Lions Notes: Jim Schwartz Explains HB Pass; Stefan Logan Wins Award

• Jim Schwartz explained the decision to run a halfback pass in the fourth quarter of last Sunday's blowout by saying that he was trying to get it called for "about four weeks now." He added that because teams were cheating on the Jahvid Best toss-sweep, this should keep them honest in the future. Some have suggested that the call was a response to St. Louis' onside kick, but I doubt it. Like Schwartz said, it'll keep teams honest, because now they have to keep this in the back of their head while reviewing film on the Lions. It was simply a good time to call it, as the Lions had the luxury of being up big.
  
• Stefan Logan's father, who has been suffering from kidney failure, was able to attend Sunday's game against the Rams, which makes the 105-yard kick return touchdown his son had even more special.
• Speaking of Stefan Logan, he was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week.
• The NFL is apparently going to review what is being called the "Calvin Johnson rule" in the offseason. A lot of good that does the Lions now, right?
  
• Ndamukong Suh visited a Subway in Detroit earlier this week. Bloggers and local media were invited to the event, so there are plenty of recaps of it out there. (I unfortunately couldn't attend because I had class.)
• Suh and Justin Tuck, who is also involved with Subway, wagered sandwiches on Sunday's game. The loser will have to donate sandwiches from Subway to charity. Suh is actually the one who came up with the idea for the friendly wager.

(More after the jump)

• If Jeff Backus starts on Sunday, it will be his 150th consecutive appearance in the starting lineup, which is pretty remarkable.
• Interesting stat a reader passed along: Alphonso Smith has as many interceptions as the Denver Broncos, his former team. Dan Gronkowski, who was traded for Smith, has three catches for 13 yards this season. I think it's safe to say the Lions won this trade.
• The Lions worked out a number of players recently.
• Shaun Hill is up for the FedEx Air Player of the Week.
• Aaron Brown hopes to play this week. He has been out with a broken hand and actually has three screws in it right now. That can't be comfortable.
• According to a poll, the Lions rank 30th in the NFL in popularity. Just imagine if they keep winning and the bandwagon starts to fill up.
• As you may have already heard, the NFL has partnered with Nike and New Era. Nike will provide the uniforms and on-field apparel and New Era will be the official headwear supplier. These deals begin in 2012. (For more on the Nike deal, check out this interview Darren Rovell conducted with the Nike Brand president.)