Idle Hands Are the Devil’s Car Keys: An Oppressive Lions Summer

The blazing heat of the summer sun’s rays drill through me; the sweltering blanket of humidity smothers everything. Scorched grass crunches underfoot as I mop sweat off my brow with sweat from my arm. The air is pregnant with steamy moisture while plants lay dead from lack of water. Everywhere, there is radiant heat. Everywhere, there is blinding light.

Everywhere but the blue bonfire.

With a grunt, I drop the handles of the wheelbarrow I rolled here. Shielding my eyes with my hand, I take stock: a decent-sized flame flickers languidly on the ashes of what was recently a towering pillar of fire. A few empty mugs lay empty on the ground, along with party cups and paper plates and somebody’s Lions snapback. The rack of wood is almost bare; one keg is leaking cider.

I sigh. Time to get to work.

As Tom Leyden of WXYZ first reported, Aaron Berry was arrested on suspicion of DUI, amongst other charges. That makes for Detroit Lions arrests this offseason, by far the highest total in the NFL and so now I guess they are officially the New Bengals, a morally bankrupt group of thugs drunkenly rampaging across America, the example set from the team president on down.

Everything I know about the NFL and human behavior tells me this can’t be a systemic thing. The Lions aren’t coaching their players to go out and smoke weed and drive drunk and escape from the cops. The Lions, an organization which had the fewest arrests in the NFL from 2000-2011, didn’t suddenly become a wretched hive of scum and villainy.

Let’s look at the  Vikings’ Love Boat incident. Certain Vikings players had been annually organizing evenings of debauchery on private boats. It culminated in seventeen players flying in women of leisure from around the country and doing all sorts of ridiculous things with them during a booze-soaked rager, in full view of horrified boat staff and crew.

That, clearly, was a team thing. That was a systemic problem. That was a culture of lawlessness and criminality. That, also, was a winning team with a perennial Top Ten offense during their 2005 bye week—which magnifies both the deviousness of the behavior and the total and complete lack of effect it had on their job.

The Lions’ arrests are individual incidents. Mikel Leshoure, with friends in southwest Michigan. Nick Fairley, back home in Alabama. Aaron Berry, after participating in Lesean McCoy's charity softball game. There’s absolutely no connection between any of these player’s bad decisions—except who signs their paychecks.

It's time for some talking points. MGoBlog super-ego discussion mode, engage:

So what, are you saying this is okay?

Absolutely not. These young men have made some awful decisions that have put their own lives at risk in a metaphorical way, and others’ lives at risk in a literal way. It has to stop, and in fact it had to stop several incidents ago. It is UNACCEPTABLE in the grand tradition of being angry on the Internet.

So what should the Lions do to stop it?

There's nothing they can do to stop it. They can send them to counseling or training, read everyone on the roster the riot act, punish the guilty with fines and/or suspensions, cut the offenders off the team or any combination of the above. But as Terry Foster did a brilliant job of explaining, the Lions can’t just cut someone for getting a DUI; that sets a precedent they can’t possibly uphold.

Foster’s plan of aggressive testimonials (possibly combined with the NFLPA’s ride-share service) might be the most effective option, but none of that will guarantee any of the Lions’ young players won’t make a mistake.

Are the Lions the new Bengals?

No, the Lions aren't the new Bengals. The Bengals intentionally gambled on character and injury risks because they refused to shell out money for full-time scouts. They drafted on name recognition, and kept up with this strategy despite it repeatedly biting them in the butt.

The Lions' brass haven’t been seeking out character risks, but they may have had overinflated confidence in their locker-room culture. As I wrote for Bleacher Report, the Lions’ current leadership has made a habit of swinging for the fences on picks, drafting guys with the most talent and potential over mediocre guys with higher floors.

Going forward, they’re going to have to be more careful about drafting guys with these kind of issues in their background, but that’s about it.

So are the Lions going to suck now?

No, absolutely not.

Many have jabbed at the organization for the leadership on drinking and driving coming from the top—but they’re getting it exactly backwards. Tom Lewand was fantastic at his job before he got pulled over after a golf outing, and is still fantastic at his job.

If you’ve ever been to a golf outing, or involved in corporate golf in any way, knows they often end with a boozy parade of people who are really good at their jobs suckin’ it up and driving home. As I tweeted on the day of Berry’s arrest, how many sales managers are going to drive from Happy Hour to the golf club, and on the way call into the Huge Show and rant about the “thugs” now wearing Honolulu Blue?

No, no, clearly the talking heads at ESPN have it right: the Lions are going to miss the playoffs because DUIs, and the Bears are going in their stead because they signed Brandon Marshall, who has a rap sheet three iPads long but whatever. Obviously, the general ne’er-do-well-ness of Mikel Leshoure riding dirty in the back seat will directly correlate with being less good at football, while Marshall having played with Cutler before means they’re sure to make the playoffs, despite Marshall being a human time bomb back then, too.

Super-ego mode, disengage.

To reiterate: This is not okay. Lions players have to stop breaking the law. But what happens with these players in their personal lives from this point forward is not something we can, or should, have control over. Nothing will come of us proclaiming or declaring anything. They’ll be watched, they’ll be helped, they may be punished, and they may get treatment. Meanwhile, they’ll to do their jobs as best they can.

Ultimately, that’s how this story ends: with football. Once football starts, we’ll stop paying attention to these young men and the mistakes they’re making. We could sit around and blow a lot of hot air about whether or not football is really important, and how athletes are ceaselessly worshipped and given carte blanche, and how awful it is that these kids will get to go right on plying their trade like nothing happened.

But the only reason we’re talking about the arrests is because of football: the unending amount of attention we pay to it, and the huge pedestal we put it on. Nick Fairley getting arrested is the subject of national sport punditry and bloviating for a solid week, not because people care about Nick Fairley, gifted youth on a rocky path to community pillardom—or even the theoretical victims he’s lucky don’t exist—but because it might, or might not, affect the Detroit Lions.

Let's take it one step further: the reason the Lions’ arrests have been the subject of SO MUCH hot air and spilled in and battered keyboards is because we have to talk about football all the time, and if Lions DUIs is the only thing happening then we’ll just talk Lions DUIs until the next thing happens (in this case, it was the release of the Freeh report on the Penn State horrificness).

This all feeds off a gross, mucky instinct that sports fans (and, I fear, everyone) has: the desire to BE ANGRY all the time, to get up on a soapbox and rant and rave about how everyone else is doing it wrong and people these days have no humanity left and everything’s going to hell in a handbasket all the time. It’s a competitive RAGEFEST 24x7x365 to see who can be the first to be most angry and the most defiant and the most condemnificating. Every morsel of news gets thrown in the great whirling, threshing maw and it gets shredded and re-shredded and pulverised over and over and over until Deadspin or ESPN or whoever throws in the next hunk of meat.

I don't understand what we get out of this, except maybe the temporary emotional boost of feeling like we are RIGHT, in contrast to their WRONG. But as Michael Schottey drove home in a criminally underread piece, many of us have an awful lot of almost-skeletons in our closet on this issue, and we should stop and think about that before we throw our next beloved sports idol into the Rage Combine.

Meanwhile, I have to take my own advice. I’ve got a bunch of mugs to wash, trash to pick up, and cider to brew, and I’ve barely started chopping this wood.

I'm off to channel this energy into something productive: my axe.

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Detroit Lions Must Trade Their 2012 1st-Round Pick

After three full drafts by Martin Mayhew, with Tom Lewand, Shack Harris and the scouts, and Jim Schwartz and the coaches providing input, we’d like to think we understand the Lions’ approach. BATFAN, a term first coined by Josh at Roar of the Lions, seems to encapsulate it: “Best Available that Fits a Need.”

This strategy can be seen at work in the selections of players like Brandon Pettigrew: Tight End was a need at the time, if not nearly the most pressing one, and Pettigrew a special talent. Pettigrew was derided as a “luxury pick,” but it became apparent that locking down the tight end position with a dynamic two-way player was a luxury the Lions couldn’t have afforded to pass up.

We see BATFAN at work in the selection of Titus Young; he perfectly fit a need we were barely aware the Lions had. Was he the “best available player”? It didn’t seem so at the time, but quick flip through the players drafted after him reveals many walked into camp as starters and ended the season on the bench. Few made the impact Young did, or have as clear of a long-term future.

But with the Lions’ draft slot lower, and roster better-stocked, than it’s been since I was but a fanling, BATFAN is being twisted around to mean “whoever I like the best.”

Who are the best prospects that could fall to the Lions’ spot at 1.23? What are the Lions’ “needs”? These are murky concepts. Martin Mayhew said last week there are “about 4-7” prospects the Lions would feel ‘very comfortable’ taking there. When I heard that, I knew the one thing the Lions absolutely should not do: draft a player at 1.23.

