2008 Detroit Lions Thread

catbox_9 wrote:

Too bad the preseason means nothing

Patriots 0-4, Lions 4-0. Patriots won't lose 4 games all year and the Lions probably won't win 4.

GO


Help us forget about the

BEAT THE FALCONS!

GO LIONS


BEAT THE FALCONS TODAY

Go Lions! Look better than Michigan has

Well so much for this season. 2 drives for Atlanta and they already have a 62 yard TD pass and a 66 yard TD run. This was one of the games I picked them to win so I now predict 4-12.

And it's 21-0 in the first quarter. ROOKIE quarterback Matt Ryan has 0 incomplete passes and Turner has 117 rushing yards and 2 TDs....all in the first quarter.

Heres a plus: The Bills are beating the Seahawks!

Lions lose


They looked like shit

Monday, September 8, 2008
Bob Wojnowski
Commentary: Marinelli's team embarrasses itself, losing opener to Falcons, 34-21

ATLANTA -- The Lions weren't ready for this. Unbelievably, they didn't appear ready for anything.

Has a season ever been tarnished so quickly, in the first quarter of the first game? The Lions began 2008 as they ended 2007, trying to piece together what went wrong. Their defense still looks shattered, and if they can't figure out a way to fix it, they'll be doomed before they barely get started.

Atlanta started a rookie quarterback, Matt Ryan, in the opener Sunday, and all he did was complete a 62-yard touchdown pass on his first throw. From there, it actually got worse for the Lions, if you can believe that.

Of course you can believe it. Preposterously, the Lions weren't ready to play and sure weren't prepared to tackle, and they got rightly pummeled, 34-21, by the underdog Falcons.

This was inexcusable, a stinging indictment of head coach Rod Marinelli and defensive coordinator Joe Barry. There was supposed to be so much different this season, especially on that defense, last in the NFL a year ago. Instead, to terminally pained Lions fans, it was sadly familiar.

Besides a new quarterback, the Falcons had a new coach and a tough new runner, Michael Turner. All Turner did was run 66 yards for a touchdown on the game's second possession. He finished with 220 yards, a team record. The Falcons finished with 318 yards rushing, a team record.

Hey, don't ever suggest the Lions aren't capable of making history.

"It's tackling, anybody can see that," said Marinelli, who sounded more bewildered than angered. "It's something we emphasized and emphasized and we didn't do it."

If it's emphasized and emphasized and not getting done, the Lions either don't have good-enough players (a distinct possibility) or Marinelli and Barry are failing (also a possibility).

This cannot continue. Less than 12 minutes into the game, about the time Lions fans were settling in, the Falcons had a 21-0 lead.

When the Lions rolled to their 6-2 start last season, the defense was hard-hitting and forced turnovers. Then it collapsed and the Lions went 1-7 the rest of the way.

In a somber dressing room, players swore they're better than this. It's easy to be defiant after one game but this defense has been poor for a while, now threatening to sidetrack a season that held some promise, at least by Lions standards.

"This is a long season -- don't be trying to write us off," defensive tackle Cory Redding said. "I'm telling you, we're good. It just didn't show up today. This is a huge wake-up call for us."

The defense has four new starters and other key additions, Marinelli-type guys, tough guys, guys that theoretically know what to do when a ball-carrier comes barreling in their general direction.

It was astonishing how easily Turner and Jerious Norwood blasted through weak tackles. The Falcons call their duo "Thunder and Lightning," and the Lions countered with the atmospheric equivalence of "Gentle Breeze and Light Rain."

With the home opener against Green Bay looming Sunday, the Lions have to correct a lot, quickly. Already, optimism that grew during a 4-0 preseason is ringing false.

On the positive side, uh, hmm, I had the positives here a second ago. Oh, right. The receiving tandem of Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams was dangerous and rookie runner Kevin Smith showed flashes, finishing with 48 yards. Jon Kitna made one huge mistake, tossing an interception early in the third quarter when the Lions only trailed 21-14, but the offense appeared capable of moving forward.

Can anyone get the defense to stop moving backward?

"I wasn't shocked -- I was upset, I was frustrated," linebacker Ernie Sims said.

