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Joe Lombardi has only been the Detroit Lions' offensive coordinator for a day or so, but he's already at least somewhat familiar with his new team. Based on when he was "breaking down whatever defense they were playing," Lombardi got a look at all of the talent the Lions have on offense. In an interview with Yahoo! Sports, he highlighted Calvin Johnson, Reggie Bush and Matthew Stafford.
Lombardi went into a bit more detail when he spoke about Stafford. Specifically, he dismissed the idea that Stafford is "broken" as a quarterback because he had some struggles down the stretch in 2013. Lombardi doesn't think that's the case, and even before he got the job, he was a big fan of Stafford's skill set.
"The good news is that he's not broken, that much is clear" Lombardi said. "There's an awful amount of talent there. His arm is something to behold. We used to sit in the Saints quarterback room and just marvel at his passes — all the depths, the whole field in play. He really can sling it. That's a great thing to have.
"I am not worried about Matthew. I am excited to be working with him, and we'll get started soon. I can't wait."
Lions head coach Jim Caldwell has already made it known that he intends to improve Stafford's footwork. That has really been the main concern and one of the biggest reasons behind Stafford's accuracy problems at times. There's no doubt that the talent is there, like Lombardi said, but he and Caldwell both need to make sure that talent is being properly used on a consistent basis.