Let’s look over our (as yet incomplete) Old Mother Hubbard needs list, sorted in my own opinion of most-pressing to least-pressing:

• Dominic Raiola's heir at starting OC, possibly backing up or pushing starters at OG.
• A CB who can immediately contribute in nickel and dime packages, and push to start in 2013.
• Jeff Backus' heir at starting LT, possibly pushing Gosder Cherilus at RT.
• A pass-rushing DE to compete with Cliff Avril, Lawrence Jackson, and Willie Young for a long-term starter's role.
• An OLB who can stop the run and cover the pass, ready to start in 2013.
• A S who can rotate/compete with Amari Spievey.
• A developmental TE.

Note that I haven't completed the RB, WR, or QB OMHs yet. Something like "Home-run threat RB to compete with Jahvid Best, Mikel Leshoure, and Kevin Smith" will likely be added, as will "Boom-or-bust developmental quarterback."

This puts our list of positions that have a need at: QB, RB, TE, OT, OG/C, DE, OLB, CB and S . . . basically, the whole team. Outside of QB and probably TE, the Lions could justify spending a late first-round pick on almost any position on the roster—yet, don't NEED to spend a first-round pick anywhere on the roster.

If the Lions get on the clock at 1.23, and have seven players they’d be equally happy with, they must trade down. They’d ideally slide down six slots, add a pick or move up in another round, while still nabbing one of the players they’d have been “very comfortable” taking at their original position.

That sounds great, but the window of opportunity a late-first-round rookie has to contribute to this team is small. Nickel corner, situational runner or situational pass rusher . . . that's about it. If the Lions stand pat at 1.23, it's likely they'll be drafting a developmental player who'll help the team in very specific, limited ways—much like Young’s role last season.

BATFAN, by definition, is a passive strategy. It’s one thing to take the “best available player” when you’re drafting 2nd, or 13th. You can let the draft board come to you. But at the 23rd pick, how other teams draft has a huge say in who the Lions will end up with. If the Lions are going to get a player that has a major impact on how many games the Lions win this year, they must trade up.

Don’t be scared. As I wrote for Bleacher Report, Trading Up is the New Trading Down. Don’t forget, the Lions traded up from the second round into the first for Jahvid Best in 2010—then in 2011, traded up from the third into the second to get Mikel Leshoure. In both cases, the Lions saw a player of great value, the last of a tier, sitting high atop the remaining prospects on their draft board. In both cases, they saw the value of getting an impact player at a position of need, and went and got them.

For years, the going thought has been that the Lions should add value by adding draft picks; by trading down and fleshing out the middle of the roster they’ll get better. But now the strategy must change. It’s no longer about accepting the best of what falls to them, because their needs are so vast almost anything will do. It’s about getting the best possible player to fill their very specific needs.

The Lions cannot risk being left with no immediate-impact prospects, not unless they’ve been compensated for a slide down the draft board. They must aggressively target the player they believe will help them win the most games in 2012, and go get him.

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The 4th annual Detroit Lions Town Hall Meeting

“In 20 years in the NFL, that Monday Night Football game was the best football atmosphere I’ve ever been a part of.” That’s what Jim Schwartz told me and over 700 fellow Lions fans Monday night—at least I’m pretty sure that’s what he said, because the last few words were nearly drowned out with applause.

I was lucky enough to be present at the fourth annual Season Ticket Holder Town Hall Meeting. The event was exactly as you see it pictured above: a panel of Tom Lewand, Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz, moderated by Lions radio voice Dan Miller. The entire event consisted of the three men running the Lions talking about running the Lions. It was outstanding.

My phone couldn't capture it, but Ford Field at twilight had a surprisingly intimate feel. The simple nature of the event, the mostly-empty stadium, and the mood lighting contrasted sharply with every other experience I’d ever had at the venue. Men in blazers and slacks rubbed elbows with jersey-clad fans carrying beers from the single open concession stand. The few staff present were extremely friendly and welcoming.

As I began to Tweet my early impressions, a Lions executive politely asked me to stop. The event was a special privilege for season-ticket holders; the team wanted those present to have a valuable experience, one you couldn’t get from skimming Twitter or YouTube. I appreciated and respected this request.

The three men took a turn making opening remarks, and the overwhelming message was one of gratitude to the fans. Tom Lewand thanked the fans for coming out to the event, but more strongly thanked fans for coming out in the fall and “creating what we think is the best home-field advantage in the NFL.” That sounds like a rock band professing every single city on their tour is the best crowd in the world, but Lewand insisted he was sincere.

“It’s not a cliché,” he said, “when we say you’re the best fans in the NFL.” Jim Schwartz backed Lewand up. “You actually affect the the game on the field,” he said. The energy Lions fans release into Ford Field helps drive the players to better performances—and, as we know, can disrupt the opponent.

I’ve waxed philosophical about this before. It’s the fan’s ultimate thrill: to literally be able to help your team win. To actually tilt the playing field in your team’s favor. To change the final score, even the game’s final outcome, with nothing but the strength of your passion.

"Don't underestimate the effect you have on the networks, either," Lewand said. "I had more than a few people at the NFL and NBC say, 'We heard about that Monday Night game in Detroit. We want some of that.'" It’s a heady thing to hear the President of your team tell you to your face you’re raising the Lions’ national profile with your cheering.

The real headline out of all of this wasn’t the latest news on the draft or free agency; Mayhew is ludicrously close-lipped about such things. When asked about the re-signing of Jeff Backus, Mayhew said “Well, I don’t like to announce things until they’re officially official, but I’ll say you’re probably right” that Backus had been re-inked—despite Lewand and Schwartz openly discussing Backus’s return on either side of him.

Yet, Mayhew spoke openly about “getting Tully’s contract done,” a phrase which smacked of inevitability—and indeed, as I wrote this, PFT reported the Lions inked Tulloch to a five-year deal. When asked to talk about his philosophy of what positions should be taken in what round of the draft, Mayhew glibly demurred. “Our philosophy is not to talk about what positions we’ll be taking in the draft,” cueing a round of laughter.

The real takeaway from the Town Hall meeting was the class of the organization, and the quality of its leaders. Time and again, they stressed doing things the right way, working hard, trusting in each other and their collaborative process, and never resting on their laurels. “We approach it day by day,” Lewand said. “Get better every day. Tackle the mission of that day. Maybe you look back at the end of the month and say ‘that was a good month,’ or at the end of the year say ‘that was a good year,’ but we can’t get caught up in some grandiose goal, or listen to the kudos, or especially read the press clippings."

Schwartz built on Lewand's comments: "Just because we don't talk about playoffs and Super Bowls doesn't mean those aren't our goals. In our experience, the teams that do the most talking about things like that aren't there at the end." He stressed that that emphasis carries through to the players: "We're fortunate that our best players are also our hardest-working players," he said.

Lewand echoed that with a story: “When Calvin was in to sign his contract, he met with the press, and the first words out of his mouth were, 'I'm just looking forward to getting back to work.' That wasn't rehearsed or prepared. He'd just signed a contract that will set him, his children, his children's children, his—” “—neighbors,” Schwartz interjected, “—many future generations of Johnsons up for life, but his focus was getting back to work.” Lewand said. “It was said from a place of authenticity. It was genuine.”

Lewand went on to emphasize how players like Calvin have changed the culture in Detroit. After praising the leadership of veterans like Backus and Kyle Vanden Bosch, Lewand said “You have a lot of young guys we drafted beginning to come into leadership roles and have expectations of winning,” noting the players that join the Lions now are entering a locker room full of players acquired by the current regime, all pulling in the same direction.

Jim Schwartz talked about the community pride the Lions’ success has inspired. “You see people wearing Lions hats at the gas stations now. One of the first things my wife did when we moved here was to go to a sporting goods store. The manager told her, ‘Ma’am, we don’t carry that stuff.’” Now, you see Honolulu Blue everywhere.

The subject of ticket prices was brought up. Lewand thought intensely as he answered the question. "I want to say this: we respect the investment you make in us." Lewand explained the Lions' ticket and concession prices are in the bottom half of the NFL—and that is a hard cap the staff works under at the explicit mandate of the Fords themselves.

I left Ford Field brimming with pride. I’m absolutely convinced that the Lions are being run by the right people; that if anyone can bring a championship to Detroit, it’s these three men. They have, against the odds, retained every key coach and player that made last year a success—and they’ll continue to add talent through the offseason. This team is primed to be one of the NFL’s best, now and for years to come.

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Lions Slam the Revolving Door of Free Agency

When Martin Mayhew and Tom Lewand took over, they had almost no young talent on the roster. That’s the idea behind the Old Mother Hubbard posts: when they got there, the cupboard was bare. No longer.

The Lions are a playoff team, and an incredibly young one at that. The foundation of this team is No. 9, Matthew Stafford, and his connection with Calvin Johnson—who, thanks to the richest total contract in NFL history, will be a Lion through the end of the decade.