I asked him if the defense can get better in a hurry. He answered in a hurry.

"We are better," he said. "I know it didn't show, but we are way better than that."

No one had an explanation for why the Falcons, 4-12 a year ago and essentially starting over, could shred the Lions. My theory is, Marinelli leans heavily on intangibles such as effort and determination at the expense of talent. So the slightest downturn in concentration is devastating for a less-talented team.

Shaun Rogers was the team's best defensive player last season but was traded partly because of attitude issues. Rogers wouldn't have made a big difference this day. Nobody would have.

Turner's second touchdown came on a way-too-easy 5-yard run. On his first score, the 66-yarder, he dodged Sims and broke Gerald Alexander's attempted tackle before sprinting untouched.

Turner is good, make no mistake. And Ryan, the high draft pick from Boston College, is big and poised (although the Lions barely touched him, sacking him once).

It was an all-around embarrassment for the Lions, and I can't imagine a worse start.

"The word I'd use is 'determined,' " Marinelli said. "I'm determined to get this thing right. I still believe in them 100 percent."

That's what he has to say. He has to maintain control, and there also was a nasty verbal exchange between Kitna and offensive coaches on the sideline.

That type of emotional stuff happens. This type of defense needs to stop happening. If the Lions don't want to be written off already, they need to find a way to tackle somebody. Nothing good will happen until they do.

You can reach Bob Wojnowski at bob.wojnowski@detnews.com

Might be a long season for the Lions if this keep up.



They better beat Green Bay or it will be!

My Prediction;


Lions 24

Packers 17

ESPN columnist on Matt Millen: 'Why wouldn't he quit and go back to TV?'

FREE PRESS STAFF AND NEWS SERVICES • September 13, 2008

ESPN.com columnist Bill Simmons talked about the Lions and Matt Millen in his most recent column for the website.


His take:

"Here's something I've been thinking about a lot lately: With any job, you're going to have your ups and downs. At some point, you have to decide whether the downs outweigh the ups to the point that it's not worth it for you to have that job anymore. You could call it a satisfaction/misery ratio. If that ratio swings past 20/80, it's time to go. Well, if you're Matt Millen and everyone in Detroit thinks you're incompetent, openly despises you and spends every waking moment pining for your departure, at some point wouldn't that reality outweigh Millen's salary as well as any fun he could ever have running a football team? He's probably afraid to pick up a newspaper or turn on the radio. He probably spends every dinner wondering if the cook hawked a loogie in his entree. He probably walks through the stadium on Sundays with his head down. And on top of that, his team is awful. You could say his satisfaction/misery ratio is at 5/95 right now. So why wouldn't he quit and go back to TV? What's he waiting for?"

READ HIS FULL COLUMN HERE.

gs78 wrote:

My Prediction;


Lions 24

Packers 17

Lions: 14
Packers: 28

catbox_9 wrote:

gs78 wrote:

My Prediction;


Lions 24

Packers 17

Lions: 14
Packers: 28

GO

Lions losing 27-25...

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

It's good. 41-25 not Lions...

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

It's good. 41-25 not Lions...

47-25...

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

It's good. 41-25 not Lions...

47-25...

It's good. 48-25 not Lions...

You wouldn't know it, but the Lions were winning 10 minutes ago.

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

It's good. 41-25 not Lions...

47-25...

It's good. 48-25 not Lions...

You wouldn't know it, but the Lions were winning 10 minutes ago.

It's a final. Lions officially suck.

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

bobrob2004 wrote:

Lions losing 27-25...

Make that Lions losing 34-25...

Scratch that. Lions losing 40-25...

It's good. 41-25 not Lions...

47-25...

It's good. 48-25 not Lions...

You wouldn't know it, but the Lions were winning 10 minutes ago.

It's a final. Lions officially suck.

What the hell kind of game was that? Fall behind 21-0 right off the bat, take the lead, and still get your asses kicked.

Fire Millen!

I can't believe I actually stayed for the entire game.


More Packers Fans at the end than Lions Fans

My Prediction for this week

Lions 20

49ers 16

49ers: 27
Lions: 14