Let's rewind for a moment & take a deep breath...my glass of kool-aid is still half full.

For the second week in a row I have missed the game live but watched it off the PVR later in the day.  I have avoided POD in the mean time so as to keep it interesting as I watch & catch up.  Upon completion, as many of you have also felt, I let out a big sigh; look at the schedule and start to look at the coming match ups.   I come on over to POD to see the recaps & comments...and short of a few, I have had more disappointment reading than I have had in watching the games.  No offense to anyone here...but can we collectively rewind for a few minutes here, remember where each of us were four months ago...heck even ten months ago.  Lets remember what we were concerned with then, what we were hoping for come the regular season and perhaps most importantly where our expectations & excitment were placed.  I appologize in advance for the excessive use of the word "collectively".

First I will take us back to last fall...perhaps the starting point of our new found hope, and perhaps also the set up for the feeling many of have now.  Millen was fired.  Yes the front office had made many changes & overhauls since this point...but the fact is we all know the damage that was done by Millen.  We all know how long it takes to rebuild when you only have one or two draft picks still with the team from the last 5 (or more) drafts.  Lets not forget this.  Collectively we all celebrated.  Collectively we all saw the clean slate & fresh start.  Collectively we all had hope restored as our team began its rebuilding from the Millen wrecking ball.  Collectively though we all knew that this was only the start of a long process, and all agreed that this was the begining of a two or even three year campaign to restore the roar.

Next we saw the early reviews on the new front office.  Mayhew & Co shrewdly traded away two huge headaches in Kitna & Williams for draft picks and a DB who is holding his own.  They also brought in a wealth of knowledge including two former NFL DC's in Schwartz & Cunningham.  Collectively we saw the promise that this attention to making over the  defense  which was the worst part of the team over the previous years.  This attention to the defense brought in some immediate upgrades not only in knowledge & background; but also in players.  The likes of Julian Peterson, Grady Jackson, Philip Buchannon, Eric King and perhaps most importantly in my eyes Larry Foote.  All came into town dedicating themselves to being part of the solution.  Larry took it one step further realizing the need for a solution not only for the Lions as a team, but for the city of Detroit.  Again, collectively we looked and saw the improvement not only in mindset from this side of the ball but in ability.  Yet we all stepped back and tempered our expectations.  Saying "if this turns out to be a top 20 defense it will be a welcomed change & improvement".  There were predictions that gave bigger hopes, but most were happy to hope for a middle of the road defense.

The next chapter was the draft.  We all sat back in awe.  There was an incredible amount of energy on this site leading up to the draft.  There were a million and one "IMO's".  At the end, we saw a front office stay true to their word in drafting the best player available as there were too many needs to draft need based.  The result was drafting a QB of the future, a TE that has pro-bowl potential in all aspects of his game, a safety that once he learns to tackle by putting his head & shoulders in front of the ball carrier will be a dynamo and a few projects for the coaches.  We stole Aaron Brown late in the draft & added some depth to build on.  But as excited as we all were, as much kool-aid as we were drinking...our expectations were still tempered.  Most agreed that a 5 win season would be a success.  Some went so far as to say a 1 win season would be a success. 

Collectively we looked at the schedule & gasped.  How can a team coming off 0-16 face playoff teams every week through the first six games?  I know I'm likely not the only one who did the math here, but when I looked at the schedule I began preparing myself for a team that had gone 0-23, 0-6 this year coming out of the bye.  My only hope was that they played competitively, didn't fall behind by 21 pts in the first quarter of games, showed improvement week over week...and still had their wits about them coming out of the by to face the second half.

The OTA's came and went; before we knew it we were projecting our starting line ups.  We came out of the preseason with our 3rd string QB being our most prolific, our run defense being tops (or top five) in the league, our ground game on offense doing the same and one heck of a decision to make on our starting QB.  The decision was made perhaps by default, and the franchise was placed on the shoulders of a young kid who played for the same high school as Bobby Lane; who I believe sold his soul to the devil to bring us Millen but that is for another day.  More here than ever, we reminded ourselves to temper expectations.  We knew we had a gunslinger who was going to make rookie mistakes, who as any gunslinger was going to throw interceptions.  We had an unproven defense.  An offensive line that could be slightly above average. 

And right before kick off in week one, the fan base grew from what I saw here on POD.  Welcoming back many Lions faithful who had left through the years.  Thanking many new comers & supporters from other teams for best wishes. 

And then week one happened.  As Drew so poetically put it, the Lions are exactly who we collectively thought they were.  They showed flashes of potential, they made mistakes in moments of idiocy, they got out played by the top rated offense in the league hands down.  Out came the critics in full force as if we were supposed to win that game.  Interestingly enough, "a higher rated team" in the Eagles were ripped apart by those same Saints; the difference being that we actually scored more points than the Eagles did.  Now I know that Kevin Kolb is no Donovan McNabb, but he does have more experience than Stafford does in terms of NFL tenure.  I thought the Lions did as good of a job as can be expected vs the Saints, and now I think even more so after seeing the result vs the Eagles.