I can't overstate the significance of this.

I remember well the advent of free agency, the splash Reggie White made by going from Philadelphia to the tiny outpost of Green Bay, and the pillaging of the league the 49ers and Cowboys did throughout the 90s.

From the beginning, free agency has been a revolving door for the Lions: Jerry Ball out, Pat Swilling in; Chris Spielman out, Pepper Johnson in; Jeff Hartings out, Brenden Stai in. Time and time again, the Lions lost foundational pieces and replaced them with designer-impostor stopgaps. Even when they drafted well, the Lions seemed all too content to let good players walk out the door. The Old Lions would have let Calvin walk, and signed Josh Morgan to replace him.

Calvin Johnson is not just a good player, he’s a great one—and not only is he a good person, he’s a great one. Despite the mind-boggling figure, his teammates took to Twitter en masse to declare he earned every dollar (and then some) with his attitude and work ethic. That combination of talent and character is breathtakingly rare—and he has chosen to spend the best years of his career as a Detroit Lion. As Justin Durant wrote at MetroTimes, it was a good day for anyone connected to the Lions.

The Lions have also re-signed Jeff Backus to a two-year deal, inked Shaun Hill to another two-year contract, and  brought back veteran safety/special-teamer Erik Coleman. As Anwar Richardson reports, the last major free agent the Lions are looking to add is Stephen Tulloch.

But wait. Don’t I always say that standing pat is losing ground? Don’t I always say that A + B = C doesn’t work in the NFL? That each season is it’s own special potion, an alchemy experiment that can go wildly wrong or wildly right, even with similar ingredients?

Yup, I sure do. But letting Jeff Backus walk and signing Marcus McNeill, or swapping Stephen Tulloch for David Hawthorne, would be classic Old Lions moves. Moving from a sure thing who knows the system to someone new who doesn’t is a risk in and of itself; McNeill and Hawthorne are clear and obvious downgrades from Backus and Tulloch.

In the beginning, the cupboard was so bare the Lions cycled 123 different players on and off the roster in that first contract year. They were desperately clawing to get better at any spot on the roster, even if it was just the 53rd over and over and over. They viewed 1st waiver wire priority as a major tool to improve the roster. Can you imagine any street free agent improving the Lions now?

Let me quote what I said in the final Watchtower of the 2011 season:

For the first time in a long time, it’s truly possible for the Lions to regress. Building blocks of the offense and defense may need to be replaced. Jeff Backus, Cliff Avril, and Stephen Tulloch are all major contributors who may or may not be back, and they only start the list. For the first time since Schwartz was hired, this offseason will not be unidirectional.

Still, what’s important here is that the core, the fundamental truth, the identity of this team will not change. Jim Schwartz is the head coach, Matthew Stafford is the quarterback, Calvin Johnson leads a legion of viable targets, and the defensive line is stacked. That, along with all the other factors, is good enough to get the Lions to the playoffs—and that will be true in 2012 as well.

Can Schwartz, Mayhew, Lewand and company brew a more potent batch of Lions in 2012? Can they add just the right ingredients, and hold back what might spoil the brew? Can they put it over just the right amount of heat so, as the Saints are doing now, it peaks in strength at the perfect time? We’ll see.

We’re seeing right now: not only are the Lions drafting and develop long-term starters, they’re actually paying to keep them here long-term. Slamming the revolving free-agency door shut is crucial to becoming a perennial contender.

If the Lions ink Tulloch to a multi-year deal, and draft as well as they always do, this team is going to be better in 2012 than they were in 2011—and better over the next five years then they’ve been in fifty.

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Old Mother Hubbard: Stocked and Loaded

“We’re free! We’re free!” shouted Rashied Davis, as twenty-six new and returning Lions veterans rushed onto the field, donning their helmets as thousands of Lions fans cheered them on. Released from the locker room by the ratified CBA, the new NFL League Year began with a roar. The Grandmaster suggested a horn:

“I’ve never been in the army or anything else, but when the cavalry comes, you feel good,” Schwartz said. “If we could have had a horn blowing, that would have been good, put somebody on horseback and bring them out. We needed it. It added so many to our lines, just stretching.”

For the first time yesterday, all of the 2011 Lions fit to play were out on the field in full pads, practicing without limitations, restrictions, or artifice. As I write this, Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith are signing the new 10-year collective bargaining agreement with pomp and circumstance normally reserved for Israel-Palestine peace treaties. Season tickets went out, including to a friend of mine (who supplied the above glamour shot). All is finally officially right with the Detroit Lions’ world.

Good.

Now, to work.

Martin Mayhew held a rare press conference at this morning’s practice. Clearly, the kid gloves have come off:

"I think we're at a point now where we expect to challenge for our division, and that's what most good teams expect to do," he said before Friday's practice. "We're at that point."

"We're here to win football games. We're here to be productive. There's no need to talk about it. It's time to stop talking about winning, and it's time to start winning."

Sorry, Martin, I’m going to keep talking about it. Let’s assess the shopping Mr. Mayhew did, starting from our original Old Mother Hubbard needs list:

• An impact two-way defensive end to rotate soon, and develop for 2012.
       [Lawrence Jackson]
• An athletic, pass-rushing OLB to rotate soon, and develop for 2012.
       [Bobby Carpenter/Doug Hogue]
• A field-stretching #2 WR.
       [Titus Young]
• A power back to complement Jahvid Best.
       [Mikel Leshoure]
• A credible backup middle linebacker.
       [Levy, Durant, Tulloch]
• An athletic, pass-rushing OLB ready to start right away.
       [Justin Durant]
• An athletic cover corner, ready to take over one side in 2012.
       [Eric Wright]
• If Chris Houston leaves, a complete two-way corner, ready to start right away.
       [Chris Houston]
• A left tackle who can be groomed to replace Jeff Backus.
• A center who will be ready to rotate at guard soon, and compete at center for 2012.

I had to fudge the linebackers around a bit; DeAndre Levy, Stephen Tulloch, and Justin Durant will likely be your starting linebackers, all three have the ability to play inside or outside as needed. Bobby Carpenter can rotate right away, and Doug Hogue can develop for 2012 (while likely seeing some mopup duty this year, too). Assuming Titus Young will be “a field stretching #2 WR” is looking like a shaky assumption, considering he still hasn’t even practiced yet, and rookie wideouts rarely produce right away. The only other stretch here is classifying Eric Wright as “an athletic cover corner,” but he has the tools and immediately upgrades the position. Between Wright, Alphonso Smith, Nathan Vasher, and Aaron Berry, the #2-#5 corners should be much better this year than last, across the board.

I remind everyone that half of all top draft picks bust out, and a similar number of free agents fail to live up to their billing. Several of these line items are sure to uncross themselves as the year goes on. But for right now, the larder is well stocked; the Lions are ready for autumn—when the growing season ends, and football season begins.

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Zack Follett Is No Longer a Detroit Lion

I’ll always have a soft spot for Zack Follett. He’s a piece of TLiW history; Follett was the second-ever subject of Meet the Cubs:

In researching this 6'-1", 238-pound spark plug, it quickly became obvious: Zack Follett is going to be the next inductee into the Lions Fan Hall of Fame. Players like David Kircus, Scotty Anderson, Casey Fitzsimmons, David "Blue" Adams, Greg Blue, and Buster Davis have been drafted late (or signed as a UFA) by the Lions, made a big play or two in training camp or preseason, and become cult heroes--often, with fans insisting that these practice squadders and/or bench riders would be immediate upgrades over the current starters, if only they were given the opportunity. Zack Follett perfectly fits this profile; I have no doubt we'll be seeing Follett jerseys in the stands sooner rather than later.

Oh man. I had no idea how true that would be, did I? Unfortunately, there was something else in that breakdown that proved to be prescient:

As a junior, he was second-team All-Pac 10, again with 12.5 TFL and 5.5 sacks, plus 64 total tackles. This, despite missing part of one game and all of two more with a neck stinger--thanks to an aggravation of a bulging neck disc discovered in high school . . .

. . . In most of my research, the first thing that comes up is amazement that this kid was available in the seventh round. Apparently the neck stinger that limited him in 2007 scared enough LB-hungry teams to engender a big fall—still, that is the kind of risk you want to take with a seventh-round pick.

Like Lydon Murtha, Willie Young, and Johnny Culbreath after him, the Lions consistently use late-round picks on players with NFL talent with question marks, and Zack Follett is no exception. In some cases, “medical flags” are overblown: Adrian Peterson’s injury history scared a lot of teams, and despite a punishing running style, health hasn’t been an issue. In Follett’s case, though, there’s something about his body, or the way he plays the game, or the combination thereof, that literally breaks his neck. It’s why he wasn’t drafted in the third or fourth round, and it’s why he’s not a Lion anymore.

