Football Diner 2008 Team Reviews / Previews
Detriot Lions
by Mark Lyne-Austen
1/9/2008
 
Overview
 
The Detroit Lions. Winners of 4 NFL titles all time, they haven't been to the big dance since, well ever and have only claimed a Superbowl era division 3 times. Still, of all the NFC North sides it is the Lions who have endured the greatest stability heading into the 2008 season. Mike Martz the unpredictable and expansive offensive guru may have gone but the Lions are as solid a club as they have been during recent years though that still probably is not enough to see them compete against top tier sides.
 
Quarterbacks
 
Detroit settled on Jon Kitna for the 2006 season and have stuck by that decision since. Heading into his 12th season in the NFL, Kitna is not regarded as one of the top QBs in the league but has 2 consecutive 4000 yard seasons behind him with the Lions. It can be easy to forget now that Kitna had not been a bad QB for the Cincinnati Bengals when he was dropped in favour of highly touted Carson Palmer and Kitna is about as solid as there is at the position in the NFC North. Behind Kitna, JT O'Sullivan has been moved on and Dan Orlovsky is now the primary backup. The Lions will need Kitna to continue to be effective and have not invested heavily in the future at the position.
Grade: C+
 
Running Backs
 
The Lions have had high quality runners in their recent past but now turn to a rookie in the form of Kevin Smith to lead the ground game. Kevin Smith turned heads in a stellar 2007 season at the University of Central Florida. Taken in the 3rd round of the 2008 draft, Smith is the man lined up to replace Kevin Jones, the talented but oft-injured former first round selection. Running Back is the easiest position of all for a rookie to make an impact but in the hard-nosed NFC North it will not be easy running. Alongside Smith is Tatum Bell who is two years out from a 1,000 yard season with the Denver Broncos. The Lions are clearly not sold on Bell as his current one year contract is not a declaration of faith. Detroit has talked of getting back to a focus on the run game following Mike Martz departure but they will be needing heroics from either a rookie or a journeyman to get any measure of success.
Grade: C-
 
Receivers
 
No team has invested as much at the Wide Receiver position in the last six years as the Detroit Lions. Last year it was Calvin Johnson, the highly impressive former Georgia Tech player who suffered with injury in his rookie season. In 2005 it was bust Mike Williams. In 2004 it was Roy Williams who remains the team's No 1 receiver. In 2003 it was bust Charles Rogers. Detroit has been desperate to land great receivers and in Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams they do indeed have a quality pairing with Williams making the Pro Bowl in 2007. Behind those two, Mike Furrey and Shaun McDonald are both playmakers with quick bursts. If Johnson can produce near his potential and avoid injury, this is an excellent group of catchers. Tight End has not been a significant element in the Detroit passing game and that appears to continue to be the case heading into 2008.
Grade: B+
 
Offensive Line
 
The Detroit O-Line is not among the feared units in the NFL but last year's starters are all still with the team. Center Dominic Raiola has started 96 consecutive games while Left Tackle Jeff Backus has not missed a single game in his 112 starts. The Line also boasts veteran experience at Left Guard in the form of Edwin Mulitalo. The right side of the line is not as strong. Stephen Peterman at Guard and George Foster at Tackle are the weak links on the line. Foster is on a one-year deal and the team has looked to the future in the form of 2008 1st rounder Gosder Cherilus who surely will take a starting Tackle spot early in his career.
There is a lot of talk that Detroit will be moving to a zone blocking scheme this season and in any case there should be a significant change in the line play without Mike Martz as more of a ground attack will allow the Linemen to attack more often. However, O-Line is not the unit to carry the Lions in 2008.
Grade: C-
 
Defensive Line
 
Defensive Line is an area where the Lions could struggle this season despite the huge contracts the team has been handing out. Cory Redding's $49m 7 year contract is a ridiculous amount for a player who just isn't one of the best at his position. Though touted as a penetrating inside rusher, Redding is not a difference maker. He is currently the best player on the D-Line but last year was on most people's overrated lists. Alongside Redding it is all change. Chartric Darby moved in from Seattle to take over from the skilful but somewhat deranged Shaun Rogers. Rogers when focussed is a much better player but his off-field troubles were clearly too much for the Lions. At End neither Jared DeVries nor Dewayne White are likely to cause offensive coordinators many sleepless nights. Having invested so much in Redding, the Lions are going to continue to be disappointed with this area of the team.
Grade: D-
 
Linebackers
 
Linebacker is an area of the field that Detroit fans can point to and claim some quality. That quality is Ernie Sims. The all-action Florida State Seminole is entering his 3rd year in the league and already has over 250 tackles to his credit and should just get better with more experience. This year's second round selection also looks to be a player with great potential. Jordon Dizon is more of a coverage player than a hitter out of the middle of the field and there are bound to be doubts as to whether he can hold up against the power of NFL offenses – like Chicago or Minnesota for instance. Dizon will need to be a playmaker in his rookie season but it could be a bruising year. The most improved player on the Detroit defense last year was Paris Lenon who had 118 tackles and a 61 yard interception for a TD against Kansas City. The rest of the Linebacking group does not account for a huge amount and an injury especially to Sims would be devastating. The loss of Boss Bailey to the Denver Broncos is a significant blow to the team and makes Dizon's play even more crucial.
Grade: C+
 
Secondary
 
The Detroit secondary added veteran Brian Kelly in the off-season, a gamble given that Corner is just about the hardest position to maintain effectiveness as the year's go by. Kelly will find himself in a very different defense to that of his Tampa Bay Buccaneers and it would be a genuine surprise to see him return to the form he showed when he was still able to go for 16 games a season back in 2005. Elsewhere, Travis Fisher is a flyer but has never started 16 games in a year and never really fulfilled his rookie potential. New signing Leigh Bodden had a career year in 2007 at the Cleveland Browns and having been exchanged for Shaun Rogers should see significant game time this year. Depth at Corner is not exceptional and with Kelly clearly not the player he was, both Fisher and Bodden will need to play well all year.
Safety is less strong. Daniel Bullocks is expected to return to the starting lineup after missing all of the 2007 season. His backup, Gerald Alexander now has more game experience despite only having a year's worth of NFL play. The signing of Dwight Smith at Strong Safety did not raise too many eyebrows but he is a ballhawk and could add some of the turnover potential that the Lions have not had out of the Safety position recently. The release of Kenoy Kennedy probably does not harm the team.
Grade: C+
 
Special Teams
 
The reasonably reliable Jason Hanson returns for his 17th season with the Lions, booting as effectively as ever. Punter Nick Harris comes back for the 6th year and will likely need to follow his career high 13 out of bounds punts in 2007 still facing Devin Hester twice a year.
Grade C-
 
Coaching
 
Head Coach Rod Marinelli replaced Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz with the team's line coach Jim Colletto. While getting rid of Martz makes sense to a lot of people, Colletto has been a line coach since 1999 and is new at coordinator in the NFL. While it may herald a refocusing of the Lions offensive philosophy, the O-Line is just not good enough to base the team around. Marinelli's son-in-law Joe Barry coordinates the D. If this is not a good season for Marinelli then change is coming.
Grade D+
 
Outlook
 
The Lions should struggle again in 2008. More of a running game should help out the passing options but the D still has holes. The Lions have never been built to play NFC North football and are not designed to play in Soldier or Lambeau Field. The Matt Millen era at General Manager has been ferociously unpopular and while the club is more stable than it has been previously, the team is going to have to rely on explosive play at WR to make things happen. The Lions are not heading to the playoffs in a Division that includes Minnesota and Green Bay.