Detroit Lions Fans Have No Reason to Temper Expectations in 2011

This article is to answer Kyle Gibbons's fine article "Detroit Lions Fans Must Temper Expectations in 2011," written July 11, 2011.

Just to clarify, I have always respected Kyle's work. He is articulate and well researched, and a lot of times, I agree with what he say.

Not this time.

Every Detroit Lions fan has lived with mediocrity since 1961. Just how sad is it for fans to celebrate one playoff win in nearly 50 years?

Kyle calls himself a realist, and I would say many Detroit Lions fans fall into that category.

However, there are some of us realists who can look at the Lions in a much more optimistic light, as opposed to the pessimism in the statement that "in order for the Lions to finish at 8-8, Stafford would have to have his best year and two or three Lions would have to go to the Pro Bowl."

There are many other quotes I could throw out here, but the last thing I want to do is to deny any person his right to an opinion.

Any team that has played poorly will always have huge question marks as they improve, and if you look up the word "unproven" in the dictionary, you would find a photo of the Detroit Lions next to the entry.

However, I can offer up some tidbits that would indicate the Lions will do better than 8-8.

Matthew Stafford

Everyone can agree that the possibility for any degree of success lies squarely on the shoulders of Stafford. 

He has played in only 13 games over the last two years. In that time, he has thrown for 2,802 yards, 19 touchdowns and 21 interceptions.

Not great, but not so bad either. 

Plus, in every game he's played, he has improved, and he has also shown increased signs of leadership as he's improved. 

The team is his—the players want to follow him. 

In all my years as a Detroit Lions fan, I have never seen a Lions quarterback that has taken command of the Lions huddle as Stafford does. And if you have a group of men that want to follow a leader because they believe in him, that's three-quarters of the battle.

He's got the tools: the arm, the presence, and the leadership. 

He's just got to stay on the field for 16 games.  

Offensive Line

Anyone who has read any of my articles knows that I have lambasted the Detroit Lions offensive line for years. I have ripped the players for inadequate play, and I have ripped the front office for not addressing it.

It still isn't perfect, but it has gotten better. The addition of Rob Sims last year was evident of that. A lot of pressure was taken off the much-maligned left tackle, Jeff Backus. 

I still think the O-line is an area that needs to be addressed. However, with the addition of Sims and the somewhat improved play of Stephen Petermen, tackles Backus and Gosder Cheriulus have benefited.

Also, the Lions are beginning to develop depth on the offensive line. 

Backus has played in 160 straight games and is coming off his best year... thanks to playing along side Rob Sims. 

But at 33 years of age, he is on the downside of his career. And there have been plenty of times he's failed to complete his blocks, sending Lions quarterbacks running for their lives.

Jason Fox is 6'7" and 303 lbs and could be the heir apparent to the left tackle position. Fox is being brought along slowly, but I would not be surprised to see him get some significant playing time at left tackle this year. 

I really doubt the Lions would be able to get much for Backus in trade, and I still like the idea of moving him inside, perhaps replacing the penalty machine that is Stephen Peterman.

And let's not forget the Lions sixth-round pick, tackle Johnny Culbreath, also an offensive tackle. He's tall at 6'5" but is underweight at 280 lbs. I'd like to see him bulk up to the 305-310 range and have him challenge Gosder for the right side. 

Running Backs

 How we long for the days of Barry Sanders, eh? 

We haven't had a consistent running game since he retired... and we've had a lot of running backs come through since then: Greg Hill, Ron Rivers, James Stewart, Shawn Bryson, Kevin Jones, Kevin Smith, and now Jahvid Best and Mike Leshoure. 

So far, I think only Kevin Jones has broken the 1,000 yard mark since Barry left.

Last year, Jahvid Best started off with a bang, scoring 5 touchdowns in his first two NFL games.  At the time, I saw the second coming of Marshall Faulk, with Best's ability to make tacklers miss and catch the ball out of the backfield. 

Unfortunately, Best incurred two turf toe injuries that severely curtailed his cutting ability, about 80 percent of his game. 

But he gutted through his injuries, and I have to give him credit that he didn't quit. Those abilities are still there, and he's had a full offseason to heal.

Best is going to be a serious threat when he's on the field.

The unknown factor in all of this is Mike Leshoure.

I will admit questioning why we took Leshoure when defensive back Brandon Harris and LB Nate Irving were still available. 

But then, looking at Leshoure, who is 6'0" and 227 pounds, on some film, I can see what the attraction is. He has great quickness and the ability to explode away from defenders, and he has that elusive second gear NFL teams look for when he gets in open field. Plus, he doesn't fumble, so ball security won't be an issue.

He can catch the ball out of the backfield when needed, but that's isn't his strongest suit... but he has been working on improving that part of the game.

Leshoure isn't a shifty runner like Best.  He doesn't have a lot of moves. His game is to line up and run over tacklers. And the one thing I like a lot about Leshoure is that he keeps his feet moving even after being hit. 

He plays through the whistle, not until the whistle.

The Detroit Lions running game improved greatly with the addition of Leshoure, and I can see this Lions version of "Lightning (Best) and Thunder (Leshoure)" racking up 1,800 yards rushing. 

Defensive Backs

Ah yes, the much maligned secondary that has been lit up like the Fourth of July over the past decade. 

But have they really? 

Looking at statistics over the last 10 years, yes they have. But not without good reason.

The defensive secondary is just part of the defensive unit and the last line of defense, but that doesn't mean they should be so maligned. They need to rely on the other defensive units (defensive line and linebackers) to do their jobs as well.

So what do Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz concentrate on? 

Starting with the first line of defense and getting high-quality players such as Kyle Vanden Boschvia free agency and Ndamukong Suh—who is fast becoming leader of the team— in the 2010 draft, developing Cliff Avril and Sammie Lee Hill, and increasing the talent depth by drafting Nick Fairley in this year's draft.

Also, Louis Delmas is developing into the leader of the secondary, and he leaves it all out in the field.  He delivers big hits, makes big plays, and has a nose for the ball. He may gamble a bit much for my tastes, but high risks will give you high rewards.

What's going to help him is if the Lions keep CB Chris Houston to go along with Erik Coleman.

Houston may be lost to free agency, but he turned out to be a pretty steady corner and will only improve with the addition of Coleman.

So while there are still a lot of question marks, they aren't as troubling as they have been. 

And I have to go along with what Suh says—I expect the Lions to win every game they play in.

Does that mean they will?  Perhaps not, but I refuse to temper that expectation going into the 2011 season.