Or is it? Lions President Tom Lewand confirmed Follett’s release in a statement, but claimed he was “waived healthy,” and that the signings of Stephen Tulloch, Justin Durant, and Bobby Carpenter made Follett expendable. This directly contradicts Follett’s Tweet that “Schwartz Mayhew Lewand didn’t want to risk a life threatening injury after seeing my pain.”

Perhaps the Lions wanted to break it to Follett gently; let him feel as though injury, and not performance, was the reason they decided he couldn’t hack it. But, if that were the case, why would Schwartz say Follett had an “outstanding practice” on Monday? Maybe the Lions were just trying to save a few bucks; being placed on the “waived/injured” list means the player is due an injury settlement. Since Ndamukong Suh makes more in a single game check than Follett would have all year, that doesn’t sound right either.

I think it’s a matter of semantics. Follett said he “couldn’t compete” in tackling drills due to the pain in his neck. Perhaps that’s the tipping point: the Lions would rather have Bobby Carpenter as he currently is, than Zack Follett as he currently is. Follett’s not injured—he’s been medically cleared to play—but his current physical condition prevents him from playing at a high level. For right now, Zack Follett can’t play for the Lions, and it remains to be seen if he’ll ever play anywhere else.

Zack Follett’s just one of hundreds of stories like his we’ll hear this year. Camp rosters have swollen to twice the size of gameday rosters. Nearly a thousand players who can call themselves “a member of [NFL team]” right now won’t even land on a practice squad. Yet, this one has a special sadness; Follett played the game with love, heart, and abandon—and few players have been as open a book to fans. I hope more players choose to live as full-throttle a life as Zack Follett, and I hope their NFL careers have a happier ending.

However, Zack Follett’s life is anything but over; it’s just beginning! He was so beloved partially because of his-off field creativity, energy, and passion—I’m certainly not going to stop following him on Twitter, or watching his videos, or keeping tabs on what he’s up to just because he isn’t wearing a Lions uniform on autumn Sundays. He’s no longer a Detroit Lion, but he’s the same man today that he was yesterday. For once, as fans, let’s remember that.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,zack follett

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Matt Millen is Not Still In The House.

By now, I’m sure you heard about the Lions erroneously sending out their list of pre-draft rookie visits not just to the league offices, but to the entire league. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported this, then ended his article with a little jab:

Why do we have a funny feeling that, in some way, this is Matt Millen’s fault?

Har har. Sean Yuille over at Pride of Detroit did an awesome job debunking the notion, noting that Killer reported the list only contained visits to date, not future invites—and Dave Birkett spotted a known visit that wasn’t on the publicized list. The best thing Sean did though, was point out how little the list really matters:

The disclaimer I have presented when tracking these visits is that you shouldn't try to read into them too much. Like Schwartz said, it is fun for us fans to track, but it's not like they are a great indicator of who might be picked in the draft. That is why I don't see this email thing as being a huge "blunder" at all. Hell, with the way Martin Mayhew and company are so secretive with some information, perhaps they meant to send it to the rest of the league. You never can be too sure, but even if this was a mistake I don't see it as being a very big one. It's not like the Vikings or some other team picking ahead of the Lions is going to alter their draft strategy over some names in an email about pre-draft visits. That would be almost as ridiculous as how PFT framed this story in the first place.

I’ll defend Florio, though he doesn’t need my help (and will likely never know I offered it!). He tries to keep things funny; one of the easiest fish to shoot in the barrel is poking fun at a perennial loser. I don’t ascribe this to anti-Lions malice, just Florio trying to punch up a relatively harmless story with a funny angle. We may not find it all that funny—but believe me, if the headline were “Vikings Expose Something Other Than Visanthe Shiancoe” we’d be chortling along with everyone else.

Florio says right in the piece he assumed Schwartz’s quote about “everyone already knowing” referred to agents disclosing what other teams their client has visited. It’s common knowledge in league circles; they just ask around. Yes, it’s embarrassing the Lions made it so easy on everyone else—but it won’t change anyone’s draft strategy. A team brings a guy in for a visit to learn more about him . . . they don’t bring in the guys they’re already sure about—and definitely not the ones they trying to keep their interest in secret. As far as I know, Mike Shanahan didn’t even say Jay Cutler’s name out loud before trading up in the first to build the Broncos around him.

Matt Millen made a lot of mistakes when he was here. He flapped his gums a lot about what the Lions were going to do. He approached the front office like he was the coach of a football team, and not like he was the President and CEO of a billion-dollar company—literally, his job title. He put in 40 and flew home for the weekend, every weekend, for eight years—in an industry where the best leaders sleep at their desk. The results were terrible, but Matt Millen isn’t an idiot. He isn’t a blundering meathead who can’t do anything right. He’s just a well-spoken, likable football guy who was in way, way, way over his skis. His biggest mistake was refusing to quit.

No, Matt Millen wasn’t a human curse upon this franchise. He wasn’t a fell demon whose pestilent shadows still lurk in the corners of Allen Park, making fax machines jam and administrative assistants hit “Reply to All.” To the contrary, the new, infallible leadership that everyone has so much faith in? The executives we’re so sure are awesome that we’re tempted to call this email leak deliberate? They were Millen’s right- and left-hand men. Yet, in just their second season, the Lions won more than they did in all but Millen’s best year. Their track record already speaks for itself: Matt Millen doesn’t live here anymore, and this little oopsy doesn’t reveal any cracks in the Lions’ foundation.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,matt millen,martin mayhew,tom lewand,mike florio,profootballtalk.com,pride of detroit

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Three Cups Deep: Lions Leading the Way

During my lifetime, there have been plenty of moments when I’ve been proud to be a Lions fan. Rare, yes, and fleeting—but there have been times when I’ve been proud of the boys in Honolulu Blue, and their accomplishments. I can’t think of a time, before this administration, when I’ve been proud of the organization. The Lions have never been a team that “does things the right way,” that sets a standard for other teams. In fact, for most of my young life, the Lions were notorious penny-pinchers and hapless decision-makers. Whatever success they experienced on the field was in spite of ownership, in spite of the front office, and sometimes in spite of the coaching.

From 1967 until 1989, Russ Thomas was the GM, and his primary strength was negotiating great contracts (from the team’s perspective). His replacement, COO Chuck Schmidt, had trouble keeping great players around in the newfangled salary cap era. The Lions always seemed to be profitable first, and competitive when convenient. Barry Sanders retired because he couldn’t bring himself to again battle in the livery of a franchise that couldn’t win if it tried, and wasn’t trying. The Fords’ answer to that bitter rejection was to hire Matt Millen, and long let him reign.

But, for the first time in my memory, the Lions are at the head of the class when it comes to class. First, the Lions players are handling their business like true pros. Kevin Seifert wrote about former union rep Kyle Vanden Bosch, his value to the Lions, and his plans to keep his teammates primed for an awesome 2011. Dave Birkett’s story today has an awesome quote from KVB:

"There's the talk, 'Well, why are you doing something to help owners and stuff while you're locked out?' " Vanden Bosch said. "But at the same time selfishly, I want to have my best season next year. I want to make sure the guys on my d-line, we have the best unit in the league next year. And just, hypothetically, if we can't get together until the end of July or in August, I don't know that we can do that."

For the ownership’s part, they’re being open and honest with the fans—and not blaming the players one bit. The Lions sent a letter to season-ticket holders offering refunds, plus interest, if any games are missed. The official website posted a transcript of a con call of Lions President Tom Lewand; it contained zero percent kvetching about the union, and 100% focus on playing football—well—in 2011. Awesomely, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio gave the Lions some rare dap for handling the situation with class:

That said, the fans have every right to be upset at one or both parties for failing to get a deal done, instead of trying to apply leverage in order to secure slightly “better” terms. Along they way, they’ve compromised their relationship to the point where some major feather unruffling needs to happen before the parties will agree on anything.

We credit the Lions for doing their part toward mending fences, by not further inflaming the situation with rhetoric aimed at getting the fans riled up against the players.

Best of all, Tom Lewand says he “gets it,” and unlike certain Commissioners I know, he really does:

"The bottom line is that they want us to play football and they're not interested in hearing about which side is posturing at the negotiating table or the court room, they're interested in watching Lions football. We understand that, we get it. And that's what we're focused on as well,'' Lewand said. "We want to play football. We want to build on the last four games of last year and build on the things we've been doing as an organization over the last two years. That's where the focus needs to be.''

There was a lot of hubbub last season about “proof” the Lions were on the right track. People wanted to see the Lions rack up a lot of Ws, to “prove” that Mayhew isn’t another Millen, and Lewand isn’t another Thomas, and Schwartz isn’t another Marinelli. The four-game win streak at the end of the year satisfied those folks, but not me. The Lions have put a few wins together several times in the last ten years.

