Time to start over

by The Prodigy on Dec 29, 2006 2:45 PM EST

When I think back to the beginning of the season, and all the hope I had for the blue and silver, it really disappoints me how this season will end. Most likely it'll be 2-14, with the opportunity for the #1 pick to come here. This year, however, the Lions can't rely on just the draft to bring in new, young talent. They need to go out and sign free agents, make trades, and try to find hidden gems, because it's time for the franchise to start over.

It's been 50 years of rebuilding, and I'm sick of it. I'm sick of "good potential", and "showing heart". As far as I'm concerned, heart never won a football game and potential is a way around the fact that your football team sucks. Those phrases have been rampant in Detroit since 1957, and it's never amounted to anything except one lousy playoff win. One! But now it's time to do all over again. Do what has been done wrong for 50 years, and do it right. Rebuilding. You have to clean house in Detroit. I don't want two borderline starting quarterbacks, I want one that is gonna get the job done. I don't want depth on the offensive line, I want five guys that will knock the snot out of defensive lineman and play with a serious mean streak. I don't want "injury depleted" to be an excuse for why the front seven sucks every year. If one guy can't get the job done, then bring in others who can. If he's injured, trade him for a starter. And finally, get coaches that can do the job. I still think that Rod Marinelli might be on to something with his disiplined approach, but he needs to have it be consistant. You can't disipline Mike Williams, but then leave Shaun Rogers be. Create a technique for the disipline and stick to it.

We're still probably 3-5 years from being able to cheer on the Lions in January, even if this "rebuilding" is done right. Because after this year it's back to square one, and it's a long climb up. I don't care if it's Marinelli or someone else, Millen or someone else, or even Ford or someone else. As long as the job's done right.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pride of Detroit or its writers. FanPosts are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable fans.

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I agree

So far over this span of Millen's time in Detroit there has been one constant thing (aside from losing). After every mediocre season most of the players remained the same. Sure, if you go back to 2001 the roster looks a lot different, but overall the problems haven't been greatly addressed. My best example for this is the Saints. This season they brought in 30 or so new players along with a top draft pick and that hidden gem (Marques Colston). Now look where they are, a great record and one of the NFC's top seeds.

I like your idea though, get rid of the majority of the players, possibly trading away some with minimal talent in return for some of those "hidden gems" and then start over fresh. Things aren't going to change when the players that continuously lose remain a Lion.

by Sean Yuille on Dec 29, 2006 11:00 PM EST reply actions

response

I agree that the lions are not contenders. However, I would say that in todays league which is full of parody the lions are a few "ah ha" moments away from contention.

Don't sign players whose careers have been riddled with injury and then be flabergasted when (drum roll please...) they get injured.
Cut your loses with crappy players not named Mike Williams. This includes Verba, Woody, Bryant, Hall. I would suggest keeping MW for a bit. Keeping him and seeing his growth (ability not waistline) is a testament to the Marinelli plan. Cutting him would not speak so much of his ability to coach as much as his ability to dictate which players don't respond well to.
Make a splash. Either through free agency or the draft. It's well known that the o-line didn't get many x-mas cards from fans this year and my rational side says take the monster from Wisconsin but I ask would the Titans have been as good with D'brikshaw Ferguson as with Vince Young? Frank Davis of AZ is a free agent who could fill in on the line. With that said I throw out the name Jamarus Russel of LSU. At 6'6 260 lbs we wouldn't need a line because no one could bring him done. Other needs include more lineman, a corner whose not made out of glass to match with Bly, MLB with cover skills, and finally a pass rush (huh? thought that was suppose to be Edwards?).
Don't turn it over so much. The Lion's trade mark is completing passes to the other team. Is that because Kitna sucks, the line, the play call or a bit of each, i don't know. But, by giving the other team one fewer possesion per game it possibly negates that one score advantage opponents leave with.

Looking for gems is what every gm gets paid to do. Problem is that there's no formula or else there wouldn't be busts like Leaf, Akili Smith, and Andre Ware. I was pissed when we got Ernie Sims and he's turned out to be a machine. Teams should not take popular in state picks like Rogers for PR because it often bits you in the ass and becomes more of a PR nightmare. Furry, Redding, and others are good finds but when you play on a semi pro team you don't get sportscenter shout outs like Colston does.

5) Hang in there.

by InToddwetrust on Jan 4, 2007 7:01 PM EST reply actions