SB Nation - Jeff Backus

Tuesday Notes: Lions Claim Maurice Williams, Release Ephraim Salaam

Sean Yuille — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:48:47 -0000

The Lions have claimed offensive lineman Maurice Williams. Williams was waived by the Jaguars over the weekend after playing for them since 2001. He is from the city of Detroit and went to the University of Michigan, where he started at right tackle alongside the likes of Jeff Backus and Steve Hutchinson. Williams was also a member of the Wolverines when Jon Jansen started at right tackle. In the NFL, Williams has started 100 of the 105 games he's played in, and it seems like he is a good addition for depth purposes if he can stay healthy. The Lions don't exactly have the best situation at guard, so it looks like Williams could help at that position.
To make room on the roster for Williams, the Lions released offensive tackle Ephraim Salaam.
The Lions might work out punters this week because Nick Harris hurt his knee while making a tackle against Cincinnati.
Jim Schwartz was understandably pissed off over some of the costly and stupid penalties the Lions got on Sunday.
Bryant Johnson's eyes looked a little odd on Sunday, but that was just because he wears tinted contacts.
Louis Delmas went into Sunday's game ready to talk trash with Chad Ochocinco, and considering Delmas knocked #85 out of the game with a big hit, I think he has definitely earned the right to. Delmas went over to Ochocinco to make sure he was alright after the hit, and they had a nice exchange. Ochocinco wasn't out for long and continued to improve on his big game, but overall I thought Delmas did a great job on Sunday.
The Lions' road losing streak is up to 18 games.

The Rise and Fall of Tim Ruskell: The Steve Hutchinson Saga

John Morgan — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 01:24:51 -0000

More photos » by Tom Olmscheid - AP

Tim Ruskell wanted Steve Hutchinson, but John Abraham and Julian Peterson too. Attempting to sign all three, he was caught with his hand in the pickle jar.

Browse more photos »

Shaun Alexander and Steve Hutchinson were free agents. Both were 28. Hutch had completed his five-year rookie contract, and, if re-signed, his cap cost could double. Alexander was already expensive. The Seahawks had franchised him in 2004. Seattle could have signed both players, and attempted to, but would have tied up much of their available cap. Tim Ruskell was aggressively targeting Julian Peterson and John Abraham. He wanted Hutch, but he wanted to improve the Seahawks too. Signing Alexander tied up $5.9 million against the cap.

Hutch expected offensive tackle money. The market for guards was soft. Hutchinson was the fifth highest paid offensive guard in 2005, but cost only $3.5 million against the cap. Even Larry Allen, the league's highest paid guard, only cost $6.5 million. Only three guards total cost more than $5 million against the cap.

Running backs were much more expensive. Eight cost more than five million against the cap in 2005, and Edgerrin James cost over $9 million. The league perceived running back to be a premium position, on par with wide receiver, offensive tackle and cornerback. If Seattle put the franchise tag on Hutchinson, his salary would reflect the salaries of all offensive linemen and not just guards. The Lions placed the tag on Jeff Backus in 2006. His base salary was $6.98 million. If Seattle franchised Hutchinson, it would have had $25 million in cap room dedicated to Hutch, Alexander, Walter Jones and Matt Hasselbeck.

Ruskell did something he has done many times since: Let the market to set a player's value. Placing the transition tag on Hutchinson allowed him to negotiate with other teams and Seattle the right to match. It avoided guaranteeing Hutchinson $6.98 million, and, in Ruskell's eyes, enabled negotiations towards a long-term contract. Ruskell was willing to spend big to retain his Pro Bowl guard. His hope was he wouldn't have to. His hope was that he could sign Hutchinson, but structure his contract so that Seattle could still sign Peterson, Abraham or both.

Early March, and shortly after the league ratified a new collective bargaining agreement, Minnesota offered Hutchinson the largest contract in league history for an offensive guard. It was a bold move made audacious by a now notorious poison pill clause. The clause stipulated that if Hutchinson was not his team's highest paid offensive lineman at any time after the first year, that his entire contract was guaranteed.

If Seattle wanted to match Minnesota's offer, it would not only need to match the Vikings unprecedented offer, it would be forced to guarantee Hutchinson's entire salary. Peyton Manning was the league's most expensive player and his contract guaranteed only $34.5 million. Matching Minnesota meant guaranteeing Hutchinson a staggering $49 million. Hutch would cost $13 million against the cap in 2006, forcing Seattle to forget Peterson and Abraham. Ruskell, supported by Paul Tagliabue and the NFL, contested the poison-pill clause, even restructured Walter Jones contract, but arbiter Stephen Burbank ruled in the Vikings favor. Seattle would either ruin their cap or let Hutchinson walk.

