Detroit Lions: How Does This Keep Happening?

I think it was somewhere around the time that Tampa Bay went up by two touchdowns after previously being down by 17 last Sunday, that I started to wonder where Detroit would be if they still had Jeff Garcia. Yes, he was a Lion and not too long ago either.

Tampa Bay has an 8-3 record and are playoff bound with a quarterback who at this stage in his career, isn't a whole lot different than Jon Kitna.

I said to myself, "Why in God's name did we get rid of this guy!" Then I went and looked up his Lions stats. (You'll have to excuse me, this last decade or so just seems to blur together.)

Garcia has had an impressive career, and in fact has played at least efficiently everywhere he's been except Detroit, where he had career lows in quarterback rating, touchdowns, passing yards per game, sacks, and interceptions.

Surprising? No. You'd expect it, in fact its become the norm for this franchise. The Lions can draft their own talent, watch them fail in Detroit, and then go on to become at the very least, better with other teams.

Or, they can sign players who were stars with other teams expecting at the very least flashes of greatness, then watch them fail miserably and revive their career elsewhere.

Every team in the league has one of these. The Lions, however, could create an all-star team comprised of players who just didn't work out in Detroit but otherwise had great careers.

How disturbing is it, that even when the Lions went up 17-0 I wasn't even excited in the least bit?

In fact at two separate points in the game, I turned to my friend and said "Culpepper's going to throw a pick here" and he did just that each time.

Have our Lions become so horribly predictable that we don't notice the good things? We can actually see the blunders happen before they occur?

Marinelli wants to win. He says he owes it to his players. Then take some freaking risks! Go for it on fourth down! Take some onside kicks! Fake the field goal and go for two! Do Something!

I watched the Arizona Cardinals attempt a 68-yard field goal yesterday. That's a team that wants to win badly enough to try unconventional tactics. That's a team that's been mired in futility just as long as Detroit has, but they're winning now. Its depressing really.

The Miami Dolphins were 1-15 last season. They are 6-5 now and have beat some good teams to get there. They might not make the playoffs, but they are making noticeable and significant progress.

Progress for the Lions is the next washed up quarterback come to give Detroit a try. I think its a two-horse race between Donovan McNabb and Mike Vick. Any takers?

Why do they come here anyway? Do other teams looks at their stats and go "hmm three touchdowns and eight interceptions. That should equal 20 touchdowns and five interceptions for my team." Well, it'd just about be true.

Many people thought Tampa Bay was the Lions' best chance for a victory. The cynical Free Press journalist, Drew Sharp even wrote an article proclaiming victory for Detroit yesterday.

They were blown out, and Tampa Bay didn't even have Ernest Graham or Joey Galloway.

How does this keep happening? When does it stop? 0-11 on the season 1-18 in their past 19 games. This is the worst stretch of futility in Detroit Lions history, and they're nearing NFL history. A record of 0-12 is all but assured on Thanksgiving, and then the Lions can start digging their grave.

Minnesota, @ Indianapolis, New Orleans, @ Green Bay.

Since the Lions play worse at home than they do on the road, and the Saints will likely have Reggie Bush back and healthy, I would say Indianapolis is our last shot.

If Rod Marinelli doesn't pull out every last trick he has to earn a victory, he should never have a job in the NFL again, let alone remain in Detroit. When you're staring 0-16 right in the face, you have to get a little crazy out there.

If the Lions took an onside kick somewhere in that game, or attempted a 68 yard field goal would they have lost worse than they did? Maybe, but so what? A loss is a loss. When all you need is 1 win to avoid 0-16, you do whatever it takes.

We know fortune does not smile on Detroit. The surprising thing is, even logic defies the Lions.