To me, this is the proof. When the rest of the owners and players can’t agree on what they disagree on, Lions are jetting in from around the country to work out in Wixom together. While the rest of the teams are griping about the players not capitulating to the owners’ demands, the Lions’ brass sounds frustrated that they have to bother locking their guys out. Clearly, the Lions are a true team, from top to bottom, from GM to special teamers. They’re all completely focused on playing this year—because they believe in themselves, they believe in each other, and they know they’re going to be good.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,kyle vanden bosch,tom lewand,nfl lockout

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Three Cups Deep: Lions vs. Packers

Image thanks to the AP's Larry Lage

Surreal.

That’s the only word to describe it.  In just over twenty four hours, the roof of the Metrodome collapsed, the Lions held the 25-point-per-game Packers offense to a field goal in a 7-3 victory, and Ford Field sold out of free tickets to the re-located Vikings/Giants game in just 90 minutes.

Turk McBride led the Lions with two sacks, as the Lions’ defensive line won the game almost by themselves.  The Lions’ 190 team rushing yards outstripped their team passing yards by the length of a football field.  Nearly as many Lions, 7, had at least one rushing attempt as had at least one reception, 8.  Greg Jennings not only didn’t put the team on his back, his bobble was the difference between a 75-yard touchdown and an Amari Speivey interception.  Drew Stanton, after an appalling game throwing the football, was flawless on the game-winning drive.  It must be said: the Lions won as they have lost—improbably, incredibly, nerve-shreddingly, and with more than a touch of surreality.

Jim Schwartz has given the players the day off today, which is a fitting reward.  Those hearty souls who waited outside in the freezing cold of the wee small hours were rewarded with tickets to tonight’s Vikings-Giants game—which the Lions’ staff has truly pulled out all the stops to accommodate.  Kevin Seifert detailed the Lions’ efforts to make their division rivals feel at home, which includes stadium sounds, scoring their mascot Ragnar a Harley, and scrubbing off the Lions wordmark and logo from the turf, and painting the Vikings’ logos on the field instead.

I’m incredibly proud of Lions fans, and the Lions organization, for putting together this incredible effort.  With just over a day’s notice, the Ford Field staff and the city of Detroit will give the nation a Vikings-Giants environment nearly indistinguishable from the one that had been scheduled for months.  This is a tremendous achievement, one that should be worn as a badge of honor by Mr. Ford, Tom Lewand, everyone in the Lions organization, the people of Detroit, and all Lions fans everywhere.

If you're lucky enough to go, a list of acceptable TLiW modes of rooting:

• Wear Vikings gear and root Vikings. They're our NFC North neighbor, after all, and having them avenge the Giants loss would be nice. Besides, if we're replicating the real home field experience for them, why not be truly committed?
• Wear Lions gear and root for a good game.  Hey, it’s a free NFL game in Detroit!  Let’s just make it classy and memorable for everyone.
• Wear Lions gear and boo the hell out of the Vikings, because screw the Vikings.

Now, all that having been said . . . I can’t wait until they scrub that Vikings crap off our field.  It’s making me itch.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,minnesota vikings,new york giants,ford field,monday night football

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The Lions Rest, But Do Not Sleep

According to Chiefs blog Arrowhead Pride, the Lions have inquired about KC’s disgruntled safety Jarrad Page.  Apparently, it didn’t get much past the inquiry stage, possibly due to the asking price.  Scout.com’s Nate Caminata found out from Scout’s Chiefs expert Nick Athan the Chiefs’ valuation of Page ($).  Whether the Page talks develop into a Page trade, or whether they’re not getting any farther than they’ve gotten, this is important.

For starters, it shows the Lions aren’t satisfied with throwing C.C. Brown atop a pile of bodies (Ko Simpson, Marquand Manuel, Marvin White, Daniel Bullocks) at safety.  Brown, nicknamed “Can’t Cover” Brown by Giants fans,  won’t fix the frequent blown assignments we saw from Lions safeties in 2009.  The others . . . well, they’re the same guys from 2009.  So nothing the Lions saw in minicamp gives them confidence that the answer at safety is currently on the roster.

The second, and arguably more, important thing: they’re doing something about it.  Throughout last season, the Lions cycled players on and off the roster at an incredible rate.  Any time they could make a move to improve the roster, they did—and given how much of that roster needed improving, they made a lot of moves.  A commenter, TimT, did a breakdown of last season’s roster churn, showing that 123 different players were Lions (to one degree or another) during the 2009 contract year.

After the free agent bonanza in March, and subsequent draft in April, there was a collective exhalation, as though the mad rush was over.  Outside of a few key spots (RT, OLB, CB, and S), the roster makeover was nearly complete.  Skilled veterans and talented youngsters were all over the starting lineup—and what’s more, they fit what the coaches want to do.  The Lions-observer hivemind was satisfied that with a couple of top free agents next season, and a third solid draft, the Lions would be well on their way to perennial contention.

While the Lions-observer hivemind are satisfied at the progress, the Lions execs and coaches are not.  Rather than call the last 18 months of work good, and head into camp with more answers than questions for the first time in forever, they’re still furiously turning over every stone.  With the signing of Dré Bly, and this move for Page, we see that the Lions aren’t content with improvement in the relative sense, not satisfied with merely being better.  They won’t look on a hard-fought five-win season as a success; they’re not playing for 2011.

Given the brutal division in which they play, and magnitude of the mountain they had to climb just to get to “bad,” and the unknown height yet to climb before “good,” this relentless effort to improve in July won’t really matter, will it?  The difference between Ko Simpson and Jarrad Page won’t be the difference between a winning season and a losing one . . . will it?

Well, even discounting the impact that some of the “minor” additions like Zack  Follett have had on the roster, the greatest impact will be the process of improvement itself.  The phrase “relentess effort to improve” hasn’t been used in association with the Lions since . . . well, it’s been a while.  Just the fact that the Lions are continually adding, improving, changing, looking for more, striving to be better, even when other teams are not . . . it will pay real, material dividends in the W-L column this fall.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,kansas city chiefs,jarrad page,arrowheadpride.com

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Justice for Tom Lewand?

By now I’m sure most of you have seen the video of Tom Lewand’s traffic stop, and subsequent arrest.

In college, I pursued an unusual major: Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy.  The theme of the curriculum was justice; the study of what it is, what it means, the nature of a just government, and lots of other boring stuff like that.  As a side effect, it developed my inner Scales of Justice—my sense of what is right and what is wrong, what is fair and what is unfair, what is just and what is unjust.

Usually, when I hear a news story, I have a swift and strong opinion on it.  Sometimes, though, there’s no easy answer . . . and it stresses me out.  I have to learn more, to know more.  I read.  I have to read.  I have to keep researching, keep digging, learn more, know more.  I talk.  I talk to my wife, to my friends, to my family, to myself in the car, over and over and over nobody wants anything to do with me.  I have to bounce everything off everyone until I know what is right. After several days of this, several mental fuses blown, and several false starts on this post, I’m still not sure what is right in this situation.

First, and possibly foremost, Lewand admitted he is a recovering alcoholic.  Everything I think, every angle I take, every “take” I come up with, keeps coming back to this.  He has a problem, he’s seeking treatment—and not because he was ordered to, but because either he, or those who love him, realized it.  Watching the video, I wonder if his inexplicable, ridiculous denial that he’d had a drop to drink wasn’t a symptom of his addiction.

Second, what he did was extremely dangerous—not just to himself, but to others.  The current series of PSAs with the tagline “buzzed driving is drunk driving” have a point—but .21 BAC is not “buzzed driving” or “drunk driving,” it’s completely tanked driving.  He, and those who shared the road with him that night, are incredibly fortunate that no one was hurt . . . or killed.

Third, this episode is incredibly embarrassing for him, his loved ones, and—yes—the organization.  Not only is this a personal tragedy for Lewand, it’s a professional failure, too; it’s a black eye for the business of which he is President.  Lewand’s primary task is to set a tone of class and professionalism for the organization—and instead, the Lions are again a national punchline.

Given his previously clean record and reputation, his incredible work in getting Ford Field built, and the exemplary way in which he’s handled contracts and salaries, it’s no surprise that both his employees, and his employer, gave him immediate votes of confidence.  Apparently, his problem was known within the organization; to them this was a setback, not a shock.

When the headlines said he’d been arrested for suspicion of DUI in Roscommon County, my first thought was “Up north, the weekend after minicamp?  Drinking all day at a lake, or while golfing, I bet.”  Sure enough, he was at a charity golf outing.  In my experience, these events are thinly veiled, or not veiled, excuses for everybody to get lubricated and goof around.  I can’t speak to what happened that day by Houghton Lake, but if someone with a drinking problem was in an environment like most golf outings I’ve seen . . . well, the temptation would be extreme.