The deadline passed midnight of March 20, 2006, and Steve Hutchinson became a Minnesota Viking. Tim Ruskell fell on the wrong side of history. He attempted to make his Super Bowl losing team a Super Bowl winner. Instead, he lost an irreplaceable piece, alienated his coach, and began the Seahawks slow burn towards rebuilding.

Ending The Bye Week Blues

Mitchell_M — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:32:36 -0000

It's been a rough fortnight for me, Packer fans. Not only did Green Bay lose round one of FavreFest 2009 (while watching Jared Allen and his lame-unless-he-was-on-your-team stirring sack celebration), but they headed into the bye week at 2-2, re-signed an old favorite who may or may not be ready to play, and draw a feisty Detroit Lions team that looks like it's charging back towards middle-of-the-pack status.

So there's that whole deal. Combine that with the fact that the Milwaukee Bucks are wrapping up their preseason (and Brandon Jennings looks even less ready than we thought he would), the World Series is shaping up to be a showdown between the Dodgers and Yankees (after yet another disappointing Brewers campaign), and hockey is less important to me than the price of high heels in Sri Lanka, and you can see that it's a tough time for a Wisconsin-native sports fan. Even my fantasy teams are imploding (1-4 and 2-3 in the leagues that matter).

It's tough to lose your last game before a bye week. It gives you an awful taste in your mouth about your chances afterwards. But then I remember that the Packers are playing the Lions at Lambeau this week. That makes me feel slightly better.

DET rushing vs. GB defense: Every time I think of the Detroit running backs, I think of Kevin Smith, and every time I think of Kevin Smith, I think of Clerks 2, and every time I think of Clerks 2, I think of the scene where Randal and Elias debate which trilogy was better: Lord of the Rings or Star Wars (definitely NSFW). Specifically, I think of the part where Randal reenacts the LOTR movies by simply...walking.

That scene is oddly parallel to the story of Detroit's run game. Detroit's top 4 running backs (Smith, Maurice Morris, Aaron Brown, and Jerome Felton) are averaging less than 3.6 yards per carry. Not that we're used to dominant running performances around these parts, but Kevin Smith and his 3.1 average (287 yards on 94 carries) does not strike fear into opposing defenses.

It's not even that Kevin Smith is a below-average running back. He has good size (6'1", 217), and excellent speed and agility. He regularly breaks off 10+ yard runs, and is even a decent pass catcher (19 receptions for 143 yards). But his line is giving him no help.

Jeff Backus (6'5", 305) and Gosder Cherilus (6'7", 325) are capable bookends (especially Cherilus, who is a nasty run blocker), but the interior linemen, Daniel Loper (6'6", 320), Dominic Raiola (6'1", 295), and Stephen Peterman (6'4", 323) simply aren't able to move defenders and open running lanes. Smith is the type of running back that needs space to gain momentum and use his second gear, but he can't get started because he's constantly running into brick walls.

Green Bay has fared well this season against opposing running backs. Besides Cedric Benson (who has looked every bit like the player Chicago wanted him to be, including breaking Baltimore's streak of 39 games without allowing 100+ rushing yards to a single player), the Packers have effectively bottled up opposing running backs. As a team, Green Bay is only allowing 3.5 yards per attempt, in no small part because of the "Big Okie" formation that puts 5 linebackers on the field, allowing effective pursuit to the ball, stringing plays out to the sideline, and cutting off gaps. Brandon Chillar is a surprise tackling leader this season (26 on the year), but 7 other players in the front seven have at least 11 tackles.

Advantage: Green Bay. As a team, the Packers do an excellent job of closing running lanes, while Detroit does not do a good enough job at opening them up.

DET passing vs. GB defense: When I was a kid, 'Transformers' was awesome. When Michael Bay tried to turn it into a summer flick, it made me want to further repress my childhood so that I'd have no memory of ever enjoying the battle of Autobots vs. Decepticons. But there's still one guy that makes me glad to have watched that cartoon: Calvin "Megatron" Johnson.

