Ernie Accorsi Hired as Lions Special Advisor: Latest Comments and Reaction

The Detroit Lions announced the hiring of longtime New York Giants executive Ernie Accorsi as a special adviser to the organization Sunday.  

"I also want to thank Ernie Accorsi for his assistance in this process," team president Rod Wood said in a statement, per Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official website. "Ernie proved to be a tremendous resource and his experience and expertise were invaluable."

On Monday, Wood told reporters Accorsi's role is "undefined."

Accorsi was recently brought in on a temporary basis during Detroit's general manager search. The team hired Bob Quinn on Friday. Quinn spent the last decade-and-a-half in the New England Patriots organization, working his way up from a player personnel assistant all the way to becoming the team's director of pro scouting. 

Accorsi, 74, has spent the last four-plus decades in the NFL. He served as the general manager for the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns and Giants for stretches, helping spearhead successful runs for all three franchises. The Browns went to the playoffs his first five seasons as their general manager, and Accorsi made a series of decisions that helped New York win Super Bowl XLVI.

That championship led to Accorsi's retirement as a full-time executive, but he's stayed involved with the game. He was hired as a consultant for the Carolina Panthers in 2012 when they fired Marty Hurney and joined the Chicago Bears briefly in 2014 when they moved on from Phil Emery.

Carolina wound up hiring Dave Gettleman, who has been instrumental in building the Panthers to a 15-1 juggernaut, while the Bears posted a one-win improvement in Ryan Pace's first season.

The Lions are looking to rebound from a frustrating 7-9 campaign. A playoff team a year ago, Detroit started 1-7 before righting the ship in the second half. It's unclear what Quinn's hiring will mean for head coach Jim Caldwell, who let go a number of assistants midseason. 

"All I know is she wants to win—now," Accorsi said of Lions owner Martha Ford, per Johnette Howard of ESPN.com. "She wants this so badly. She really does. She's tired of losing."

Accorsi's hiring means Ford was impressed with how he handled the general manager search. Given Accorsi's history of success, things might start looking up sooner rather than later in Detroit.

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