It has been one crazy week. My Better Half and I are getting ready to move tomorrow morning, which means I have spent all week packing up the "old" place. I also thought it would be a good time to get a lump of scar tissue removed, which means I am down to one arm during this whole process. So, between those two tasks and, of course, actual work (wait, what?), it has been a crazy week. That has left me feeling like there is no time, like there is never any time, and like I will never get into Stanford. Oh well, my college years were pretty solid as is, I guess I will just have to live with it. But rest assured, my dear readers, that, come hell or high water, at least once a week I will still have time for you. For no person should be forced to endure a Friday without a Link Dump brought to you by the fine folks here at GameTime, TBD©.
And what a week it was. The most valuable player of the week had to be the American justice system, which, in its infinite wisdom, allowed Dante Stallworth to plead out his DUI-Manslaughter case and sentenced him to thirty days in prison. So, just to recap: killing dogs, two years; killing a human being, thirty days. Now, do not get me wrong, I can not stand the thought of what Michael Vick did. He deserved what he got. But how can we be surprised that people have lost a little faith in our justice system (and think that athletes get a free pass) when something like this happens? Yes, I understand that Stallworth had to pay the family a sizable chunk of change for their civil suit, but that does not change the fact he killed someone, accidentally or not. The dude had a blood alcohol level of .12 . . . at 7 a.m. the next morning. His thirty-day sentence is fifteen days less than Paris Hilton was sentenced to back in 2007 for a simple probation violation. Sure, he will also have to spend two years under house arrest, wearing one of those nice little ankle bracelets (can I get that with diamonds? a Nike logo?), but I would hardly call that "hard time".
What I have to keep reminding myself, however, is that this was a plea bargain. Stallworth agreed to plead guilty for a reduced sentence that was offered to him by the district attorney and agreed to by the presiding judge. Michael Vick did the same thing. So, really, we should be asking the district attorney and judge why they would think this was justice being served; why thirty days for the taking of a person's life is equivalent to two years for animal cruelty of the worst kind. And that is what leaves me scratching my head.
Enough negative talk. It is Friday; a day we are supposed to be happy about. So while I go track down some Tylenol to take the pain away (where the stitches are, I'm no pill popper), here are some things you might have missed:
- Have we already forgotten that Matt Millen was the worst GM in the history of the NFL?
- Mr. Irrelevant now officially Mr. Making-It-Rain.
- Someone needs to turn Ryan Leaf's life into a movie . . . seriously.
- Need a deal on a new car? Call Ed O'Bannon.
- Since Meyer's arrival, you may have noticed that Florida football, while winning lots of games, has had a few (read: 24) run-ins with the law. Now meet their attorney; a guy who puts the word a** in class.
- This guy has a weird way of showing his appreciation for Bill Simmons. [Editor's Note: If you'd prefer to skip the Lakers/Kobe ball-washing, feel free to jump straight to point 4.]
- Are you graduating? Are you graduating? There's no graduating! THERE'S NO GRADUATING IN BASEBALL!
- Ump lets high school players experience life as a Washington Nationals' player.
- The rights to Mel Hall acquired by state of Texas, and for good reason.
- Women . . . loud grunts and groans . . . I am sure there is a joke in here somewhere. [Editor's Note: and here's a game to keep you occupied for a little bit.]
- I hope this guy remembered his swim trunks and his flippie-floppies.
- "But I guess I'd rather be alive than play soccer."
It is always nice to end on a happy note . . . which is why we have videos, and some good ones at that if may take a moment to toot my own horn. There were a lot of candidates this week, and instead of trying to narrow them down, we have decided to let you have all of them (go big or go home, right?). Say good-bye to your afternoon, cause you have some watching to do:
Have a great weekend everyone!
Here is a direct quote from our "And Just Like That . . . " post, dated April 9, 2009: "[The Chief] will also, of course, recap what is inevitably going to be a debacle of an NFL draft for the Detroit Lions."
Do not get me wrong, I love . . . nay . . . LOVE to be right (just ask my family or, more importantly, my Better Half). However, believe you me, I would l-o, l-o, l-o, l-o-v-e to have been wrong about this one. Unfortunately, what transpired last Saturday and Sunday might well have been the most obvious thing in the history of obvious things. After all, what did William Clay Ford, Sr. do after he fired Matt Millen, arguably the worst GM in the history of sports? He replaced him with Martin Mayhew, Millen's right-hand man during his tenure. And people wonder why Ford Motor Company is in so much trouble?
