Detroit Lions First Preseason Game: Good, but Irrelevant

Yes, a win is a win. But in the NFL, winning in the preseason is of little, if any importance.

 

Every team’s top priority in the preseason is to finish with healthy players. Next on the coaches preseason wish list is to see his team execute basic football strategy.

 

In that regard, Jim Schwartz should be pleased with how his team played against Atlanta in its first preseason game. No Detroit Lion left the field wounded against Atlanta Saturday afternoon. Furthermore, new coordinators Scott Linehan and Gunther Cunningham saw their respective philosophies succeed in live game action.

 

A job well done.

 

Also worth mentioning, Detroit won the game 27-26 on a last second field goal from the ever reliable Jason Hanson.

 

“I’m not sure if they put preseason wins on your resume or your tombstone,” Schwartz told reporters after the game as he continually downplayed the importance of Detroit’s victory.

 

While walking off the field as a winner in his first game wearing the big headset must have felt great for Schwartz, the win itself, is indeed irrelevant.

 

The last time Detroit won all four of its preseason games (2008), it finished as the worst team in NFL history with a record of 0-16.

 

Steve Mariucci also won his first preseason game with the Lions. He now works as a talking head for the NFL Network.

 

Football games are decided in the second half, primarily in the fourth quarter.

 

Preseason games in the NFL come down to which team has the strongest third string unit.

 

It doesn’t matter that Ramzee Robinson and Stuart Schweigert played lock-defense in the secondary for the Lions.

 

The only tackles they’ll make this year will come on special teams.

 

Drew Stanton’s game-winning two-minute-drill was fun to watch and a nice reminder of his days at Michigan State. But it, too, was all for show.

 

The only meaningful game on Detroit’s horizon is Sept. 13 at the Superdome in New Orleans. The sooner the Lions can get their first regular season win, the sooner the pressure and embarrassment of the infamous 0-16 season will diminish.

 

Everything up to week one is nothing more than preparation.

 

Additional notes: Detroit’s quarterbacks combined to complete 20-of-33 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns without the teams top three wide receivers (Calvin Johnson, Bryant Johnson, Dennis Northcutt) or projected starting tight end Brandon Pettigrew in uniform.

 

Rookie running back Aaron Brown had an impressive debut, rushing for 47 yards and a touchdown on six carries.

 

Detroit Lions Will Rely Heavily On Rookies This Season

Matthew Stafford is going to be under center for the Detroit Lions at some point this season. It’s the classic forgone conclusion which comes with being the No. 1 overall pick.

 

Sure, veteran Daunte Culpepper will draw consideration from the coaching staff, and maybe get the nod to start week one. But he will be sitting by season’s end.

 

Yet, Stafford is not the only rookie Detroit will rely on this season. All 10 of Detroit’s 2009 draft choices have signed contracts with the team. Many agreed to multi-year deals.

 

First-round pick Brandon Pettigrew was the last to put his name on the dotted line, and he too will shoulder much responsibility this year. Petttigrew was projected as the best tight end in this year’s draft class, and he is without a doubt the best on Detroit’s roster.

 

Other rookies with a chance to start are safety Louis Delmas and wide receiver Derrick Williams (as a return specialist).

 

Even the previously unknown defensive tackle from Stillman College, Sammie Hill, should get considerable playing time this season backing up veterans Grady Jackson and Chuck Darby.

 

Half of Jim Schwartz’s (who is a rookie in his own right) first team depth chart could be filled with players who have been in the league three years or fewer.

 

Ah to be young.

 

The challenge will be developing the team’s youth into Pro-Bowl caliber talent. An area where former coaches in Detroit have failed miserably.

 

Schwartz has maintained he will not announce a formal depth chart until the end of training camp, and possibly not until the start of the regular season.

 

“I don’t want to close my mind,” Schwartz said in a statement on the team’s website. “I think it’s unfair to the guys that are here fighting for roster spots; it’s unfair to the guys that are competing for starting positions for me in my mind to already pencil guys in.”

 

Regardless what players stand where on Detroit’s depth chart, with 10 rookies signed and most expected to make the final 53-man roster, the Lions will be running with young legs this season.

 

Detroit’s first preseason game is August 15th against the Cleveland Browns.

Michael Vick Deserves Another Chance

Michael Vick has had numerous incidents of poor behavior in his past. His reputation has been damaged by more than just the dog fighting crime which landed him in prison. But he has not lowered himself to the point where he no longer deserves forgiveness.

Vick has paid his debt to society and should be given another chance to play in the NFL.

What Vick did, bank-rolling and participating in a dog fighting ring nearly two years ago, was ignorant and appalling. His previous actions of flipping off fans and poorly representing his team showed undeniable signs of immaturity.

Yet, I imagine serving 23 months in prison has its way of humbling people.

Vick no longer is standing on a pedestal so high he cannot see the bottom. Instead, he is at the bottom, looking up at where he once was.

Sometimes it just takes a reality check and a chip being placed on an athlete’s shoulder to restore their career. Vick has been given both. Now, all he needs is someone to give him an opportunity.

Signing Vick at this point would only be a risk from a public relations standpoint. He is in no position to demand money of any significance, and could be cut at the first sign of trouble. Bringing him in would not create a quarterback controversy because nobody, including Vick himself, expects him to be in contention for a starting job this season.

At the age of 28, Vick is still in his athletic prime. Sure, being in prison has probably diminished his conditioning and football knowledge, but that can be regained. Besides, what made Vick a good quarterback was not his work ethic or football IQ. It was his pure talent.

Talent does not just disappear.

Maybe prison has ruined Vick instead of inspiring him. But he should be given the opportunity to prove that statement true or false.

