will need to score nearly thirty points each week, which remains unlikely.

Jahvid The Jet, Touchdown Machine

Even with the addition of Jahvid Best, who has vastly improved the Lions offensive playmaking, the Lions offense has been inconsistent. From drive to drive, and half to half, the Lions offense can vacillate wildly from appearing competent and potent to sputtering, and appearing completely lacking in continuity.

Calvin Johnson, An Enigma

One player, if the Lions can consistently devise ways to put the ball into his hands, who could make a serious difference, is WR Calvin Johnson. There is no denying the immense gifts and breathtaking grace which Johnson possesses. That being said, he is too easily removed from being a consistent offensive factor and often goes for long stretches of time without the ball in his hands.

Increasingly, to my chagrin, Calvin Johnson appears to be the singularly most overrated player in the NFL. Even if Nate Burleson and Bryant Johnson are debatable as quality second options, other successful number one receivers find the means to be a consistently productive force, despite the attention that they often receive.

Even if the Lions are starting to show the faint outlines of becoming an improved team, there is enough that glaringly needs to be fixed that the Lions coaching staff will likely become increasingly under fire, as the season progresses. How well they meet that challenge, will likely mark the future perception of the Jim Schwartz era. The bottom line is, under Jim Schwartz, the Lions are now 2-16.

They are currently amid a 21-game road losing streak, and since their 6-2 start in 2007 (under Rod Marinelli) they are now an unbelievable 3-40 (33-113 since the Matt Millen era began in 2001). I am sorry to pee in your collective Corn Flakes, Lions fans.