We Will Be Just Fine

by Twon82 on Dec 5, 2011 2:02 PM EST

Honestly, I saw these two ugly losses coming from ten miles away. Even when we were 5-0, I saw the teams we've beaten this year and wondered if we'd really been tested. Yes, we had major comebacks that were beyond impressive against Dallas and the Vikings on their own turf. Yes, we crushed KC, and Denver eventually. And we had a huge win over the Bears on MNF in Detroit.

But the Packers and Saints are a different breed of teams. They have won recent Super Bowls with their star players. They have been tested and proven. Their QBs are lights-friggin'-out right now. WITH ALL THE STUPIDITY THAT THE LIONS COMMITTED IN BOTH GAMES, they weren't blown out completely.

All the Lions need to do is reel in the overemotional reaction to every little thing. We are still learning to win, and the pressure of being considered winners seems to be tough for them to handle right now. The limelight is new to all of them.

The test is truly coming in these last four weeks. Vikings. Chargers. Raiders. Packers. We have a chance to regroup. We can win 3 of these last 4 in my opinion. That puts us at 10-6 for the year. It is amazing to me, after how bad we were in 2008 and before, that we are at this point already....being considered playoff hopefuls. Honestly, it's a beautiful thing.

They will learn from their mistakes. Trust me, Jim Schwartz is a smart guy. They are all going through continued growing pains, and this will only make them stronger together. Smarter together. Better on the field together.

Are you telling me after this year of learning how to win....plus getting Mikel Leshoure and Jahvid Best back, Nick Fairley having an actual offseason to improve and get in shape, draft picks, free agency, having just re-discovered Kevin Smith looking better than ever...etc.... that we aren't heading somewhere extremely special?

We will be just fine.

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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Comments

Eh, Most of the Negative has to do with

Unrealistic expectations, The inability to accept the growing pains, and an (ironically) immature fan base that “WANTS WINNING NOW, WAH”!

Let these doom and gloom crybabies throw their fits… Most Detroit Lion fans (at least the realistic ones) can see the improvements week in, week out and can accept immature mistakes from immature teams.

http://twitter.com/#!/rumbulls

by CLF on Dec 5, 2011 2:25 PM EST reply actions

Exactly

I couldn’t have said it better.

USE THE SCHWARTZ!!!

by Twon82 on Dec 5, 2011 3:02 PM EST up reply actions

CLF

I like most of your comments. However, expectations do change. Really they should change. Some teams are better and some teams are worse than preseason expectations. After a 5-0 start, how did your expectations change?

Yes, they are a young team and will make stupid mistakes. Now, do I think their stupid mistakes were the difference in winning the last two games-No. But, we have caught the eye of the officials. Right or wrong they need to clean up their play a little cause any questionable call will go against the team.

by jeremy j on Dec 5, 2011 3:33 PM EST up reply actions

Hey, I agree.

I was really impressed after the 5-0 start, who wasn’t. However, Reality set in after the ATL and SF losses… as a fan, my feet started to touch the ground and the cloud 9 disapated.

Reality is, and most of us agreed, that this was a wild card team… guess what, that hasn’t changed.

Reality is, this team has yet to play a perfect game.

Realtiy is, mistakes happen and teams don’t turn around overnight.

Were the penalties last night retarded, uh yeah… Hopefully its a wakeup call and this team can grow from it.

Is it time to pickup the pitch forks and fire, cut, and clean this team’s coaching staff and roster like Cino and Joshun (the Kings of DOOM AND GLOOM) would like you to believe???/

Why the fuck would ANY team do that when they are in the running for a playoff spot?

Fact is, these two knuckle heads are flatout running on emotions…. hot, negative, ignorant emotion and nothing else.
Fact is, NO NFL team would do that at this point in the season.

Emotional, negative Nancies…. who can’t cope with growing pains. Some of these pains are not excusable… but some are necessary.

http://twitter.com/#!/rumbulls

by CLF on Dec 5, 2011 4:01 PM EST up reply actions

LOL

Emotions are running a little hot. The objective person realizes that the stupid penalities are not the reason why we lost; they hurt but not one of them happened during a scoring play.