Let me get this out of the way: I get why they drafted Matthew Stafford. I do not necessarily agree with the pick, but I get that the Lions did not want to be known as "The Team That Passed on Stafford" in the event he becomes a franchise quarterback. But being taken early in the first round has, historically, been a curse for quarterbacks. John Elway, Peyton Manning, Matt Ryan, those are the exception, not the rule. And answer me this, Mr. Ford: how can you be willing to pay a player $78-million over the next six years (with $41.7-million guaranteed) when he has taken the exact same number of snaps in the NFL as I have? [Do not get me wrong, I am a "rare" physical specimen and could have just as easily won as many games for the Lions as their quarterbacks did last year . . . but I digress] I have nothing against Matthew Stafford. For obvious reasons, I hope he turns out to be one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game. But would I have taken him with the first overall pick?
No way! Granted, the Lions have so many holes they could have drafted a player at any position and it would have helped them. But why go with quarterback when (1) everyone is saying Daunte Culpepper looked great at the mini-camp; (b) your track record with "skill position" players over the past ten years is by no means great; and (iii) you have no offensive line to block for him? Having a fit, healthy, and confident Culpepper means you have a very serviceable, if not, above-average quarterback in your system. Culpepper was at his best in Minnesota when he had the deep threat of Randy Moss to lob the ball to and you have that here in Calvin Johnson, the only skill position pick the Lions got right. Culpepper has had the entire offseason to learn the new offense and there is no reason to think he can not perform better this season than he did last. Now, if the Lions came out and said they were not going to start Stafford at all this season, I might feel better. But we know that is not going to happen when they are paying the kid that much money and they need to sell tickets (paging Joey Harrington).
Speaking of Joey Harrington, let us take a moment to look back at the Lions' first round picks since 2000 (when the Millen regime took over): 2000 - Stockar McDougle, OT (currently a free agent); 2001 - Jeff Backus, OT (has never missed a game in career, 128 consecutive starts); 2002 - Joey Harrington, QB (back-up for N.O. Saints, 4th team of career); 2003 - Charles Rogers, WR (15 games, 36 catches, 4 TDs over 3 seasons; no longer in league); 2004 - Roy Williams, WR (59 TDs over 4+ seasons; traded to Dallas), Kevin Jones, RB (now with Chicago, what to do with his old jersey . . .); 2005 - Mike Williams, WR (about what you would expect from a Trojan, no longer in league); 2006 - Ernie Sims, LB (has started all 48 games during 3-year career, 456 tackles, defensive captain); 2007 - Calvin Johnson, WR (stud); 2008 - Gosder Cherilus, OT (pronounced GOS-der, SHARE-uh-luss; started 13 games as a rookie and played in all 16).
As you run through that list, a pattern begins to emerge. With the exception of one "skill position" pick (Calvin Johnson), the best first-round picks made by the Lions have been on the offensive line or defense. Those picks remain a productive part of the team. So after an 0-16 season, why would you not want to play it safe and take a player that was guaranteed to make a difference? Jason Smith or Aaron Curry sure would have looked good in those "snazzy" new uniforms. But as I said before, I can at least see why they drafted Stafford. And why worry? The Lions still had another first round pick and, while most draft experts thought this was a weaker draft class in general, the draft was deep at offensive tackle and linebacker. So that is why it was a no-brainer for the Lions to take Brandon Pettigrew, a tight end, with the twentieth overall pick. Really? REALLY? I recorded the first day of the draft for THIS? Rest assured, the Lions did take an offensive tackle . . . in the SEVENTH round (only 228th overall). But do not worry, Mel Kiper wants us to know that Lydon Murtha has tremendous upside potential. Boy, I feel better knowing (1) Mel Kiper likes this pick, and (b) Murtha is blessed with tremendous upside potential.
Maybe I am missing something with the Pettigrew pick. Everyone is saying that he is the best blocking tight end to come out (a tight end coming out . . . hehehe) in the past five years. Maybe the Lions are planning on going with six lineman all season; interesting strategy.