Of course, he’ll be prosecuted under the law, and will face discipline from the league under the Personal Conduct Policy.  There are those who’ve called for Lewand to be fired, but, right now, I don’t think that’s the right thing for him, or for the Lions.  He’s clearly been performing the duties of his job at a high level—he’s continued to ink draft picks left and right since the incident—so one mistake shouldn’t spell the end for him.

At the end of the day, that’s what this was—a mistake.  A terrible, dangerous mistake, but a mistake.  I hope Tom Lewand continues to seek help, and be supported.  With that, plus strength and dedication on his part, this mistake ought to be his last.  I’ve been searching my heart to see if I’m just giving Lewand a pass because he’s affiliated with the Lions, but I don’t believe I am.  Were it I who made the mistake, I’d pray for a second chance, and I’d like to think I’d deserve one.  Could I ask for that grace for myself, without extending it to everyone else?  I don’t think so.

We, the Lions-watching public, aren’t “owed” an explanation, or Lewand’s head on a platter, or anything else.  But for his sake, his family’s sake, and for the sake of the organization, I hope he makes the most of this second chance, which I believe he deserves.

. . . I think.  Ask me again tomorrow.

Technorati Tags: nfl,detroit lions,tom lewand

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Old Mother Hubbard: 2010 NFL Draft Recap

Let's review the Lions' 2010 NFL draft shopping list:

• A developmental quarterback who could push Stanton in camp.
• A starting, three-down power runningback with speed.
• A developmental power-blocking fullback, to complement Jerome Felton.
• A left tackle, who could be groomed to replace Jeff Backus.
• A power-blocking center, to be groomed behind Raiola.
• A starting, disruptive pass-rushing DT to rotate w/Williams & Hill.
• A starting, three-down, two-way defensive end, a la Kyle Vanden Bosch.
• A developmental middle linebacker.
• A starting, athletic, blitzing outside linebacker, a la Julian Peterson.
• At least one starting cornerback.
• A starting safety, who’s very strong in pass coverage.

I'll be reprising last year's Meet the Cubs series, so I won't go into depth on each pick just yet--but look at the way the Lions addressed those needs. In fact, I'd say they may have strayed from their "BATFAN" strategy. Of course, Suh was the consensus #1 overall prospect, and fit a need, so he was unquestionably the Best Available That Fits A Need. However, the move back up to get Best was an attempt to get a specific player to fill a specific need.

Given the undeniably special talent Best possesses, and the perfect fit he represents, it was a good move--but it wasn't just taking BATFAN when their pick came up. It's worth noting that I was wrong about the Lions and Best; it sounds like he was their target all along, as Killer had said. Rather than a power back with speed, they now have a home-run-hitting speed back, who's strong enough to hold up for three downs.

After the trade up for Best, the Lions stood pat throughout the second round, and into the third, finally taking Amari Spievey when their next pick came around. Spievey, arguably, wasn't the even consensus best corner on the board at that point. Again, I have no knowledge of the Lions' prospect grades, nor do I know what their assessment of their own cornerbacks. But in my eyes, it's undeniable: the Lions reached to fill a need, because the need was great, and later picks wouldn't fill it.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this. Am I wrong, and the Lions took the top player left on their board? Am I wrong, and the Lions don't see corner as an extreme need? Or, are the Lions beginning to see their roster one that has a few "holes" that must be "filled" instead of a lifeless vaccuum, desperate for any talent that can be found?

It could be any of those reasons--or all, or some, or none of those reasons. I wouldn't be the first to compare the Spievey pick to last year's controversial third-round choice, DeAndre Levy. Of course, Levy didn't take long to endear himself to the Lions' coaches and fans. But on the day he was drafted he still appeared to be a reach for a great need; I can only hope Spievey turns out as well as Levy.

The remaining picks appear to stick to the BATFAN philosophy-and in fact, did a very good job of getting intriguing prospects in the fourth and seventh rounds. When you add in the UDFA signing of FB Matt Clapp, the Lions came very close to snagging the entire shopping list--when I'd said it wouldn't be possible. Here's what's left:

• A developmental quarterback who could push Stanton in camp.
• A power-blocking center, to be groomed behind Raiola.
• A starting, three-down, two-way defensive end, a la Kyle Vanden Bosch.
• A developmental middle linebacker.
• A starting, athletic, blitzing outside linebacker, a la Julian Peterson.
• A starting safety, who’s very strong in pass coverage.

There's a little more information yet to consider: at one point, during the second day, Tom Kowalski reported via Twitter that there was a rumor that Cliff Avril had been traded to Miami for a fifth-round pick. Killer then called the Lions to confirm, and the Lions told Killer that:

After a few phone calls -- and a lot of stern denials -- it was clear the Lions were not trading Avril. In fact, the Lions actually are very happy with Avril's approach to the offseason. He showed up with an extra 10 pounds of muscle and has been working very hard during the offseason workouts. Avril, who has a better relationship with new defensive line coach Kris Kocurek than he did with the recently retired Bob Karmelowicz, has turned up his intensity.

Well, if that's all true, we can optimistically pencil in Avril as the starting left end. And, while we're at it, we can assume the Lions aren't interested in pushing Stanton, either--they didn't even sign a UDFA quarterback as a camp arm. Therefore, the remaining list looks like this:

• A power-blocking center, to be groomed behind Raiola.
• A developmental middle linebacker.
• A starting, athletic, blitzing outside linebacker, a la Julian Peterson.
• A starting safety, who’s very strong in pass coverage.

So, the Lions are only an outside linebacker and a free safety away from having a playoff-caliber starting lineup? Well, no. We're presuming that all of these free agent signees and drafted-to-start rookies actually step in and play at a high level, which never happens. My personal rule of thumb is that when a team acquires a player to step in and start, it works out about 50% of the time. So, take Suh, Best, Spievey, Scheffler, Sims, Houston, Burleson, Vanden Bosch, and Williams, and flip a coin for each. Anyone who comes up "tails", assume their role will be on next year's shopping list.

Have I depressed you? Sorry; I didn't mean to--and you shouldn't be depressed, anyway. The amount of talent the Lions have added in this offseason is impressive--and when you consider just how far the roster has come since I stared this blog, the day Mayhew and Lewand took over, it's nothing short of astonishing. Of course, it's all on paper until we see it on the field, but this draft did nothing to shake my faith that this time, things really will be different.

Technorati Tags: nfl,nfl draft,detroit lions,ndamukong suh,jahvid best

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Detroit Lions Free Agency Live Blog Bonanza

I've always wanted to do this . . . it's a free agency live blog!  Tomorrow, we can gather around to talk about all the amazing, incredible players that Mahyew and Lewand have conspired to bring in.  I've never pulled one of these things off, so please be patient with me.  I'll probably throw it open at midnight, but comment moderation is going to be (extremely) sporadic until reasonable morning hours.

Again, please, patience with me, and civility towards others, will be the keys to this going smoothly.

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The Detroit Lions On the Eve of NFL Free Agency, 2010

Lions fans have gotten used to going to bed on this night knowing that the Lions won’t be making headlines in the morning.  Last year at this time, the mantra was “right player, right price”—and we saw that mantra repeated as players like Grady Jackson and Philip Buchanon were signed to modest, short-term deals.

In fact, this has always been the plan.  At the press conference introducing Mayhew and Lewand as the new GM and Team President, Mayhew said:

We will build this thing through the draft - okay. We're not going to be jumping out there in free agency and throwing 30 million bucks at somebody on the first day at midnight. I think the way to do it is through the draft and we do it through young guys and you develop your guys, and you spend time training your guys. You don't give up on your guys. You hang in there with them and a lot of the good organizations in this league - that's what those teams do.

That sounded pretty trite and tired to Lions fans desperate for change.  It was true that the Lions’ roster was devoid of young, quality veteran talent —and truer that such talent is rarely available, or affordable, in free agency. 

After all, free agents are by definition players whose original teams didn’t think they were worth the money.

Still, Lions fans had to either accept that this would be a long, slow process, wherein rookies and veterans would try to bridge the gap between 0-16 and competitiveness, or get all ARGLBARGL about why the Lions aren’t going after any difference-makers.

The 2009 draft class offered little in the way of victories, but a lot of hope for the future.  The youngsters even beat the would-be Pudge Of The NFL, Albert Haynesworth, when he and his $100M contract came to town in Week 3.  By now, most Lions fans have come to realize the shocking dearth of talent on the Lions’ roster can only be rebuilt the slow, steady way: through several years of consistently excellent drafting.  Tom Lewand told Killer so just today:

We'll be ready to be on the phone after midnight.

Wait, what?

We'll see where it takes us. We're prepared. We've done a good job of getting ready and we're looking forward to it starting.