How many other athletes have broken the law and been “punished” with nothing more than community service or a fine which fails to dent their bank account?

Vick went to jail.

He lost all his endorsements and recently had to file for bankruptcy. I personally don’t think there is any way Vick would take another opportunity for granted. He has nothing left, except for a chance at playing football again.

He deserves that chance.

“I will redeem myself, I have to.”

Those were the final words spoken by Vick at a press conference before he was locked away for 23 months.

A potential road block for Vick is the fact that he is still under an indefinite suspension from the league. Assuming Vick’s suspension is lifted and he is eligible to play in the 2009 season, some team should give him his one phone call.

Perhaps the only team that shouldn’t consider Vick is the Cleveland Browns. Although their quarterback situation is far from solved, the irony of Vick being cheered from the “dog pound” would just be too much.

The Detroit Lions Can Be Successful In 2009

Winning in the NFL is not an impossible feat. Even for the Detroit Lions.

The Lions have mastered the art of losing consistently. Detroit has won one playoff game in the last 50 years. Just one. Last season, one win was one too many for the Lions. They finished with an imperfect 0-16 record.

It’s easy for fans and media to sit back and throw bricks of criticism at a team, when in actuality they are not involved in the process which separates winners from losers. But can winning really be that hard? Can competing consistently, or at least periodically, actually be impossible?

I say no. No way.

The NFL operates on a level playing field. Every team has the same opportunity to win, bottom line. Stupidity and indifference are what prevents sports franchises from being successful.

First and foremost, an owner must know how to win. Furthermore, an owner must view winning as a priority. Up to this point, William Clay Ford, owner of the Lions, has done neither of the two, thus explaining the Lions’ endless struggle.

But there is hope. The NFL has proved to be a “quick-fix” league, even if the team appears to be in a million rusted pieces.

Both Miami and Atlanta went from the doormat of the league in 2007, to playoff teams in 2008. It didn’t take long at all, just one off-season.

Similar examples can be found with several NFL teams in recent years.

Just because Detroit has been the poster child for terrible football the past 50 years, doesn’t mean this season is doomed for failure as well.

Let us not forgot the Arizona Cardinals played in the Super Bowl last season.

Detroit has quietly addressed some glaring needs. An overhauled front office was the first step. Bringing Jim Schwartz, Gunther Cunningham, and Scott Linehan to the sidelines will provide a coaching foundation.

Going below the radar and signing accomplished veterans such as Grady Jackson, Larry Foote, Bryant Johnson and Maurice Morris will serve great dividends on game day. Drafting quarterback Matthew Stafford was a leap of faith the Lions had to take.

Is Detroit still the worst team in the NFC North? Possibly. But they will be far from the worst team in the league, let alone league history. Of that I am certain.

To predict a specific number of wins would be nothing more than idiotic speculation at this point. There are far too many variables which lead to success or failure in the NFL.

 

But I will say this much. The Lions have a chance to be successful this season.

Granted, the word success is vague when compared to the complete failure the Lions experienced a year ago. Yet, therein lays the beauty of this upcoming season in Detroit. There are no expectations.

The Lions cannot fail. They already have done so to the greatest degree. For this one unique season, there truly is nowhere to go but up.

The Detroit Lions’ Inevitable Quarterback Controversy

Daunte Culpepper is the incumbent starter. Matthew Stafford is the highly rated, overpaid, and knock-on-wood, savior of the Detroit Lions franchise.

Yet, the roles of these two quarterbacks in 2009 are far from decided.

Ideally, the Lions would like to use Culpepper as a “bridge” to Stafford and the team’s future, as said publicity by new head coach Jim Schwartz. But patience is low and pressure is high in Detroit.

Fans are angry in the Motor City. Lovable losers the Lions are not. Not after a 0-16 season, not after 50 years of futility. The Lions need results, or at the very least, to create excitement.

Early word out of Detroit is that Culpepper looks great in mini-camp. The veteran himself told The Detroit Free Press that he is in “the best shape of my career since the 2004 season.”

But, looking good throwing post-routes in gym shorts is far different from performing on Sundays.

Culpepper has reportedly lost close to 40 pounds, formed good chemistry with star wide receiver Calvin Johnson, and is excited about being reunited with former Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Scott Linehan.

But is that enough to secure him the starting job?

Not yet.

If Stafford out-performs Culpepper in training camp and the preseason, keeping the rookie on the bench will be near impossible.

Furthermore, even if the Lions opt to protect Stafford and go with Culpepper as the starter, how will Coach Schwartz justify the move if the team starts 0-4, or 1-6?

Both Stafford and Culpepper are saying all the right things now – talking about accepting their roles and doing what’s best for the team. But the competition between the two is already underway.

Stafford heard the boos on draft day. Culpepper remembers the failures of his comeback last season, and his previous stint in Oakland. Both players expect to start, and neither will be content with a reserve role.

The quarterback situation in Detroit is a true toss up, and will serve as the first major decision for Schwartz in his head coaching career.

History has offered conflicting results to the rookie/veteran quarterback dilemma.

In the case of Carson Palmer, sitting a year on the bench behind former Lion Jon Kitna paid great dividends. Cincinnati remained competitive, although missed the playoffs, and Palmer took over the following year and played great. He has since developed into a Pro Bowl quarterback.

On the contrary, there is last season’s Offensive Rookie of the Year Matt Ryan. Ryan started from day one in Atlanta and led the Falcons to an improbable NFC South division title. His career started off with a bang when he, coincidentally, posted a 137 quarterback rating in a season-opening win over Detroit.

Either scenario would be suitable for the Lions.

What Detroit cannot afford is option C, a failure on both counts.

As Schwartz said in his introductory press conference with the Lions, “It’s about time we found a replacement for Bobby Lane.”

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