Wow, this team absolutely stinks out loud. Today’s game was pretty much unwatchable. The offense was so horrific that I didn’t really notice just how bad the defense was. (The defense, by the way, allowed 334 yards to Kyle Orton. Yes, that Kyle Orton) The negatives are too plentiful to point out. The only positives were that the run defense performed pretty well, Kevin Smith had a nice TD run, and Jon Kitna got benched. That’s pretty much it.
I’ve been watching the Lions a little over 20 years now, and I think this may be the worst team I’ve ever seen. Not only are they 0-4, but they have been blown out in all 4 games. The 2001 Marty Mornhinweg team that went 2-14 looked better than this. They were at least competitive and looked sharp on offense. This entire organization from the front office to the coaches to the players is an unmitigated disaster. Do they lack talent? Sure. There is no way they should be this bad, though. Not even close. However, they’re 4 games into the season and it’s already over. What can they do? I’m glad you asked. There are a lot of things they can do to not only improve right now, but to build for the future. Here’s a list of 5 things that I would do if I was running the team:
1. Get Calvin Johnson the friggin’ ball!
He is by far the most talented player on the team. To have him get only 2 catches today is the most insanely idiotic gameplan in the history of the NFL (only a slight exaggeration).
2. Demote Jon Kitna to 3rd string.
I’ll concede that Kitna hasn’t had much help this year, but he has been atrocious. His accuracy has disappeared, he’s a turnover machine, and his temper tantrums are getting old. Stanton needs to start ASAP. And if he’s not ready yet, start Orlovsky.
3. Play the draft picks!
This team is going nowhere. Why are the young guys not playing? Are they afraid they’ll actually be worse?!? If nothing else, the Lions should be developing their young players for the future. They’re simply doing a very poor job of this. Out of last year’s 3 2nd rounders (Stanton, Alexander, Alama-Francis), only Alexander was active today, and he hardly played. This year’s 2nd rounder, Jordon Dizon, along with 3rd rounder Andre Fluellen, were also inactive for today’s game. That’s just dumb. The following depth chart adjustments should be made:
Stanton for Kitna
Dizon for Lenon (then move Lenon to the outside to replace Lewis)
Cohen for Cody
Fluellen for Darby
Avril for DeVries
K. Smith for B. Kelly
Swap Cherilus and Backus (That way, Jeff Backus can suck on the right side instead of the left)
4. Don’t be so stubborn about the offensive & defensive schemes
' This means more 3 & 4 wide formations on offense and much more blitzing on defense. Try being aggressive for crying out loud!
5. Trade Roy Williams
If you can’t do it now, do it after the season. Get a 1st or 2nd round pick and happily move on. He might be the most overrated WR in the NFL outside of Chad Ocho Cinco.
Thanks for reading my long-winded rant. Next week, the Lions will travel to Minnesota to face the Vikings. If you play fantasy football, get all of your Vikings in your lineup. I would even consider starting Gus Frerotte, if you’re really thin at QB.
Greg
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