Wow.  That’s far from the “right player at the right price” bargain-hunting philosophy that’s been the hallmark of the last several free agent signing periods.  It’s partially due to a hearty stock of talent at a couple of key need positions: runningback, and defensive end.  It’s partially due to the strides the Lions managed to take with just one draft class, and where they hope to be after one more.  But partially, it’s due to this.

The Lions are struggling to sell tickets.  They’re cutting prices.  They’re going All-You-Can-Eat.  They’re coming up with every scheme under the sun to get people to come to Ford Field.  But after a decade of complete and total futility, many fans won’t invest their emotions, their time, or their money, until the Lions prove that they’re competitive.

Let me be clear: the Lions have a direction.  They have a foundation.  They have a brand-new coach, staff, quarterback, and front office.  These men have a ‘pass’ for at least this year and next; they’ll be justly given a chance to succeed before they can be blamed for on-field failure.  Ownership understands that these men cannot produce instant results with the tools they’ve been given.

But while the coaching staff answers to the front office, and the front office answers to the ownership, ownership answers to the fans—and we fans have reached the limits of our grace; we have no free passes left to give to anybody.

Above all, the Lions are a billion-dollar business, and you and I are the customers.  We buy the tickets, the gear, the brats, and the beer that keeps the lights on at Ford Field.  If we don’t go to the games, there’s no money coming in the door--and we won’t go to the games unless we have hope of seeing a win.

I’m not saying that the Lions are looking for a “quick fix”—they’re not about to ditch their long-term construction project and put up a yurt.  But the timetable is accelerated: they’re going to have to go over budget, bring in more contractors, and maybe lobby for some tax breaks or bribe an inspector or two.

They can’t cut corners—they won’t weaken the concrete or cheap out on the fixtures—but the Lions are going to push with everything they’ve got to prove to you and to me that they really are building something special under all those tarps, and all that scaffolding.

Tomorrow is going to be a very interesting day.  The salary cap will evaporate; that the old barrier to trades, the accelerated cap hit of prorated signing bonuses, will be gone.  Players and picks can be swapped at will, and the only financial considerations will be if the team can afford to pay the players’ game checks.

You may or may not see the Lions drain the piggy bank to sign a Kyle Vanden Bosch or a Thomas Jones; Mayhew indicated they have a couple of specific targets and will be aggressively pursuing them.  But Killer and I both think the real headlines will come from the trades that Mayhew has doubtlessly been pursuing.

Either way, I am positive that 24-48 hours from now, the Lions’ roster will be different—perhaps very different.  Will that help rekindle the blue flame in the hearts of those who’ve turned away?  Will it inspire the fans to go on shopping spree for gear and season tickets?  Will it ensure the Lions play before a full house, and a full TV audience, game after game after game?

We can only hope.

Technorati Tags: detroit lions,2010 nfl offseason,2010 nfl free agency,martin mayhew,tom lewand,kyle vanden bosch,thomas jones,nfl

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meet the cubs: the truth

With the exception of Aaron Curry and his immediate relatives, I doubt anyone on this Earth wanted the Lions to draft the linebacker from Wake Forest more than I did.  After weeks of learning about the extraordinary young man, I became hopelessly enamored with the freakishly talented linebacker captaining the Lions’ defense—and his selflessness, humility, and commitment to public service spearheading the economic renaissance of Detroit.  It got so bad that I penned an open letter to Tom Lewand and Martin Mayhew, sent it to them, posted it here, disseminated it to the media, spread it around on forums, did whatever I could to convince anyone I could that Aaron Curry should be the cornerstone of the new Detroit Lions.

Further, while I readily admitted that the Lions’ quarterback situation needed to be addressed, few were as adamant as I that “addressing” the situation should not consist of slapping a pair of $72M handcuffs on one wrist each of the franchise and the fresh-faced Texan.  Matt Stafford had all the earmarks of the classic #1 quarterback bust: high-profile recruit out of high school, big career numbers compiled at a major-conference power—and a dearth of actual achievement while he was there.  He certainly didn’t live up to the outsized BCS-and-Heisman expectations.  On top of all that, he left school as a junior--a classic red flag—and did so, presumably, to avoid being buried in what’s projected to be a tremendous 2010 quarterback draft class. 

There’s no doubt that Stafford possesses all of the classic quarterback virtues: a big frame, a Howitzer of an arm, and a million-dollar aw-shucks grin.  If it were 1969 right now, Matt Stafford would be a mortal lock for the Hall of Fame.  However, the modern NFL quarterback has a different set of qualifications: impeccable decision-making, a quick, compact release, athleticism, leadership—and yes, marketability.  In each of these new post-Bill-Walsh quarterbacking dimensions, Matt Stafford looked like—at best—the #2 signal-caller available.  Especially in the months prior to April, selecting Matthew Stafford with the #1 overall pick seemed like folly on the grandest possible scale.

Nick Cotsonika of the Detroit Free Press just published a big, beautiful two-part article about Stafford’s past, his grounded upbringings in the midst of extreme gentility, his incredible links to Lion Hall of Famers Bobby Layne and Doak Walker, and his legendary high school career in a state where high school football is a religion; re-writing it all here would in fact be folly on the grandest possible scale.

Suffice it to say, Stafford has been the Golden Boy with the incredible frame, arm, skills, temperament, and mojo from as soon as he was old enough to compete with others in contests of physical skill.  From lighting up middle school with his 70-yard arm, to starting as a sophomore at one of Texas’s premier programs and bringing them a state championship, to starting as a freshman in one of the SEC’s premier programs—and holding that chair for three years—Matthew Stafford’s entire life has been building up to this.  So, now that he’s arrived, does he have the tools to succeed?

First, let’s look at his production in college: 

YEAR	CMP	ATT	YDS	CMP%	YPA	LNG	TD	INT	SACK	RAT
2006	135	256	1749	52.7	6.83	53	7	13	12	108.99
2007	194	348	2523	55.7	7.25	84	19	10	15	128.92
2008	235	383	3459	61.4	9.03	78	25	10	17	153.54

The first thing that jumps out is something that Stafford fans have pointed to over and over again: his improvement from year to year.  Each season, the number of attempts went up, the completions went up, the yards went up, the yards per attempt went up, the touchdowns went up, the passer rating went up, and the interceptions dropped or held steady.  In each year, Stafford was asked to do more and more of the work, and in each year, he did markedly better.  That’s definitely a great sign.

Looking a little more closely at his final year, we see some very respectable numbers: 61.4 completion percentage, 153.54 passer efficiency rating, 9.03 yards per attempt--all second-best in the SEC (Tebow had an edge in all).  The 3,459 yards and 383 attempts were each far and away the most in the SEC, showing that Stafford represented a far bigger percentage of the Bulldogs’ offense than any of the other quarterbacks did of theirs.  This lends credence to the oft-floated theory that Stafford didn’t have much in the way of a running game to help him out.

In order to judge for ourselves, we of course turn to the oracle which knows and sees all: the internet highlight reel.

These two clips comprise a fairly complete set of highlights for Matt Stafford’s final year of college.  When the Stafford rumors really started to pick up, I sought out as much video as I could find, to “TV scout” Stafford to the best of my ability.  Unfortunately, on first blush, my worst fears were realized.

Many of these “Matt Stafford highlights” are really Knowshown Moreno highlights.  There are a LOT of WR screens, quick outs, quick slants etc., where Stafford simply zips it out to the flat or to the side; either the receiver or the downfield blocking then turn a routine play into a big gainer.  Note that many of the actual passing plays came out of the shotgun spread alignment—for all the talk that Stafford played in a “pro style” offense, it looks like whenever the Dawgs wanted to go downfield, they went to the gun.  Finally, carefully examine the opponent, score, and time on these plays.  Many of the most impressive throws come against Central Michigan, Georgia Tech, and the like.  Most telling, perhaps, is the Alabama game.

Now when it comes to college football, I bleed green and white, I follow the Big Ten, and I pay casual attention to the rest of the NCAA.  Excepting bowl games, I typically watch two or three non-Big Ten college football games per year--and last year, ‘Bama at Georgia happened to be one of them.  There was a huge buildup to this game.  It was a marquee 7:45 pm matchup, both teams were undefeated and thinking BCS, and Georgia had issued a “blackout”—black uniforms, black shirts on fans in the stands, black face paint, black everything.  It was  absolutely a circle game for both squads.  Said Georgia coach Mark Richt before the game:

"We are playing a great team -- a top 10 team and one that is coached by one of the finest coaches in America," Richt said. "They have been tested, they just have whipped everybody so bad it didn't seem like they were."

What happened? Matthew Stafford and the Georgia Bulldogs we completely blown out of their own stadium.  ‘Bama absolutely whipped them in every phase of the game.  To be fair, Stafford wasn’t really the problem--the ‘Dawgs defense was completely worthless that night, and several freak turnovers (see the 7:09 mark) dealt Matt Stafford a brutal hand to play.  However, even in the midst of all that, I was still waiting for him to take his team on his back like a great college quarterback can.  Instead, he stuck to the gameplan.

