Ask John Niyo about the Lions

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Schwartz and the losing culture!

Hello again John,

I read where one beat writer claims Jim Schwartz shows the initial signs of adopting the losing culture that has has plagued the Lions for a generation. This he said was in Schwartz's response to a question after the loss to the Rams.

Well I would imagine the coach wasn't exactly in the best frame of mind, but to say he had shown signs of going where the goblins go, would be stretching a very long bow in anyone's language.

Sure the coach and the team will get their asses kicked more than a few times to come this season and probably next ...but the sun will rise once again over Michigan and that particular beat writer will no doubt have a convenient lapse of memory as he hops aboard the band waggon.

But John...given the fake field goal attempt and other Special Teams disasters what chance Stan Kwan will keep his job come 2010?

Hopeless team

John,

Thanks for your reply. We agree that it will be years before the latest WCF approved "plan" might prove effective and the Lions are really able to compete for a championship.

Inherent in this plan is fact that it is slow process-- drafting the best players available,then hoping the coaching staff can develop them. Perhaps "the plan" should at least for the next two years, involve raiding other teams practice squad members (staffed with last preseason cuts) and add young players that play positions that the Lions coaching staff feels are weak at then end of training camp? Don't fill those positions with retreads. The GM must require that coaching staff to play these guys during the season and see if the talent is really there. Wouldn't this tactic make a better plan long term rather than continuing to try to lure free agents at the end of their careers.?What can happen? at worse the Lions lose with different personnel and if they find a diamond in the rough or two, the team shortens the timetable to being competitive. I think fans would continue to attend games if only to see the new faces and if they turn out to be good players that bond will serve WCF well in the future. If they don't--well they are Lions Fans so they will just say wait until next year like they have done for over 50 years.

Comment?

week 9 Locks

We are halfway there . Two weeks away from hosting Green Bay

I'm taking the under(30,000) .

This year Arizona has been King of the Road . Ya can them in Glendale , tough to beat on the road ,

Pick Arizona over Bears

Just Tired

I agree on Peterson. Which combo would more likely worry a D coordinator, (Peterson and Roy Williams) or (Kevin Smith and C Johnson)??? Without a good offensive line though, it might not matter but we'd sure have a better chance with the Peterson combo. Regarding E Murray, look back at his kickoffs, not his FG's. His last year here they were so short we'd bet on the yd line - 9,11,13,15 - and the starting field position after the kicks was consistantly very bad. They needed someone new for the kickoffs and there isn't roster space for 2 kickers.

GM hat

Thanks St Pete, you just help make my point about bad player acquisitions!

Mike Utley was lost during the 1991 season, and in the following draft the Lions traded up to get a kicker (Jason Hanson) they had a great kicker in Eddy Murray but no right gaurd. The problem was exacerbated when Andolsek was killed that same spring.

Yes Jason is a great kicker, but he did has not help the Lions get a Superbowl ring, while Eddy help the Cowboys get one!

Taking the best player available is a good plan if you have a solid team, like New England, but not when you have major holes in your foundation!

In a previous post I said that this problem has been going on for 10 years but the truth is it has been a problem for 17 years!

Same OLD ......

In answer to your question, What wide receiver would I have kept, Dane Looker. I know that he is currently back at home finishing his deck, but he caught almost everything thrown his way. Another receiver I would have kept, until some one beat him out, is Mike Furry - this guy averages 10 yards per catch, and is a very reliable receiver (he is averaging 8 yards per catch with the inept Cleveland Browns).

The talent evaluators in Detroit are not getting the job done.

I don't know if it is the coaches and GM ignoring the scouts, or the scouts just aren't good enough, what ever the reason, for the past 10 years the Lions have continued to make bad decisions, whether it is, the draft free agency or trades, the Lions just can't find players to fill their needs.

Calvin Johnson is a great player, but so is Adrian Peterson, and at the time the Lions drafted Calvin (the best player available) we needed a running back far more than another receiver, and we still need a running back and the team has been unable to utilize Calvin "Because we are unable to establish the run".

When are the Lions going to improve the "Talent evaluation and acquisition process"?

Forget about the old guys

John, if you accept the premise that the Lions will take a minimum of two more drafts before they have enough talent to be competitive, then doesn't it follow that the older players on the roster are basically irrelevant to the future of this team?

For example, I've seen many a comment to the effect that Peterson and Foote have played well, and will stabilize the defense. Both have been featured in positive articles here.

Sure they will help this defense -- for the rest of this year. Perhaps next year. But their contracts make them untradeable -- except for people with equally bad contracts. And they're too old to be around and playing at a high level at the earliest date when it's conceivable that the Lions could have a competitive roster. So what is their relevance to this team?