Whoa, nelly. Megatron is a beast. I know I gushed about him last year, but I don't care. The 6'5", 236 lb. Georgia Tech product managed to put up 1331 yards and 12 touchdowns on the putrid 2008 Lions squad. He is big, fast, strong, has great hands, and can make any catch at any time. He has been limited in the last two weeks because of injury, but coach Jim Schwartz says that it isn't serious and he is currently listed as probable.

After Johnson is where the problems start. Bryant Johnson is a first round pick who never lived up to his promise. Dennis Northcutt is a Jacksonville castoff, which is saying something. Derrick Williams has some promise, but is buried on the depth chart. Yamon Figurs is a recent addition, but will likely focus on return duties. Will Heller is a career backup at TE, and first-rounder Brandon Pettigrew was injured in training camp and is still trying to figure out his role.

Behind center, Detroit went all-in on Matthew Stafford, which I thought was a terrible decision back in April. Stafford hasn't looked awful, but he certainly hasn't outplayed fellow rookie Mark Sanchez (who is on a much better team). Stafford has a big arm (894 yards, 3 TDs), but merely average accuracy (56.8% completion) and questionable decision-making (6 INTs, 65.6 QB rating). Basically, I didn't think that Detroit should have spent first-overall money on a guy who may or may not work out at the pro level, but the jury is still out on him.

Ever since dislocating his kneecap against Chicago, however, the Matthew Stafford debate is moot for the time-being. With Stafford likely sidelined another week, Daunte Culpepper takes the reigns again. And you know what that means:

I've got these tiny hands...

While we remember his time with Minnesota in the earlier parts of the 2000's, Culpepper has never been the same since his 2006 knee injury. He's bounced around a bit before settling in Detroit as a stop-gap QB, but he's still a capable passer. He still has a big arm, decent accuracy, and can run a huddle effectively. As weird as it seems, one of Daunte Culpepper's biggest weaknesses is the size of his hands. For a few years, Culpepper was averaging over a fumble per game. He has compensated for his tiny mitts by employing an unconventional throwing motion, but when he tries to run or gets hit in the pocket, he is prone to losing control of the ball.

And Culpepper has been hit a lot lately. Seven sacks against the Steelers is downright Rodgers-esque. Even before that, though, the Lions gave up 10 sacks in 4 games, giving them 17 total for the season. The Lions simply cannot protect their quarterback, something we know all about. Backus is a decent blind-side protector, and Raiola has been around long enough to make good adjustments on the line, but Cherilus is still too raw, the interior linemen are too weak, and the backs do not block well.

Green Bay's 3-4 defense was supposed to be the kind that got after the quarterback and forced turnovers. While the +7 ratio fulfills the second part, the sacks simply haven't been there. Through four games, the Packers have five sacks. Two came against Jay Cutler, and two against Marc Bulger. Brett Favre and his porous offensive line wasn't even touched on Monday night.

The decision to change Aaron Kampman into a pass-rushing OLB was a head-scratcher during the offseason, and it's become downright dumbfounding in October. On the play where Favre had over 7 seconds to find a receiver, Kampman wasn't shut down by a Vikings lineman. He was in zone coverage, someplace he has been found all too often. Dom Capers' blitz-happy defense took a turn for the conservative when Atari Bigby went down in Week 1, so his return is much anticipated. The lack of pass rush has severely hampered the production of the defensive backfield. Charles Woodson, Nick Collins, Al Harris, and Tramon Williams are still ball-hawks. As long as they get opportunities from the front seven, they will break up more than a few passes.

Advantage: Push. While Green Bay has the clear advantage on paper, I want to see more results before I declare them to have any sort of edge.

GB rushing vs. DET defense: Detroit's run defense was one of the many weak points in 2008. Thus far in 2009, it hasn't been fixed. The Lions give up 4.9 yards per attempt on the ground. That includes performances of 142 yards by Mike Bell, 92 yards by Adrian Peterson, 121 yards by Matt Forte, and 77 yards by Rashard Mendenhall. Jim Schwartz has tried to fix the problem by shuffling personnel, but results are mixed. LB Ernie Sims was benched last week for rookie DeAndre Levy, DT Chuck Darby was waived to make room on the field for rookie Sammie Lee Hill, and Grady Jackson has seen more and more snaps.

It doesn't help that the Lions are starting Packer castoff Jason Hunter at LDE with the 240 lb. Julian Peterson playing both at LOLB and at the other DE spot. Aside from Larry Foote, the Lions don't have anyone that can really shoot gaps and take on lead blockers. Ernie Sims was supposed to be that guy, but he's currently in the dog house. Rookie safety Louis Delmas is a big hitter, but he's no Troy Polamalu just yet. The only run-stopper they have is Grady Jackson, who is getting up there in years.