In the face of an onslaught where ‘Bama was scoring at will, Stafford was chipping away with screens and slants, watching his title season swirling down the drain.  At halftime, it was already over.  If you advance the video to 7:17, you’ll see a series of very nice 15-to-25-yard completions out of a variety of sets.  Stafford plays with urgency, accuracy, and you can see him willing his team to win.  Unfortunately, it was already 31-0.  ‘Bama was already rotating in their second-stringers, essentially ceding first downs to the Bulldogs.  I came away from watching that game thinking Matt Stafford had gamely brought his B+ knife to a 22-man gunfight.

At this point in my predraft research, I was dead set against Stafford.  He seemed to have Tim Couch written all over him--and if the Lions were to whiff on another quarterback, all the positive momentum generated up until this point would be wasted, Schwartz would already be a dead man walking, and the next three years would be just another long, slow rake across the coals.  However, while the national media was convinced that Stafford was the no-brainer pick, the news out of Allen Park seemed to point to either a left tackle or Aaron Curry.  Matt Stafford then had his Pro Day, and the consensus seemed to be vague positivity: those who were already sold saw nothing to dissuade them, and those who were convinced he was a bust saw nothing to convince them otherwise.  ESPN and Scouts, Inc.’s Todd McShay:

McShay was absolutely correct with his last point on that clip: far more important to the Lions than Stafford’s scripted Pro Day workout was his own private workout with the Lions.  As McShay said, the Lions flew a “cast of thousands” down to Athens to put Matt Stafford through his paces their way.  As Jim Schwartz put it prior to the event:

"There's nothing wrong with us saying, 'We want to see the come-back (route) thrown into the wind, but also with the wind.' You can direct that. You can put him in some situations and throw some curveballs at him, see how he reacts and how he handles that.  Before we go down, we'll have it planned out. I don't see us communicating that to him. I see us hitting him with that at the last second. We don't want him to get ready for it," Schwartz said. "Sometimes, you can have a canned nature to the workout, it can be too scripted."

So the Lions went down to Georgia with the expressed intent of getting Stafford uncomfortable.  They wanted to get him off rhythm, force him to improvise, test his instincts and his understanding, and see what he’s really made of.  How did he do?  Well according to a piece on SI.com:

“Sources described Stafford's workout as flawless, stating it was significantly better than his March 19 pro-day workout, also held at Georgia.”

My reaction to this was extreme skepticism.  Of course, in a workout hosted by Stafford and his camp at Georgia’s facilities, and viewed only by the Lions’ staff, the reports would be nothing but glowing.  The Lions, even if they weren’t interested in Stafford, had to build value for that pick if at all possible.  They needed other teams to believe that they were sitting on a gold mine.  If Stafford wasn’t the choice, the Lions needed to convince somebody else that he was worth it—or the Lions would be stuck paying cartoon money to a linebacker or lineman.  However, if it WAS true . . . then the Lions were sitting on a gold mine. 

I decided to take matters into my own hands, and sit down with the only “game film” I had: a DVR’d copy of the 2009 Capital One Bowl.  Now, I knew going into it that this game is not considered Stafford’s greatest performance.  I also watched this game on TV when it happened, and from what I remember of Georgia’s offensive possessions (in between hanging out with my family and playing Assistant Grillmaster to my man Jim, who was hosting a party), my general impression was “not impressed”.  Still, I figured I’d get right to the heart of the matter, and chart the performance.

With an arm-breakingly large tip of the hat to Brian at MGoBlog--for both the inspiration and the permission--I used his Hennechart (or “Threetsheridamnitchart”, as it’s been rechristened) concept and grading scale.  Here’s Brian’s Hennechart legend, which explains exactly what all these numbers and abbreviations mean.  Finally, let me add the caveat that I counted every time the ball left Stafford’s hand in passion as an “attempt”; thanks to plays called back on penalties, screens reclassified as laterals,  and other gray areas, there are differences between the numbers I’m putting forth, and the official stats.  Since I was really anxious to see if my hunch from watching the highlights—that Georgia runs a “pro” offense but only really throws from a spread--was on target, I broke it down by formation:

FORMATION	DO	CA	IN	BR	TA	BA	PR
shotgun spread	4	13	7	2	1	0	1
single back 3WR	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
I-form 2WR	0	1	0	0	0	0	0
I-form 3WR	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	4	15	9	2	1	0	1

Yikes.  This was the last thing I wanted to see: Nearly every passing attempt came from the gun, with three or more receivers on the field.  Georgia was doing a lot of lining up in a traditional pro set or I-form, then they’d run—or, a few times Stafford would then back up and take the snap from the gun.  It would seem that if Georgia is typically this predictable—spread means pass, pro set means run—then it’s no wonder that their offense failed to meet expectations.  I’m going to chalk this up to Georgia’s staff presuming that a lot of spread looks would flummox a Big Ten defense that only sees four or five predominantly-spread teams a year (cue a hearty roll of the eyes).

I decided to also break it down by, well, down:

DOWN-DISTANCE	DO	CA	IN	BR	TA	BA	PR
1st-and-10	1	6	4	1	0	0	1
2nd-and-short	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
2nd-and-long	0	5	3	0	0	0	0
3rd-and-short	1	3	1	0	0	0	0
3rd-and-long	1	0	1	1	1	0	0
TOTALS	4	15	9	2	1	0	1

This isn’t any great revelation; to be frank, Stafford wasn’t great in this game no matter how you slice the numbers.  9/32 throws being “inaccurate” means that almost a third of the time, his throws weren’t catchable, or were routine throws that required a circus catch.  However, there is one thing that caught my eye: on second-and-short and third-and-short (I defined “short” as five yards and under), Stafford was either “dead on” or “catchable” with 6 of 7 throws.  If you add second-and-long in to that total, Stafford came up with good, catchable throws in 11 of 15 reasonable passing situations.  That’s when it occurred to me: those are the throws Joey Harrington couldn’t make. 

Remember how infuriating it was that on second and third down, Mooch would have every target run curls, slants, and comebacks?  Joey would have like four six-yard-deep options on 3rd-and-5, and invariably he was either inaccurate, or he threw it to Az Hakim, and therefore it would go incomplete.  I don’t know how many drives got killed with a Kevin Jones run, then two incompletions.  That was the entire point of the Walsh-style offense that Mariucci ran; short, quick, accurate throws put the skill position players in space with the ball.  If Joey had executed the dink-and-dunk stuff with placement and zip, like Stafford, Mariucci’s offense would have been significantly more successful. 

Suddenly, I realized my problem: I was only looking for evidence to support my hypothesis!  I came in looking for proof that Matt Stafford is the next Jeff George; a caveman with a rocket arm who can’t make decisions or execute a gameplan.  Yet, all the evidence shows that at Georgia, Stafford rarely used that arm as a club—he often used it like a scalpel.  Here he is running a 3-to-4 WR offense, being pretty efficient with his throws, executing the gameplan and moving the ball, and I’m complaining that he’s not spraying it all over the field like Kyle Boller!

I’m certainly not saying that Stafford is going to come in and shred NFL defenses apart with his psychic defense-reading and pinpoint accuracy.  A lot of these throws are designed plays, screens and flares where Stafford isn’t making a read, he’s just pulling the trigger.  However, that in and of itself—being a quarterback who can successfully pull the trigger on second and third down—means that a top NFL offensive coordinator like Linehan ought to be able to use him, right now, just fine.  With an unstoppable deep threat in Calvin Johnson, and a short-range broad side of a barn in Brandon Pettigrew, Matthew Stafford should have all the tools he needs to perform at a serviceable level in the NFL right away.

It’s certainly not all sunshine and lollipops here; I found very little film of him executing an NFL offense from under center.  He also was mostly uninspiring in his final game as a Bulldog, when he knew the entire football world was watching closely.  However, I also saw a lot more touch, a lot more quick throws, a lot more short-range accuracy, and a lot more athleticism than I was expecting.  He played behind a makeshift line his final year at Georgia, and he made a lot of plays happen after things broke down—or, importantly, as they were breaking down around him. 

I’m not convinced that he’ll be the next Peyton Manning or Ben Roethlisberger, but I now believe the potential is there.  Think of it this way: if he can top a 65 passer rating, he’ll be the best quarterback on the roster.  If he can be better than Charlie Batch, he’ll be the best quarterback the Lions have drafted since Rodney Peete.  If he can be better than Scott Mitchell, he’ll be the best Lions quarterback since the man who set the bar for his high school over fifty years ago: Bobby Layne.  Since Stafford already did what Layne never could—lead Highland Park to a Texas State Championship—I’m going to go out on a limb and say he’ll be better than Scott Mitchell.

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