Thankfully, because I had recorded the draft, I could fast forward through everything to get to the Lions second-round pick. With James Laurinaitis and Rey "I Really Don't Have to Want to Like a Trojan" Maualuga still on the board, the Lions were destined to pick the new anchor of their defense for years to come. That is, of course, why they picked Louis Delmas, the top safety in the draft. Okay, if Delmas proves to be the second coming of Bob Sanders, this pick will not bother me as much as, say, oh, I do not know, Brandon Pettigrew. Seriously, I almost threw my remote through the television.
In the end, the Lions' draft looked like this:
1st Round - Matthew Stafford, QB; Brandon Pettigrew, TE
2nd Round - Louis Delmas, S
3rd Round - DeAndre Levy, OLB; Derrick Williams, WR
4th Round - Sammy Lee Hill, DT
6th Round - Aaron Brown, RB
7th Round - Lydon Murtha, OT; Zach Follett, OLB; Dan Gronkowski, TE
You read that right. All those holes to fill and the Lions drafted a wide receiver in the third round and ANOTHER tight end in seventh round. I have done zero research on what I am about to say, but I am roughly 93.724% positive it is an accurate statement: the Lions are the first team to draft two (2) tight ends in the same draft. I will get my "research department" to look that up eventually.
Different year, same story with my Detroit Lions. It is hard to believe that twenty years ago the Lions took Barry Sanders in the first round. I know things can not get any worse, but I really thought the Lions might be ready to make a change for the better for once, to start moving in the right direction. I guarantee the Lions will win a game this season, but, looking at their schedule, that might not come until week eight against the St. Louis Rams. That means their losing streak could reach twenty-three games (Week 17 of 2007 season through Week 8 of 2009 season). Ouch. And if that happens, if the Lions start 0-3, 0-4, or 0-5, then you know we will see Stafford early on. And if that happens (is there an echo in here?), I guess we will see if Stafford is everything the management thinks he is, or if he will assume his place along side Joey Harrington as a promising young talent whose confidence was destroyed by an owner who could not afford to leave that much money holding a clipboard on the sideline.
Congrats to you William Clay Ford, Sr., Martin Mayhew, and Tim Lewand. You did what no one thought was possible. You drafted as if Matt Millen was still running the show, ensuring the Lions will fail to have a winning record for the ump-teenth consecutive season (or 9th, whatever) and will miss the playoffs for the tenth consecutive season. At least you are consistent.
While I try to find a sliver of hope somewhere in the Lions' 2009 draftees, I can not help but wonder if there is anyone out there who is happy the Lions selected Stafford first overall. Who am I kidding? Of course there is: Sam Bradford.
[Editor's Note: Yes, I did steal part of that title from ESPN.com . . . sue me, I'm sure they stole it from somewhere else first.]
The New Year can wait. I know I previously stated that GameTime, TBD© would be shutting down until after we all sobered up from our New Year celebrations, but sometimes life gets in the way. So, while the rest of "the staff" is enjoying the holiday break, the chief is winging it solo . . . and, thus, must take full responsibility for any typos and/or omitted words in the ramblings that follow.
I believe the fine folks over at Deadspin put it best when the titled a post today "Detroit's Rod Marinelli Receives Least Surprising Firing Ever." I am going to get this out of the way up front: I am a Marinelli fan. The man coached the first ever 0-and-16 team in NFL history and not once this season did he try to make excuses. On top of that, he managed to get his team to come out and play hard every week. It might not have been pretty (what would you expect with the talent they had?), but they played hard . . . okay, will excuse the Tennessee and New Orleans games. Do I think Marinelli had to be fired? Yes. But that does not mean I do not think he is a decent coach who could have probably gotten some decent results with a team a little better off talent wise.
I am proud to say that I watched part, if not all, of every Lions game this season. I flew up to San Francisco to watch them live, I avoided sports scores the morning after my firm's Christmas party so I could watch their game against New Orleans (brutally hungover) taped delayed thanks to the wonder that is DVR, and kept delaying my family's second Christmas celebration so I could check up on their record-setting sixteenth loss to Green Bay yesterday. It did not matter how ugly it got, or how many times I had to tell my friends that one of their fantasy players was a good start because they were playing Lions, I was there to support the blue and silver. I know what you are saying to yourself right now, and yes I did once discuss how great it would be to see the Lions go winless. But here is the thing, I could not root for them to lose. Week-in and week-out, I still found myself rooting for them to win, trying to will them to victory. One-and-fifteen would have be infinitely better than 0-and-16. Just ask the 2007 Miami Dolphins.