Luckily for Detroit, Green Bay doesn't seem that interested in running the ball. I did a little post last week exploring where the Green Bay rushing attack has gone. As it turns out, it really hasn't gone anywhere, it's just been ignored. The team averages a shade under 100 yards per game, which is somewhat respectable, but they haven't been able to sustain long drives by picking up yards on the ground. 2007 Ryan Grant is still MIA, and DeShawn Wynn has been downright awful. Brandon Jackson is coming back from injury, which might help, but he's best suited to a 3rd down back role anyway.

Up front, Green Bay's injury problems and lack of depth have exposed the team in pass protection, but also showed below-average run blocking. With Chad Clifton returning from injury, Daryn Colledge can resume his normal role at LG, putting Jason Spitz back at C and Scott Wells on the bench. From here, the Packers have a better shot of opening running lanes, especially on the right side (where Allen Barbre performs well).

Advantage: Push. This matchup is like the stoppable force against the movable object. If Green Bay calls an even offensive game, they might have an advantage, but I don't see any at this point.

GB passing vs. DET defense: Quarterbacks like playing Detroit. Against the Motor City Kitties, NFL passers have put up 15 scores against only 3 INTs while amassing a 73.3% completion rating. While the Lions have had middling success getting to the quarterback (10 sacks in 2009), their highest individual total is 2.0 (Jason Hunter). There is no designated pass rusher, unless you count Julian Peterson, who has been a failure as a DE on passing downs. Whether the sacks have been from good downfield coverage, poor blocking by opponents, or a schematic advantage, one thing is for sure: they aren't blitzing very much (bottom third in NFL).

The defensive backfield has been a sore point in Detroit. Anthony Henry has performed well as the #1 corner, but Will James and Philip Buchanon have been switching in and out of the starting lineup. Rookie Louis Delmas is best used in run support, but he is capable in pass coverage. The Lions split time at the other safety between Ko Simpson and former fan favorite Marquand Manuel.

Passing offense has been, for Green Bay, one of the lone bright spots in a disappointing start. Aaron Rodgers has put up big numbers behind an awful offensive line, showing accuracy and poise despite getting sacked 20 times in 4 games and having to run out of the pocket on numerous occasions. The receivers have been somewhat underwhelming, amassing 10 of the team's 14 drops. Greg Jennings has been unusually quiet in the first quarter of 2009, and has gone on record to say that he thinks that the team needs to get back to the short-passing game that allowed he and the other WRs to create yards after the catch. Hear, hear, Greg.

Advantage: Green Bay. If Rodgers can get hit 8 times and still throw for over 300 yards, he will get good looks against Detroit.

Preliminary verdict: Coming off a bye, Green Bay seems to have changed a bit as a team. Mark Tauscher has been re-signed. Brandon Jackson, Jeremy Thompson, Chad Clifton, and possibly Atari Bigby should be returning from injury. The offensive line should get back to the group that started the season, and the defense should get back to the blitzing that gave us all high expectations for 2009. Perhaps this is the week where we see the 2009 preseason team in action instead of the poor impersonation we've watched for the last month.

I can't think of how the timing could be better than hosting Detroit. Unless it was Oakland, or Kansas City, or the Browns, or even the struggling Cowboys. See, Lions fans? Your team has improved a lot!

Poll

What outcome do you see for Week 6 vs. Detroit?

Big GB win.

414 votes

Slim GB win.

197 votes

Too close to call.

26 votes

Slim DET win.

40 votes

Big DET win.

11 votes

688 votes | Poll has closed

Tuesday Notes: Cliff Avril Talks About His Injury

Sean Yuille — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 03:58:18 -0000

Ernie Harwell was honored before Sunday's game.
Unsurprisingly, Jim Schwartz isn't about to yank Matthew Stafford after only two games.
Cliff Avril talked about his injury in his latest blog post.
ESPN's Kevin Seifert had this to say about Jeff Backus on the first play of the second half:

I have no idea what left tackle Jeff Backus was doing for any part of the first play of the second half. He lined up across from Allen -- with no tight end help -- but never took a step to block Allen at the snap. Allen sacked Stafford untouched, forcing a fumble. Backus was facing the play at the time but made no move to recover the fumble, acting as if he thought the play was dead. (Finally, tight end Brandon Pettigrew fell on the ball.) Did Backus hear a whistle? Did he think that tailback Kevin Smith was going to block Allen? All the way around, a bizarre and crucial play for the Lions.
I still have to go back and look at the tape, but something went drastically wrong on that play and it really doomed the Lions for the rest of the game. I don't know who is to blame just yet, but there's no excuse for letting Jared Allen run cleanly at Matthew Stafford.
Speaking of Jared Allen, he's sort of a douche.
Charles Rogers pleaded guilty to operating a vehicle while impaired.
The Redskins' offensive line is a bit banged up.
You know that video I posted yesterday of a drunk chick getting arrested at the Lions game? Well, she had some reason to be upset about halfway through the video, as some old guy got a handful during the altercation (click to enlarge).

Detroit Lions 27 @ New Orleans Saints 45: Who Dat Say!?

Saintsational — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 11:00:32 -0000

Make the jump for a plethora of Lions @ Saints linkage, quotage and videoage.

Linkage

Saints and Lions Notebook Sept 13 - New Orleans Saints official website

Saints Tame Lions 45-27 - New Orleans Saints official website

"I am blessed that they have given me an opportunity here," said Bell. "The thing I take out of the game is the opportunity I had and the great job our offensive line did. The fumble is disappointing to me and I can’t do that."

-Mike Bell

Saints win ugly against punchy Lions and their rookie quarterback - New Orleans Pro Football

New Orleans Saints vs. Detroit Lions recap - Times-Pic

New Orleans Saints put on offensive show in 45-27 rout of Detroit in opener - Times-Pic

Lions keep their heads up after 45-27 loss - Sun Herald

Bell’s tough running a good sign for Saints - Sun Herald

"It wasn’t pretty by any means," linebacker Scott Fujita said, "but all in all, we won the game. We need to get after the quarterback a lot better than we did."

-Scott Fujita

"(Bell) is definitely carving himself a nice niche in this offense,"

-Jon Stinchcomb

Handwerger: Saints' win versus Lions far from perfect - WWLTV

Brees tosses 6 TD's, Saints beat Lions 45-27 - WWLTV

"The thing that's good is our offense puts up a lot of points," said safety Darren Sharper, who intercepted three passes. "What coincides with that is if we get turnovers and give them the football back, you'll see many games where we'll be pushing that 50-point mark for our team."

-Darren Sharper

Brees sharp, extends Lions’ losing streak, 45-27 - NewOrleans.com

Brees' 6 TDs give Lions their 18th straight loss - Detroit Free Press

Saints vs Lions Recap: That Voodoo that Drew Do So Well - Chicks In The Huddle

First look at the New Orleans Saints' next foe: Injured Donovan McNabb and the Philadelphia Eagles - Times-Pic

Lions fall 45-27 in season opener at New Orleans - Detroit Lions official website

Video

Post-Game Comments: Saints vs. Lions

Jeff Duncan's video log from the Saints-Lions game (Sept. 13, 2009)

Saints Postgame Quotes

From the New Orleans Saints official website

Sean Payton

Opening Statement...

"I have a couple items pertaining to injuries. (Jermon) Bushrod was able to come back in, he just had a knee bruise, and the same thing with Tracy Porter. They have similar injuries and we will see how they are doing tomorrow. Jeremy (Shockey) got dehydrated a little and started cramping in the second half. I told the players afterwards, there are a lot of things we did in this game to get you beat and we are going to have clean that up. We have to clean up the kicking game. I didn't think we covered very well and I didn't think we returned well so we lost field position battles today in that aspect, clearly. We turned the ball over. We turned it over at running back for a touchdown, we turned it over on a punt and really put our defense in a short field a number of times and that will get you beat. We had some critical penalties that bring back big plays. So, there were enough sloppy things that really force us to look closely at cleaning those things up. That is really what I told them (the team). I was excited for the win, and yet there are a number of things that we have to do better and handle better and we will start on that Wednesday."

On the defensive play as a whole...

"I thought they played well. I just told the team that I don't know how many times we gave Detroit the ball inside the 20. I thought we rallied well and we held them to some field goals. We had a stretch of some tough snaps where we had a few penalties called, but I thought the defense played well. The turnovers we came up with were crucial and I thought they did a good job, very good."

On the sloppy play from special teams...