On the otherhand, people could question the decision of kicking a 55 yard FG, especially since the D was shutting down New Orleans Offense.

by jeremy j on Dec 5, 2011 4:56 PM EST up reply actions

Or not taking a timeout on 4th down when the whole offense was confused

by jeremy j on Dec 5, 2011 4:58 PM EST up reply actions

which resulted in turning the ball over on downs

and finished the game for us.

I like Wins, Cheese and I also Like Cookies. If you don't. Wow. :P
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by joshsun on Dec 5, 2011 5:14 PM EST up reply actions

Ugh

Stuff like that pisses me off. C’mon coach!

Oh Yeah!!!

by hb.koolaid on Dec 6, 2011 11:31 PM EST up reply actions

yup

by joshsun on Dec 7, 2011 11:40 AM EST up reply actions

I see our eventual success (or not) hinging on Stafford and the D

And last night was in some ways encouraging for me. I was a bit worried after some of the less than stellar play of Staff, but I think a lot of that had to do with the broken finger, despite what the FO had to say. He in many ways IS our franchise, so despite the bone headed and inexcusable pentalties (Titus, Logan, Grew), I saw some good coming out of the Saints game. Matt was smiling at times and gun-slinging it with the best of them. That in itself gives me hope. And they guy is still so very young (23). Even the “greats” have gotten off to less than perfect starts in their first few years. He’s still learning and improving.

Fairley also was really dominant during the first quarter before he re-injured his foot. I’m resigned to him not being 100% this year, but the guy is young and I expect him to be in good health next year, and a “force”.

Tulloch and Durrant have for the most part been very good, and overall I think Huston and Wright have been an upgrade at corner (despite some blown plays).

I wasn’t expecting the SB this year and we’ve caught some bad breaks with injuries. And overall the team is young and talented. I think they still need a couple more years of seasoning, experience and coaching to reach their full potential. Yes the stupid penalties and mistakes need to stop. The coaches and veteran players need to address that, and I hope they do successfully.

Lion fan in the Great Land!

by AlaskaLion on Dec 6, 2011 2:02 AM EST up reply actions

The ONLY way we will be fine is if they correct the penalty issue

This team is there. We should have beaten the Packers and the Saints, but the penalties just killed them. I feel like I was watching the Bobby Ross era team last night, it was ridiculous. I don’t know who was worse, Young acting like an idiot or Burleson getting THREE offensive pass interference penalties. He is a veteran player there is no excuse.

I think the only people that are freaking out are the one who only see the score and the record and not the games. I don’t care what anyone says the lions should have beaten the Packer and the Saints. The players lost those games, not coaching, not the refs, not play calling. It was just stupid penalties.

The good things I took away from the last two games is how great Kevin Smith and Fairly looked, too bad they are injured.

by lionfan4life on Dec 5, 2011 2:38 PM EST reply actions

Really?

You honestly think the penalties were the deciding difference? Yes, they made it extremely hard on us. And yes, we could’ve had much better outings without them. But both of those teams are smarter and better equipped than us right now. Not by a long shot, but just enough.

With that said, you are exactly what CLF is talking about. They started off great, they’re going through growing pains, and they will come back from this. Give it time.

USE THE SCHWARTZ!!!

by Twon82 on Dec 5, 2011 3:04 PM EST up reply actions

Wait a minute

But both of those teams are smarter and better equipped than us right now.

Being smarter is exactly what he was talking about. Smart teams do not shot themselves in the foot. Smart teams do not shot themselves in the foot so often that other teams actually game plan to use that against them.

This is not growing pains, this is flat out stupid undisciplined football.

You can put lipstick on a pig, it is still a pig.

by joshsun on Dec 5, 2011 3:51 PM EST up reply actions

We get it... the Lions should be undefeated and Schwartz should be fired....

Yada yada… Joshun was right… this team stinks… yada yada…

Yawn.

http://twitter.com/#!/rumbulls

by CLF on Dec 5, 2011 4:04 PM EST up reply actions

lmao

Where did I say Schwartz should be fired?

Where did I say this team stinks?

Where did I say the team should be undefeated?