And, ironically enough, it is those 2007 Miami Dolphins that give us hope. From 1-and-15 to AFC East Champions? It makes me at least think a respectable turnaround is in the cards for the 2009 Detroit Lions. Do I think they will be NFC North Champions? No. But I would imagine an 8-and-8 2009 campaign is not out of the question. Not with the NFL set up as it is these days. And because I, like all Lions fans, think I know better (which, could actually be true), I have comprised a list of ten things the Lions could do this offseason to begin their journey on the road to recovery. Why ten you ask? Because that is the total number of wins the Lions have had over the last three (3!) seasons. So, with further ado, I present "GameTime, TBD©'s 10 Things the Lions Should Do To Make 2009 a Winning Season":
1. Convince William Clay Ford He Should Stop Making Decisions - I believe Mitch Albom put it best in his Sunday column before the Lions' record-setting loss:
For decades [44 years to be exact], you have lorded over a franchise that has distinguished itself only through ineptitude. Blown chances. Stupid draft picks. The wrong coaches. Horrible general managers. We have tried to laugh it off. Shrug it off. Hope it off. But the fact is you had one player in the last 20 years anyone wanted to see, Barry Sanders, and he walked away from the game rather than continue working for you. Actually gave money back.
2. Hire an Executive That Gets Football - More shocking than Ford's to decision to only fired Marinelli and four of eighteen assistant coaches yesterday, was his decision to remove the word interim from Martin Mayhew's title, making him the new General Manager of the Detroit Lions. Mayhew spent the last eight years as Matt Millen's assistant-General Manager and was only promoted to interim GM when Millen got canned three games into the season. With Mayhew calling the shots, I really do not see much changing next season. Mayhew was, after all, one of the "masterminds" behind the overwhelmingly successful XFL. If the team is not going to upgrade at the GM position, at least the Lions can hire an executive or "special consultant" that actually understands the game of football, much like the Dolphins did with Bill Parcells this past season. That seemed to work out pretty well for the Dolphins. Ironically enough, Parcells's services may become available once Huizenga's sale of the Dolphins is complete. I would not mind seeing Parcells working his magic in Detroit next season.
3. Hire a Head Coach With Experience - As I mentioned before, I liked Marinelli, I really did. But when you are trying to turn around a franchise, you need someone who has had success as a head coach in the past. I truly believe the Lions had that man in 2003 when they hired Steve Mariucci, but he was never given a fair shot because Millen was calling the shots. While I would love to see Mariucci brought back, I am pretty sure he does not want anything to do with the Lions (even if he is a Michigan native). That leaves several top candidates still available though. Brian Billick would be my top choice, and should be the Lions. Listening to Billick throughout this season (which he spent working for Fox as the BEST color commentator in the game), I realized this man has an incredible football mind. He had a great deal of success as the Ravens' head coach (including a Super Bowl victory), and I think an ideal candidate to change the mindset of the Lions' organization. Other people to consider would be the recently-axed Eric Mangini, Marty Schottenheimer, Bill Cowher (though he appears to be waiting until 2010 or heading back to the AFC), or even the previously mentioned Bill Parcells. While all of these candidates would have their work cut out for them, each one would instantly bring a winning attitude to an organization in desperate need of just that.
4. Hire Mike Nolan as Defensive Coordinator - This one's easy. Nolan was one of the architects behind the Baltimore Ravens defense. He was there during Billick's tenure and the two of them are said to have a good relationship and understand each other. Sure, he did not have much success as the 49ers head coach recently, but tell me this, how is that Baltimore defense doing? He wear a suit and tie along the Lions sideline anytime he wants, as long as its as DC and not Head Coach.
5. Hire an Offensive Coordinator that Understands Strengths and Weaknesses - I was never happy with the hiring of Jim Colletto as Offensive Coordinator, especially when he proclaimed the Lions would be a knock-down, drag-out run-oriented offense. It is like the man looked at our roster and said, "I don't think we can run the ball this year, let's make that the focus of our offense." This decision might have single-handedly caused our winless season. The run-first offense was working at the start of the season, this upset many of the players, including then-starter Jon Kitna. Kitna ends up getting in press war with some of the coaches and ends up on IR for the season. I know the running game improved later in the season and was actually what kept us close to winning a few games down the stretch, but our offensive line is bad and we had a rookie running back in the backfield. We need an OC who is better at recognizing his offense's strengths and weakness and will plan an offense accordingly. (Read: bring back Mike Martz).
