Detroit Lions: Some Things Never Seem to Change

It is amazing just how consistent the Lions have been over the last two or three decades.  It's no wonder they only have one playoff win in 10 games played.

I read this article about Lomas Brown on the Detroit Free Press web site.  He's quoted as saying when Darryl Rogers was head coach of the Lions in 1985, he was "spaced out."

You remember Rogers, right?  Here's one of his now famous quotes "What does a guy have to do to get fired around here?"  Not a surprising question when you consider his 18-40 record from 1985 to 1988.

I had to laugh reading Brown's recollection of just how spaced out Rogers was.  Apparently, Rogers was more interested on how many pigeons were on top the Pontiac Silverdome rather than working on strategy for the upcoming game.  Brown considers Rogers lunacy the epitome of what has gone wrong with the Lions since the 1980's.

Granted, Wayne Fontes came in and some tiny dude named Barry Sanders, which gave Lomas the chance to block for one of the greatest running backs ever to have played the game.

Brown also recounted just how effective of a running back Barry was.  If the offense was set with five lineman and the defense brought 6, Lomas knew that if the 5 lineman did their assignments, Barry could take care of the sixth.  Some of the classic highlight films are of Sanders faking the jocks off of players in the open field.

After reading the article and remembering what a great left tackle Brown was, I started to feel frustration again.  The Lions had plenty to build on during the Sanders years but they failed to take the next step.

Sanders was an outstanding running back, no question.  But the playbook, for many years, consisted of run Barry run.  Keep showing defenses the same thing and eventually, they will figure it out.

Can you imagine what kind of seasons the Lions might have had if there had been a decent tight-end on the team?  In the 10 years Barry played, the Lions had 14 tight ends for a collective 167 catches and 1,428 yards. 

Included on the roster were stellar names like Dave Little, Eugene Riley, Jimmie Johnson, Ron Hall, Pete Metzallars and my personal favorite, Pete Chryplewicz.  Granted, David Sloan played in the latter years of the 90's and even made the Pro-Bowl but by then, Barry had grown weary of Detroit's non-commitment to winning.

And that's what it boils down to, doesn't it?  Outside of the 1990's and some occasional spurts in previous decades—and of course the last 10 years—can anyone clearly state that the Lions were comitted to winning?

As the self-appointed Master of the Obvious, I will state that last year's 2-14 season was nothing to brag about.  And yet, despite the dismal season, fans are finding reasons to believe in this team. 

Could it be we might finally have the quarterback the Lions have been seeking for decades?  Both Barry Sanders  and ex-Lion head coach Steve Marucci  feel that Stafford can be the savior of the Lions, provided he gets the support he needs.

Which is where the Lions have failed miserably over and over again.  They did it with Billy Simms and Barry Sanders.  Until Stafford was drafted, you could make a case of the Lions failing with Calvin Johnson. 

But Detriot has a great chance to make all those bad memories go away. They can be the darlings of the NFL, much like the New Orleans Saints are this year, provided they work just as hard as the Saints did to get where they are.

C'mon Mr. Ford, just for laughs, let Mayhew and Schwartz build the team into a winner.  Take off the damn gloves, step back and give them free reign.  Give them the leeway they need to bring home a Super Bowl before you die.  I can live with the image of you hoisting the Lombardi Trophy as high as you are can, because it would mean the Lions won the game.

You have few years left Mr. Ford, make them count for something.  Be known for making the Lions champions rather than a skin-flint owner who cared about nothing except the bottom line.