Wow, it is amazing. I have not said any of those things. Could it be that you are using extreme exaggeration and sarcasm because you have nothing else?

by joshsun on Dec 5, 2011 4:06 PM EST up reply actions

they are young..........it will all get better and we will all laugh at you JOSHSUN

by perfectlions on Dec 6, 2011 2:56 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

they are young..........it will all get better and we will all laugh at you JOSHSUN

by perfectlions on Dec 6, 2011 2:58 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

dont get me wrong though schwartz also needs a little disipline

He is where the fire is starting from….I like him but tone it down a bit….do you think the refs will like you for chewing them out and yelling “learn the fucking rules” on tv?

by perfectlions on Dec 6, 2011 3:01 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

do you think the refs will like you for chewing them out and yelling "learn the fucking rules" on tv?

nope

by joshsun on Dec 6, 2011 2:03 PM EST up reply actions

Obviously it hasn't worked...

As the refs still haven’t learned the fucking rules…lol

http://twitter.com/#!/rumbulls

by CLF on Dec 6, 2011 2:28 PM EST up reply actions

Maybe he should try it again...

Could work!

Oh Yeah!!!

by hb.koolaid on Dec 6, 2011 11:36 PM EST up reply actions

I absolutely think penalties were the difference

Especially because they were only down by 7 in the 4th quarter. I also don’t agree with you when you say that they are better equipped than the lions.

And at what point in my post was I freaking out? I think it is crap when you look at the penalties that the lions got last night and call them growing pains, those were mental lapses that no team should be doing. Growing pains are when the qb throws an int on the drive to win the game

by lionfan4life on Dec 5, 2011 4:34 PM EST via mobile up reply actions

Growing pains are when the qb throws an int on the drive to win the game

fact or opinion.

http://twitter.com/#!/rumbulls

by CLF on Dec 5, 2011 4:44 PM EST up reply actions

Opinion

Every thing that I saI’d was all opinion. It just frustrates the he’ll out of me to see the lions give games away like that. I still think that the lions could have beat both the packers and the saints. I’m not saying they should be undefeated by any means because with the SF game the lions got outplayed. I did not see the falcons game so I can’t say anything about that, but in my opinion penalties are what killed the lions in the last two weeks

by lionfan4life on Dec 5, 2011 4:51 PM EST via mobile up reply actions

What players can we possibly be losing in free agency next yr?

by Penaltylions on Dec 5, 2011 3:07 PM EST reply actions

Good post.

The sad part to me is that we have to have one of our own write one of these types of posts after EVERY stinking loss. It’s just so tiring to me. Yes, I was disappointed last night. Yes, I was hollering at the TV. Yes, there were lots of mistakes. But for crying out loud, we are 7-5 and in the thick of the playoff hunt. I see posts by people asking for Young and Pettigrew and Burleson to get cut! Huh? Get the fuck outta here. Nonsense, through and though.

To me, there has always been a very clear distinction between being disappointed in a loss and getting stupid about a loss. So many people here like to cross into stupid after every one of ‘em. Like I said… it’s just downright tiring to listen to.

by DrewsLions on Dec 5, 2011 4:17 PM EST reply actions

Agreed

It is easy to overreact after 5-0 it is easy to overreact after handshake gate.

Every season comes with its highs and lows, but we are still in the playoff hunt in the last quarter of the season and we can hold our own destiny.

We are growing and learning and it will be fun to see what this team brings these last few weeks.

Go Lions

Lions 2011 "Luke 18:27"

by The.Lions on Dec 5, 2011 4:36 PM EST reply actions

Not that it's made it less frustrating

But honestly, The Lions are exactly the team I thought they’d be. My take before the season began was that they had the talent and explosion to beat any team on any given sunday. That they could be a team to get to the NFC championship game, BUT that they wouldn’t. They would fight and claw for a WC spot, probably not getting it (original prediction of 9-7). The sole reason I saw for the gap between talent and success was their inexperience leading to inconsistency and mistakes. That’s exactly where we find our selves now.

My only hope for this season at this point is that we repeat the play of last year’s end. All of a sudden last year, those dumb mistakes/penalties largely were minimized and real fight and determination from the first kick off was evident. If this team plays like last year’s team, we will win our last 4 (or at least 3) and be a team we can really be proud about.

We still control our destiny right now. But we have to win each week to continue to control it.

The boys are back in town!

Follow @ryan_ames

by rames on Dec 6, 2011 12:39 PM EST reply actions