Yes, they'll help them be more competitive now. But who cares? Only those who feel better if the team wins 5 games instead of 4 this year and next. Why should fans who want to see a play-off quality team care about the players who have such a short future in this town? Shouldn't we be far more concerned with the development of, say, even the modestly talented Follett and Hill than the play of the far better Peterson and Foote?

GM hat

John,

To argue your point, subpar quarterbacks go hand in hand with a weak offensive line. They wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't running for their lives. Hate to admit this but Kitna could move the team when he was upright. He turned to garbage when pressured.

How do guys like Damian Woody and Kyle Kosier flourish after leaving Detroit and a guard like Rick Demulling blow after he arrived? The Lions O-line still suffers from the loss of Andolsek and Utley. They have been playing with a patchwork group of second stringers ever since. Bring back Kevin Glover...it was like watching Junk Yard Dog with pads nothing like jobber Raiola. Have a good night.

Backus-n-Raiola

I agree with JD we should look at moving these two players, and maybe we could get some late round picks for them. It seems pretty clear that we will be finally replacing Sackus through the Draft. I would love just to have one probowler on the oline that would help Matt big time.

Because I live in Dallas I don't get to see the games or highlights, but I went to the Lions website and Stafford looks good even for losing. We FINALLY have a BONA fide quarterback JOHN! I started following the Lions in 91, and in 18 years we have not had a potential star at QB this kids got it. We should all be happy as Lions fans to know that we are piece by piece atleast heading in the right direction.

Theft @ the Silverdome

Other than the 1991 NFC Central Conference Champion trophy, would there have been any other NFL trophies there? BTW, did WCF build any trophy cases at Ford Field? I still have my 1991 NFC Central Conference Champion sweatshirt, although my wife thinks I should get rid of it because it makes me look like a kid. Would it be considered an antique?

Roy Williams

John,

I was watching the NFL channel talking about Roy Williams and his problems catching the ball. It seams to me that he should remove the face shield, the curved plastic could be distorting his vision just enough especially with his peripheral vision.

Watching several of his attempts was like watching a blind man.

I've always liked Roy, and thought his 1st down signal was a good way to energize the team, but he needs to do something to correct his mishandling of the ball!

In watching him on those replays it looked like a lack of hand eye coordination, give up the "cool look" of the shield and/or get an eye exam.

Please pass this on to him!

Backus-n-Raiola

Have to agree with the sediments about these two buffoons. I don't think Mayhew has any emotional ties to them, however. I think Mayhew KNOWS that they at least Backus isn't good enough, why else say that Backus wouldn't have a problem playing guard if needed? If he was elite, that wouldn't even be a problem. Raiola isn't a bad center and probably would start on other teams, but the fans have lost him and he might as well be used for trade bait so we can get some winners in here. Backus and Raiola are perennial losers with Millen's stench of losing all over them, so it wouldn't hurt to get players not associated with Millen in any way. This team is horrible every year and even though Mayhew did a good job with the coaching staff and the 2009 draft, he has at LEAST 2 more offseasons+drafts to go before he can make them contenders.

for real

A big part of the problem with the Lion has been the inept ability to hang on to mediocre and subpar talent season after season. Backus and Raiola would not even be starters on any other team. Backus has never played to his draft pick potential, and Raila is nothing more than an embarassment to the organization. The fans do not appreciate anything about these players, and they make that abundantly clear by booing and jeering them every time they are introduced. Yet the team feels somehow obligated to them, so season after season we get to watch them stink up the field. Do you really think little Raiola would be picked up by ANY other franchise if he left the Lions? The only thing that he has ever shown a talent for is expressing his disdain for the Detroit fans. And Backus completely avoids the limelite, hoping no one notices his poor performance each week, meanwhile still riding the gravy train!

This Franchise

I rate the Lions on a very simple scale:

1) they stink;

2) they're mediocre;

3) they're good;

4) they're very good;

5) they're Super bowl material.

For the last 10 years, they've either stunk or been mediocre. Given last season, I'd be satisfied this season with mediocre. My question is, are they better than last year? All I'm looking for is some improvement this year and some hope for the future. I think I'm like most fans, another game like that stinko with the Rams and I may give up completely (and by the way, I have season tickets). I wonder if team management realizes how bad things are for the fans. When I tell people that I'm a Lions fan and I have season tickets, they either laugh or they get this look of pity on their face - frankly, it's embarassing to be a Lions fan. This franchise is a laughing stock and I'd like, in my lifetime, to at least get to respectable.

Are we headed in the right direction? Is this team ever going to get better?

Players on IR

When can players on IR come gack and play? It could help if Damion Cook and Daniel Bullocks where healthy. I know they would have to cut someone from the active roster but it would be an upgrade at saftey and on the O-line. Your thoughts?

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