"We'll see. We will take a look at the film. I don't know if we can point to one thing but that is something we have to get better at or it will end up costing us. We will look closely at the return game, as well as the coverage aspect of it because I thought we were poor. We were outplayed in those areas, clearly."

On Mike Bell's play today...

"I thought he ran the ball well. He had the one fumble that resulted in a touchdown, which is discouraging. I thought he ran hard. I thought the guys up front by-and-large did a good job coming off the football. I thought the balance was kind of where we wanted it. There is a little bit of a flow to that game. I thought Drew (Brees) had a real good command of what we were doing, our third downs were good and our conversions were good. There are some plusses with him running and there are some things he has to work on."

On Jeremy Shockey's play...

"He is a threat inside. He is healthy now and he is doing a good job. I was pleased to see him make some plays for us when it counted. He is moving around well, he had a good training camp and if you study him closely you will see that."

On getting the win despite the number of mistakes made...

"Fortunately for us we had some turnovers ourselves. In other words, we had some interceptions and got our hands on some balls and I think came up with some big plays. If you look at it, Brees had six touchdown passes, but I do think the point you bring up is a good one. Its no different in what I just got finished telling our team in regards to the things that can take you down; the turnovers, yourself, the poor coverage, those aspects can undo you pretty quickly."

Drew Brees

Can you talk about your first half?

"We did get off to a fast start. I thought starting off the season fast, and obviously this game, was big and we were able to do that. It was good to jump out to a 14-0 lead but unfortunately we kind of let them back in it. The next two series were three and out - which is not what we want - but we rallied before the end of the half and spread the ball around a lot, had a lot of guys involved, which was good."

Can you talk about tying the Saints team record for touchdown passes?

"I wasn't keeping tracking. It's kind of funny how that adds up if you just take it one play at a time. We had a lot of opportunities out there and there were a lot of guys who made some big plays in this game. Unfortunately we always think about the ones that got away - there were probably one or two more that we left out there. That's what keeps you coming back."

Is it almost scary that you left some out there and still scored 45 points?

"We scored 45 and you look at it and we turned the ball over three times, we got a field goal blocked - there were a lot more opportunities out there to be had. That's a good thing, but then you realize that it only gets tougher as we go along. We have a huge challenge next week at Philadelphia - they won today at Carolina so we know we have our work cut out for us and we're going to have to be better next week."

How satisfying was it to get Jeremy Shockey his first touchdown with this team?

"I told him after he caught the one in the first preseason game against Cincinnati that it just broke the seal and hopefully we'll just start overflowing now. We started with two - not too shabby. I think the sky is the limit for him and what he can do within this offense as a pass-catcher and a blocker. He has overcome a lot going back to last year coming off that broken leg and then he had the groin and the hernia and the ankle midseason and it was kind of an up and down time for him and something that I don't think he had ever experienced before. It was something he had to cope with but we had a great offseason. We spent a lot of time and had a lot of reps and I feel very confident with him and very comfortable with him and he's going to have a great year."

What did you see on the touchdown throw to Devery Henderson?

"It was man coverage across the board. I liked the match-up with Devery and it was just a matter of moving that safety a little bit and get him out of the picture. We were able to do that, I had to step up in the pocket in a little bit and there was Devery just smoking it down the field. He did a great job of getting open and creating separation and that's the way you draw it up."

Can you talk about your ability to move around in the pocket and make plays?

"That's part of playing the quarterback position, just understanding if you're able to step up or get out of the pocket when things break down, it's an opportunity to make big plays. All of a sudden it becomes a little bit of backyard ball where guys are working the back of the end zone and finding windows in the defense and I just try to find them for a first down or a touchdown. We had a few of those today where I would slide one way and hit Marques in the back of the end zone and hit Jeremy in the back of the end zone and then the throw to Devery - you have opportunities to make big plays when that happens."

What was the best throw of the six touchdowns?

"The ones I'm thinking of are the ones I didn't get; the one or two more - obviously the flea-flicker to Devery that got intercepted and then one right at the end of the half that I tried to thread in to Devery. I always worry about what I can get better at and not which ones were the best."

What did it mean to have Mike Bell moving the chains and you guys were able to run the football?

"It's awesome. We haven't had that in a while, so that's big. We ran a lot of plays and we had a lot of possession. Mike did a great job of stepping in and fulfilling that role. He was a work horse today, especially at the end of the game when it was just play after play of him pounding it up in there. That showed a lot of courage and obviously we're going to need him as the season goes on to continue to do that, continue to get better. I like the guys that we have offensively, especially at the running back position."

