2014 Detroit Lions

[nain rouge]

Aw, man, kickoff is today. Can't wait. If Stafford holds up his end of the bargain and plays at the high level he's proven he's capable of, we have a Kurt Warner's Rams offense on our hands. We're missing maybe one more stud OL, but hopefully our ridiculously loaded TE group can make up for that.

If Suh can give us a crazy contract year performance and Fairley keeps his stamina up to an acceptable level, the D just might squeak by. I still think Mathis will be an opening day disaster. Dude is gonna get burned tonight, just watch.

[stasu1213]

This was discussed before. It won't be done because of the Lions exclusive relationship with Ford

e Lions is a Detroit team. What will happen if they make it to the Superbowl? G M wouldnt display the Lions emblem at that time due to the Lions being owned by Ford. Thats silly

[Thruster315]

e Lions is a Detroit team. What will happen if they make it to the Superbowl? G M wouldnt display the Lions emblem at that time due to the Lions being owned by Ford. Thats silly

Silly or not, it's gamesmanship. Personally I wouldn't expect it from GM any more than I would expect any other entity to pimp the Lions tonight. They do a pretty damn good job of it themselves already.

But think back to the day when the Ilitchs wouldn't even show the scores of the Pistons games at Comerica Park or Joe Louis Arena. I'd even be willing to bet the Davidsons didn't show any Red Wings or Tigers scores at The Palace either. From a business standpoint why dilute their own entertainment dollar by showing off someone else's wares?

I wouldn't begrudge any of those folks if they didn't show or promote some other Detroit teams' logos or scores. They're simply not obligated to as much as one would like them to. What's their incentive? Especially on the GM World HQ? It's not their job to pimp any other Detroit event if they choose not to. It's their lights and I say let them do as they want.

If I really wanted to know what the hell was going on with the other local teams and I was in one of their stadiums, I'd just pull it up via my cell phone if I wanted scores or stats. The access to info we have today is amazing enough already.

[stasu1213]

Its about solidarity not pimping. Ilitch had that right idea. Displaying the Lions emblem doesnt encourage one to buy a Ford truck

[Thruster315]

Halftime ranting here. From what I've seen so far is that the Lions came out with all sorts of momentum. Ford Field seems to be ALIVE and jumping. Stafford looked good and nimble with his tosses. But then with a few silly penalties [[roughing the kicker & Slay's obvious pass interference) gave back some of that momentum to the Giants. The front four of the defense look pretty darn good as they seem to have some decent heat on Manning; Ziggy's got some pop coming out of the three point stance too. Our running game hasn't exactly looked too potent whether it's Bush or Bell; props to the Giants for bringing 7 in the box though. Golden Tate seems to have the most solid hands of ANY Lion I've seen in a long time. Nate Freese needs to be able to drive the dagger in with his kicks too; yeah, I get it- it's his first real kick in the season, but he needs to hit those makeable points.

Blood pressure in check so far. Nothing too spectacular and nothing too horrendous just yet although I'd like to see the Lions be more aggressive. Meh.

[Thruster315]

Did I or did I not call for a blowout? I did call for a 15 point blowout but lapping up a 21 point beat down of the G-Men isn't bad either.

Considering the piss poor football play of the Big Ten this weekend, it's nice to see the pro boys win one and do it decisively. Stafford looked pretty damn good out there. He was mobile and seemed to play with some smarts.

So c'mon where are some of the other Kool Aid sippers tonight?? I know it's not just me now.

[Pickford-Bentler]

I thought Stafford looked like a more "complete" QB. Gruden was saying that his conditioning was markedly improved. I also thought his pocket movement and judgment were more controlled. Maybe there is some truth to Caldwell being able to work with a QB.

Fauria also showed that he is working on becoming more than just a red zone target.

Tate=hands

Ebron did not show much.

The D line is solid at all four points of attack. Our ends can react and kill a run. A far cry from let Avril or the old timer that Schwarz was fond of line up ten yards outside the hash to run wide and let the RB shoot the gap. The secondary of the Lions is soft and stopping the run is paramount for any success.

Levy has a cool beard and tackles well.

The offense looks potent and multi-dimensional.

Hard to make a call on defense because the Giants offense is clearly bad.

I liked how the Lions went from too many penalties in the first half to none in the second.

Like him hate him, Stafford has a cannon arm.

[NickCharles]

I wonder if this Lions emblem will be dislayed on the giant LED screen on top of the G.M. building whicg had never been displayed before

Whaauughh? Who shot who in the foot now?

[smogboy]

What impressed me the most about the Lions victory was Matthew Stafford's comprehension of the game. He was still his gunslinger self but he seemed to make smarter decisions throughout. He knew when to step up into the pocket, he knew when to side step, and he wasn't afraid to throw it away to maintain good field position. He wasn't reckless with the ball trying to fit it into impossible spots. For far too long he's had the blessing of having the super human Calvin Johnson make him look more amazing than he really is, but this performance against the Giants not only made him seem like a more complete QB, he can really take advantage of all the weapons he has at his disposal now. Stafford's poise was to be praised tonight.

