Detroit Lions: What Will 2009 Bring?

The 2008 NFL season is officially over, ending with a frantic finish as the Steelers (dang it!) prevailed 27-23 over the Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII.

Yeah, we still have the Pro Bowl, but to me, that’s nothing more than a glorified exhibition. 

I can honestly say that I have never watched a complete Pro Bowl because after the first quarter, I’m actually bored.  The outcome of the game is meaningless, and it’s nothing more than a love-fest for the players in Hawaii. 

But this is a subject for another article.

I’ve taken some time off in analyzing the Lions because they have been so frustrating to watch.  The last article I wrote about anything to do with the Lions was seven days ago, asking Lions fans to move on from Matt Millen. 

The article garnered some debate around the current brain-trust of Mayhew and Lewand and their qualifications.  One person insisted that, because Mayhew was hired and worked for Millen, that nothing is going to change.

I’m a positive person despite being severely tested during the 0-16 debacle last season.  However, Bill Ford, Jr., got things going in the removal of Millen, but the action itself did nothing to improve the level of play. Yet, there was a palatable sense of relief. 

Out goes Millen and into the spotlight comes Tom Lewand, and under an even brighter spotlight, comes Martin Mayhew. 

Mayhew’s first action was to fleece the Dallas Cowboys by trading popular wide receiver Roy Williams for multiple draft picks, getting the Cowboys first, third, and fifth round picks.  Not bad for a fifth-year player that has never made the Pro Bowl.

Sometime around mid-season, when the Lions were 0-12, I got the feeling the front office had decided this was going to be a lame-duck season.  There was not one or two things that could have been done to turn the team around. 

Firing Marinelli in mid-season would have accomplished nothing, so rather than pull the trigger to soon, which is what Lions have done many times before, they rode out the rest of the year with what they had.  And I really doubt that anyone within the Lions' organization figured they were going to have a "historic" season by going 0-16.

Sure enough, not long after the Green Bay Packers put the Lions in the record books, Marinelli was fired, right along with most of the staff.  And the Lions took their time, interviewed a lot of candidates and settled on Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

Schwartz, in turn, made some excellent choices for  in defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham and offensive coordinator Scott Linehan.

There has been a lot of criticism of William Clay Ford, Sr., in sticking with Martin Mayhew and Tom Lewand.  Harsh critics are bemoaning the fact that the Lions didn’t go after Scott Pioli or Bill Parcells as General Manager, and they didn't lure Bill Cowher out of retirement to coach. 

The bottom line is that, even if they would have gotten who the fans wanted, it wasn’t going to be a guaranteed Super Bowl appearance.

Despite the fact Mayhew and Lewand were both hired by and worked for Matt Millen, I am going to trust these guys until they give me a reason not to. We need to forget about their association with Millen.  So far, they have made positive moves and are saying the right things. 

The upcoming draft will be a huge indicator to judge if they will fail or succeed, as will their other offseason decisions.  Who will they release and what players they sign via free agency will show what kind of commitment the front office is going to make.

In fact, the Lions' front office held a town meeting January 27-28 with season ticket holders.  A bold move after going 0-16, and I suspect they had a lot of explaining to do.  Since the press was not allowed in, there is little information regarding the outcome. 

The Lions did, however, put out a commercial that aired during the Super Bowl, first thanking the fans for their support, and then asked them to keep believing in the team.  I haven’t seen the ad yet, but I see these moves as damage control.

But are the Lions beyond repair?  I don’t think so. 

Mayhew is has more respect  around the league than Millen ever had as a GM.  He actually has some front office experience, albeit under Millen.  But he has seen the catastrophe that Millen caused, and has learned what not to do.

So what will 2009 bring?  Let’s wait and see, shall we?