6. Go With One of the Quarterbacks You Have - For the time being, the Lions are better off sticking with Daunte Culpepper or trying to patch things up with Jon Kitna. I say stick with Culpepper. His best years in Minnesota, not surprisingly, corresponded with the emergence of Randy Moss at wide receiver. Yes, I know Duante is a few years removed from total knee reconstruction and has lost a step or two, but he has an even better receiver in Calvin Johnson. With an entire offseason ahead of him (as opposed to the 6 days he got when he first signed in Detroit), Daunte will be much more comfortable with the Lions offense going into the season and will be in a better position to regain some of his old form. I know the Ravens and Falcons had success with a rookie quarterback this, but they are the exception, not the rule. Need I remind you of Joey Harrington? Which segues nicely to my next point . . .
7. Trade the #1 Overall Pick - The Lions have so many holes to fill right now, the answer is not going to be found at #1. Now, obviously the will need some of the big-name college stars to declare for the draft so that some other teams actually want the #1 overall pick, but that should happen. The Lions have two first round picks and five of the first eight-five picks in this years draft. If they are able to trade the #1 pick, the will move down in the first (still maintaining two first round picks) and pick up either a veteran that will help them or a sixth pick. That is a pretty good way to fill a lot of holes fast. Which, strangely enough, segues to my next point (unbelievable!) . . .
8. Do NOT Draft a Skill Position Player With Your First 5 Picks - That is right, avoid the quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers. You do not need them right now, and they are not going to help out the team as much as focusing on your offensive line, defensive line, linebackers, or secondary will. In fact, if you look at the roster, the Lions are already set at the skill positions with Calvin Johnson, Kevin Smith, and one of the previously mentioned QBs. So do not do it. Their most glaring weakness is on the defensive side of the ball, so at least three of the picks should be used there (I would go 4 defense, 1-2 offense if you trade the #1). And the Lions should also . . .
9. Focus on Non-Skill Position During Offseason - I really do not need to repeat what I just said above, only this one relates to the free agents they focus on signing during the offseason. Speaking of free agents . . .
10. Do NOT Overpay for One of the Big Name Free Agents - there are a lot of big name free agents available this offseason, especially on the defensive side of the ball. In order to convince any of them to come and play for Detroit, the Lions are going to have to offer a lot more money than other teams. Do not do it. It will hamper the teams ability to resign key players (Johnson) down the road and will also prevent them from filling as many holes as possible. I would much rather see the Lions fill two holes with above average players for the same price as filling one hole with a superstar (that's what she said . . . ba-ZING). Huge contracts never pan out in the long run; the player never performs up to expectations, you can not trade them because of the size of the contract, and you can not sign other players because of the salary cap. I know signing a superstar is the sexy choice, management will see it as a way to appease the fans after this awful season, but it is not the right thing to do in the long run.
So there you have, the ten things we at GameTime, TBD© would do if given the opportunity to make some changes in the Detroit organization. I do not know about you, but they seem pretty brilliant to me. Maybe I should submit my resume to the front office, see if I can get myself a new job. I mean, let us face the facts, I could not do any worse . . .
It is Christmas in September for us Detroit Lions fans. After explaining to countless 49ers fans at Candlestick Park this past weekend that the goal of the Lions franchise was not to win, but rather to make other teams feel better about themselves, it turns out I may have been misrepresenting the facts. The Lions might actually want to win.
Apparently the Ford family decided that a failing car company AND football franchise was too much to handle and so they decided it was time to fix one of them. Thankfully they chose the Lions. Believe-you-me, having owned a "Fix Or Repair Daily" Explorer, I know that the Lions will be much easier to fix. And the organization finally took the first step towards redemption today. I am going to keep this short and to the point, because if I were to write a full post of how I am feeling right now, I would never get to my Kings Season Preview and would probably have to skip this week's Link Dump. Instead, I will sum everything up for you with one simple fact:
During Matt Millen's tenure with the Lions, their record was 40-91; over that same period of time, the New England Patriots were 93-38.