Watching a receiver like Golden Tate was a pleasure tonight. He really complements a Calvin Johnson in the truest sense. His reliability was amazing. He didn't drop one pass and often found the seams created by someone like Calvin Johnson. 6 for 6, 93 yards is mighty impressive as he also kept drives alive.

This array of receivers has got to prove a headache for any opposing defense now. On top of CJ & Tate, they also have to account for two running backs that can catch it out of the backfield too. Bush & Bell have the ability and accounted for 6 and 1 catch respectively. Did I mention that we still have some tall tight ends as well?

Our ground game could've probably used some help tonight though. The Bush/ Bell/ Riddick combo didn't chew up much yardage but the Giants did stack the box very well. The trio only accounted for 70 yards total with Stafford and Tate adding 6 more yards. Bell did do the yeoman's work in holding onto the ball late and chewing up valuable time on the clock though. It's often an unlooked skill that a lot of better teams possess.

On the defensive side of the ball it's good to see the linebackers step it up so well. DeAndre Levy should easily be a pro-bowler if he continues to play at this level. 10 tackles and many of them clutch including two behind the line of scrimmage. Stephen Tulloch also had a really nice open field tackle too and remains a stalwart in the middle of this group. The safeties in Abdul-Quddus [[undrafted rookie) and Quin also held up nicely. I don't recall too many of those turnstile missed tackles this game. And for as vaunted as Eli Manning is, I didn't see him picking on the likes of Slay and Mathis. The Giants Victor Cruz definitely did not seem happy about his lack of production; could it be from decent coverage on the part of our DBs?

Jim Caldwell in his Lions debut was impressive. I have no idea what he said at half time but the Lions' discipline in the second half was remarkable. Maybe it was a case of the jitters the first half but they sure played a lot smarter and more disciplined. I don't recall the Lions ever going a half without a silly penalty flag thrown their way. To his credit Jim Caldwell did not linger on this victory and still implored that his team still has a lot to clean up.

Let's also hope that Bill Bentley will be okay. It looked pretty bad and we can only hope that it's not a torn ACL. Nevin Lawson played well in his place but if it's season ending for Bentley, we can rest assured that Lawson is going to get picked upon in the games to come. We also have to hope that LaAdrian Waddle can come back to form soon too, but since Corey Hilliard is there for now I'm less inclined to worry. Those two fought like beasts in the pre-season for that starting job so the skill loss isn't as severe.

It was an impressive victory and the Ford Field crowd really seemed to be a difference too. It's nice to see the crowds really get into it and be a contributing factor.

[smogboy]

And while we're talking about remembering people, let's not forget that William Clay Ford passed this year too. Some people hated the man. Some adored him. I can't say that he didn't care for the team or us the fans, but for all of his folly with this team- he was the owner of our team. if anything, the old guy was too darn loyal. Why else would one hang onto Russ Thomas and Matt Millen for as long as he did? But it was also he who built us one helluva nice Ford Field and moved this franchise back to the heart of the city.

Some are glad he's gone and I think that's a little callous.

I know the Lions this year will fly the flag at half mast, sport a patch with his initials on it and I heard there will be some pre-game ceremony to honor the man too. God rest your soul, Mister Ford.

I think the Lions' organization did a very nice and fitting tribute to Mister Ford before the game too. It wasn't too long, sappy or dragged out. And it's always nice to see the Lions' alumni come back and be on the field.

[Thruster315]

Wow, smoggy. You said a mouthful, but you're pretty spot on with all of it.

It must be a bitch to be a Giants fan now. Did anyone catch how confused Manning and his receivers looked? Were they operating out of the same playbook? How many times did Eli heave one up there and the receiver never even looked back? And what's up with their weird ass hand signals? I get it; it's supposed to help beat the crowd noise but obviously the Giants weren't clicking.

I know I called for a blowout of a game but even I was left agog at that one play where Cromartie & their safety collided and Calvin- the most dangerous player in the entire NFL was out there all alone. There wasn't a defender within 10 yards of him! Hell, I could've walked the ball over to him and pitched him a lateral for the touchdown.

[smogboy]

Just for grins and giggles, how did Jim Caldwell do in comparison to his predecessor Jim Schwartz for one game? He's definitely different and seems to rule with a calmer mantra. Beyond that- any other noticeable distinctions from seeing four pre-season games and one regular season victory over the hapless New York Giants? Feel free to discuss.

[gnome]

I just ordered my Super Bowl tickets.

