Kevin Seifert Joins the Team

Since my adoption of the Lions, pro-bono of course, numerous commentators have decided to glom on to my fame and renown, and have taken it upon themselves to assist me in my unenviable task of rebuilding the Detroit Kitty-Cats. The latest example is Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. For once, most of this column actually makes sense, but since a large part of his advice is on the operational end of things, only a smattering of things applies to our brief. Kevin's points, and my rejoinders, follow;

"3. Put Rod Marinelli out of his misery. Marinelli might be a good football coach, but no one can lose so many games in a such a short period while maintaining credibility inside or outside the organization. I know, Marinelli hasn't been blessed with the NFL's best personnel. But it's hard to convince anyone you're moving forward with a coach who has lost 36 of 46 games over a three-year tenure."

I have said, offline, innumerable times, that we live in a society that worships leadership and accountability. This is a good thing. Part of the reason, regardless of your politics, that George Bush's approval ratings nose-dived at the end of 2005 is that he was perceived as failing to lead the rescue/evacuation/clean-up surrounding Rita and Katrina. Fair or not, his administration and party have paid a great price for this failure. It is oft the same in professional football. We assume Bill Belichick is a legendary coach because of his wins and losses, but we have NO WAY of knowing how he would do with this Lions team.
For my part, I am inclined to keep Marinelli for another season. Coaching stability is a plus, allowing teams to develop a sense of consistency from player evaluation, all the way through to practice methods. The Washington Redskins have spent enormous sums of money and draft picks this century, constantly churning and turning over their rosters and coaching staff. And what have they shown for their millions? One playoff win?
No, Rod Marinelli MAY be part of the problem, but we are determined to give him another year to show that he can address his shortcomings.
Listen, NO coach will make the playoffs with this roster next year (unless they get to move to the NFC west), so bringing in another guy to install another system doesn't help the young players that are on this team, and that will be added during this off season. This is a legitimate three year rebuilding process. If Marinelli can't hack it with an improving roster, then we cut our losses, and give the new guy a window to work in, but I can't approve of firing coaches who struggle to win with rosters composed of guys that might not start in Division II college ball.

"7. Rebuild both lines. The Lions, especially on defense, get pushed around on the line of scrimmage far too often for an NFL team. It's the most basic requirement in football: You must be able to move people out of your way. The Lions can't, at least not often enough. (Evidence: They rank No. 32 in the NFL in rush defense and No. 31 in rush offense). This is a difficult task and could take several drafts to complete. But if they focus on nothing else, the Lions must address this physical mismatch."

Amen, 100% agreement. Almost every mock draft I have seen has the Lions drafting Matt Stafford 1st overall. This would not happen were I running this team. We may trade out of the 1st, we may keep it, we may light ourselves on fire on the stage, but we will NOT be drafting an offensive "skill position" player in the first round.

"8. Because they need such a talent influx on the line and elsewhere, the Lions should trade down in the 2009 draft and perhaps in 2010 as well. For now, focus on numbers rather than blue-chip possibilities. Trades don't happen too often at the highest levels of the draft, but the expected class of 2009 quarterbacks should entice someone to make a deal."

There is wisdom in trading down, but for every seller you need a buyer. The Lions SHOULD try and trade down, but if no one wants the first pick, we have to use it, but the thinking behind this pick is sound.

"9. Establish a practice of drafting safely at the top end of the draft and take your risks in lower rounds. The Lions are a case study in the impact of missing consistently with high, and at times, risky draft choices. (See Rogers, Charles; Harrington, Joey; and Williams, Mike). If you have the proverbial choice between Jake Long and Darren McFadden, take Long. No need to swing for the fence when average is a big improvement."

This is a no duh! type statement, but is is also an example of hind-sight being 20-20. Take a look at this search on ESPN.com ( http://search.espn.go.com/charles-rogers/mel-kiper-jr./4294801923 ) The search is full of praise from Mel Kiper for the Lions adding an "impact player" in Charles Rogers, and saying that whatever team added Mike Williams was going to get a "great player". The Lions got both, and they both suck. Wide receiver is a dangerous position to pick at the top of the draft (Football Outsiders has done yeoman's work on this subject), but to pretend that there was some universal consensus that these guys would be bums is completely farcical. They were RISKIER picks than other guys available, but no one could know how BAD they would turn out to be. Imagine an alternate universe, where Joey Harrington is throwing to the first quadruplet receivers to ever go over 1,000 yards in a season, and their offense is putting up 45 points a game. Not too unrealistic, IF those picks worked out. I didn't think they were good picks at the time, but the criticism was positional, not player skill based.

"10. Resist the temptation to draft a blue-chip quarterback immediately. The Lions are a year or more away from being the 2008 Falcons, who selected Matt Ryan No. 3 overall and inserted him immediately into what surprisingly turned out to be a playoff-caliber lineup. They should use their picks to create a good environment for any young quarterback they eventually draft. These days, teams can't draft a blue-chip quarterback and sit him on the bench for three years. And remember, for every Ryan there is a Harrington."

Poor Joseph Harrington gets no love. A one-time bust has turned into an above-replacement level quarterback. Maybe he looked bad because he was throwing to fat receivers, with no running backs and a Swiss cheese offensive line? Agree with the logic, but the blame may be misdirected.

"14. Make it a priority to find a capable No. 2 receiver opposite of Calvin Johnson. We've seen how Johnson can beat a double team by simply reaching over smaller defenders. But the Lions could benefit more from that double coverage. A competent No. 2 receiver, or even a top pass-catching tight end, could clean up while playing next to Johnson. A good coach could build his offense around the idea that he'll always have a mismatch somewhere in the passing game."

A decent #2 WR is always a bonus in your offense, but young WR's take time to develop. In the off season, I will be exploring the possibility of either a trade, or RFA plays. I think, if Cleveland is selling, Braylon Edwards could be a great option on the backside of the field from Calvin Johnson, scaring the hell out of safeties, and clearing out the short field for CJ and the tight ends.