Then week two.  Again, the Lions showed that they are exactly who we thought they were.  They showed a lot of piss & vinegar on the defensive side of the ball through the first half.  Containing AP & getting pressure AND sacks against the passing attack.  Kevin Smith & the ground game, lets leave it at it was well above average vs the Williams wall.  Then the turnovers happened.  The poor calls against the Lions.  The poor play calling from the OC.  No down field looks.  The bad reads....and AP took over in the fourth quarter as he has and will continue to do against most if not all teams this year.  Yes the team was in it, and played as they normally do vs the Vikings.  Yes they had the game in hand.  But they are still the Lions, who are very much mid rebuilding.  Which cannot be mistaken with a top tier team using the draft & free agency to replace one or two starters per year.  Bottom line, it was a heck of a game that continued to show progress.  Yet again I come to POD to share with my fellow fans to find the critics out in full force.  For this game I can understand a bit more as the Lions had the lead at half time & literally had a multiple personality disorder impersonation...BUT everything we collectively wanted to see just a couple months ago was there.  Offensively we ran effectively vs the #1 run defense.  Defensively we got pressure on the QB & had multiple sacks.  This was a different team than in any game I watched last year.  But they are still the same rebuilding team we all reminded eachother to have tempered expectations for.  Why?  Because they are young, don't have rapport with eachother yet, they aren't as skilled as most other teams across the board yet.  My biggest concern with this game is not what I saw from the players...it was from Coach Schwartz.  Did anyone else see how relaxed he was coming out of half time?  He was full of smiles & jokes.  The teams personality on the field matched this.  They didn't have the fire or intensity they had in the first half.  Schwartz should have had the same grit he started the game with and prevented the team from becoming complacent.  But as much of a learning experience for the players this is; I have to remind myself it is for Schwartz too.

To me, holding on to my preseason expectations, I must say I am pleased with what I have seen so far.  Yes I am frustrated & don't want to go 0-23.  But this team is who I thought they were.  They have had me on the edge of my seat not only in frustration but in sheer excitement.  I can see the potential.  Yet somehow, there are many people who have lost their thought process from just weeks ago.  And perhaps it is that heavy feeling in the pit of our stomaches...the deja vu feeling.  But this is when we need to collectively catch ourselves, pinch ourselves.  Remember what our expectations were going into the season.  If you had told me six months ago that we'd be in the game at half time vs both the Saints & the Vikings in back to back weeks I would have been very happy and likley called you crazy.  And perhaps that is why the frustration is abound.  The team has shown so much progress & potential at times that we lose sight of our tempered expectations... when they slip into the mistakes we have seen before it feels like we were slapped in the face.

There is a tough road ahead of us.  Are some of those games winables? Yes, most certainly.  Are they losable?  Yes, most definately.  I don't expect this team to go 8-8.  Again, I will be very happy with a 5-11 or 4-12 season.  Any team can win on any given Sunday, ours will come.  But don't lose faith now.  Don't lose sight of our expectations when the team started the OTA's.  We must collectively support the team & not call for their heads.  Be critical, but don't abandon the team.  If this team is to get through this tough schedule, especially the front half, with their wits about them & their heads held up...trying to do everything in their power not to let the "here we go again" enter their heads...as fans we must do the same.  I used the word disappointment before the jump because this is not the same group I remember from two weeks ago, two months ago or ten months ago.  This was a very realistic group prior to week one.  I have read so much negativity here of late it truly saddens me as a fan.  Don't get me wrong, I love the passion, I respect the thoughts & opinions...and although it is great to have high hopes, our expectations must remain realistic.  There are a few that have held  steadfast to this...but not many.  Unless you were one of the few that honestly thought this team was going to the SuperBowl this year, you cannot be disappointed with the team thus far.  Again I say there have been mistakes, but we knew there would be.  There have been bumps in the road, but we knew there would be.  There have been moments of WOW, but we knew there would be.  Progress my friends, progress is what we are seeing.  Let these guys build some continuity, some consistency of knowing what eachother can do in a game situation...most importantly... before we call this season a mirror of last year...or call it another failure...or call these the same old Lions...having cut throat criticism just to be that guy who said "I told you so back in week 1"...cause if that is your mentality...jump ship and go play some more blame game with the kings of it...Kitna & Williams.

  I enjoy the discussions, through the highs & lows...but remember this is our team, we are part of it by being a fan.  And every team is only as strong as its weakest link.  Lets not let that be us the fans.  We are entitled to be critical, but we are bound by our loyalty.  I don't think I am alone in my thinking, I may be, but I hope not...lets see where we are come week 17.  Until then...Go Lions! 

We've come a long way in the last ten months...but we have a long way to go in the next four.

BTW...it was great to not only see the Cowboys lose last night in their home opener...and even more so for Roy to do zip zilch.  Looks good on you my friend, you wanted the starlight of the lonestar state...now you got it...enjoy!!