[Thruster315]

Just for grins and giggles, how did Jim Caldwell do in comparison to his predecessor Jim Schwartz for one game? He's definitely different and seems to rule with a calmer mantra. Beyond that- any other noticeable distinctions from seeing four pre-season games and one regular season victory over the hapless New York Giants? Feel free to discuss.

The major difference I see between the two coaching styles is that Schwartz burned really hot for games but could hardly maintain that intensity for four quarters. Caldwell is like a slow cooker; maintaining even heat and keeping it intense without burning too hot. Schwartz would also yell a lot but I've always contended that beyond the shock value of the first yell, the effectiveness wears off. I'm sure Caldwell has his moments of intensity too but probably in a more threatening Batman sort of way. Caldwell could probably still gut someone without having to raise his voice.

Although as an intense fan I can also appreciate Schwartz' fiery disposition because you knew he wanted to win. Did it work for this team? Obviously not as they tuned him out at the end of last season.

I'm also taking in some more gulps of the Caldwell Kool Aid in digging his no captaincy approach too. Too often that designation gets tossed onto players by the coach not for being an example to the team but because the coach wanted to kiss a player's ass. Did Suh really deserve a captaincy last year or was that Schwartz trying to be buddy buddies with him? I think Suh's respected by his team mates for his immense talent but I never thought of him as a leader. Caldwell is going to assign captain's every week for the games based upon some other voodoo- maybe practices or previous games, but it's a reward/ acknowledgement system that I can dig.

[Thruster315]

I just ordered my Super Bowl tickets.

I was gonna scalp you my tickets on the cheap too… they also come with a deed to a certain Bridge in the DelRay neighborhood too.

[Smirnoff]

Bottom line: Giants were awful.....their offense had no clue to the plays Eli was calling, if you watched the game it was very obvious.....

[Thruster315]

Bottom line: Giants were awful.....their offense had no clue to the plays Eli was calling, if you watched the game it was very obvious.....

They're in some weird transition period with their offensive coordinator. I saw weird hand signals being waved and flaunted by Manning and it wasn't some odd check-down going to the line. Tom Coughlin should've been canned two years ago. The Giants do stink.

That's who they are.

To our team's credit, we're better and it showed. Better teams should beat teams that suck. What drives me batty is when the Lions lose to teams that stink. I'm not promising Super Bowl for this team yet but we should be able to kick teams like the Giants' ass on a regular basis. We're better than them on a ton of levels.

[Downriviera]

I heard Manning calling out "Baltimore, Baltimore". Does he want to be traded to the Ravens?

[rb336]

This is what I have noticed about stafford:
better feet
better decision making
audibles
but, and I find this the most important, his eyes - last year when he was out of the pocket, his eyes darted all over the place. Yesterday he was calmly scanning the field

[Downriviera]

^^^ Agreed. Kudos to the coaching staff for completely revamping him in a short period of time.

[Thruster315]

This is what I have noticed about stafford:
better feet
better decision making
audibles
but, and I find this the most important, his eyes - last year when he was out of the pocket, his eyes darted all over the place. Yesterday he was calmly scanning the field

Let's give up some loving to the offensive line too. This is the beef that protects him and gives him the time to make those better decisions. Without these guys around doing the work in the trenches, no matter how bright Matt Stafford is, he's going to be chased around fearing for his life as opposed to looking down field for an open receiver.

Props to the coaching staff too, but like some bright football pundit once said a glacier's age ago- it always won or lost in the trenches.

[Thruster315]

Not that I'm a betting man by any stretch but keeping tabs on the betting line for this weekend's tilt with the Panthers, the spread went from the Panthers being a 3 point favorite to a 1 point favorite now- by some accounts. I've seen a few placing the Panthers at being a 2.5 point fave.

Initially I thought the Lions were going to lose this one in a squeaker but I'm not so sure now. I'm going to pull for the Lions to win ALWAYS but realistically, I wouldn't bet granny's mortgage on it just yet. Maybe the chicken coop on a Lions victory would be about as far as I would go.

No crazy blow out predictions this week. The bunion's being indecisive.

[Hypestyles]

hopefully there will be at least 10 more wins this year during the season. I'd like to see that.

[Thruster315]

Half time rant here. I don't want to crucify the young man just yet but kicking wise, we need you Nate Freese. You can't be missing those shots now or it's gonna be punching the bus ticket before you even get your career going. Offensively we can't seem to run the ball at all. Bell & Bush haven't had much luck against those Panthers. Stafford still looks pretty good a second week in a row with his footwork; he seems to step out of pressure a lot better than he has in previous years. I like him spreading some of the passes around but the team needs a concerted drive going. Lombardi needs some halftime adjustments to the Carolina D. Seeing Slay and Fairley slightly dinged is scary too. So here's to hoping that the Lions' brain trust can come up with a solid adjustment and still take this game. It's not out of reach just yet; we're hanging in there and keeping it close.

[mam2009]

How has Olsen been OPEN the entire game?