Of the six touchdowns, how many did not go as they were drawn up?

"I guess there were three of them. On three of them I kind of had to slide and create something. The timing wasn't the way you draw it up where you take a step in the pocket and deliver it. The one to Marques was kind of stepping up and flushed a little bit; the one to Shockey was flushed left and get it to him, and even Devery's was kind of an interesting timing or launch point for me because I had to step here and then step here and find him, so probably half of those - three out of the six. And even Meachem's - that's not the way you draw that one up - it just felt like Meachem was in a position to adjust it so I kind of threw it away from their guy and to our guy."

What are your thoughts on how the defense played?

"I thought the defense played great. You can't look at 27 points and say anything about the defense. We put them in some really bad positions a couple times and we had the fumble returned for a touchdown - that's not their problem. They did a great job but obviously it only gets tougher."

#58 LB Scott Shanle

On the defense's play today

"I think we did good. I think a lot of people around the league will see the score and the amount of points that we gave up. I think we rose to the occasion because a lot of times we had our back against the wall on a short field. We had a couple of penalties on the one series down there. I think we rose up the occasion when we were called upon."

#42 S Darren Sharper

On his two interceptions today

"We knew with our offense that and the way that they put up point that we were going to have a chance. We knew that (Matthew Stafford) was going to be force to throw up the football and that was going to give us a lot of opportunities in the secondary. I showed today that I can catch the ball and that is what I have been doing in my career. Hopefully, I can continue to bring that to the team."

On the defensive performance today

"We did OK. We have a lot of things that we can improve on. We tried not to allow big plays. It is tough because they had big play receivers and they were going to get theirs sometimes. We created some turnovers today, but we know that we can get more. We just have to try to improve."

#44 FB Heath Evans

On the offensive play today

"We got a win and we scored a lot of points, but we should have scored a lot more. I think it is a double edge sword. You have one side that wants to enjoy it and you have a whole other side that opportunity after opportunity continued to put our defense in a bad spot. We have got to find a way to get better."

On every on the offense contributing

"That is Drew Brees's specialty. It's probably going to be that way a lot with the way our offensive line plays and the crispness of Sean Payton's play calling."

#55 LB Scott Fujita

On cleaning up the mistakes in today's game

"This is the first game, so we need to get back to the drawing board and see where the mistakes were made. On defense, we want to make more turnovers and on offense we want to prevent the turnovers. We just have to keep working away."

On getting turnovers today

"We made some huge plays, especially Darren Shaper who is the ball hawk. I've been watching him my whole career and I am glad that he's on my side now. He made some huge plays. There are going to be days where the offense turns the ball over and we have to cover their back a little bit and there are going to be days when they have to pick up the slack when we aren't playing so hot. It is a team thing and we have to get better every week."

#21 RB Mike Bell

On if he expected to get this much work today

"I really wasn't expecting that much work, but I prepare for it every week. I am ready to go for whatever the coaches want me to do."

On how he assessed his performance

"There are a lot of things that I felt like I did well in the game, but the negative stuff has got to be dropped if I want to be successful and play. I've got to be consistent. They have got to be able to rely on me. I can't fumble. I can't get tired in the game. They want me to be able to run the ball consistently back-to-back. I have got to get in better shape. The offensive line did a great job. You have got to put the team first and I have got to get in better shape. I am putting that on my shoulders."

#88 TE Jeremy Shockey

On his two touchdown performance

"It felt good. Drew (Brees) made two great passes. It was satisfying. Last year I didn't catch any touchdowns. I'm happy to get two and happy to get the win and what better place to do it than the dome. The fans were great today. They definitely helped us out. Hopefully, we will get a lot more wins this year and have a lot of fun doing it."

On where this day ranks up in his career highlights after having to overcome so much

"I think just being around the guys and a guy like Drew (Brees) makes it easy out there. He works so hard during the week. If I get there at 6:10am, then he gets there at 6:05am. I'll definitely remember scoring my first Saints touchdown wide open. I made the next one look hard. It was a great pass and I bobbled it. I am grateful for those two."

#51 LB Jonathan Vilma

"We had some situations out there where we could have crumbled and instead we tried to rise to the occasion. I thought we had to do a little bit better job of tackling. I thought we did a good job, but not a great job. We can always improve on it, getting more sacks and getting more turnovers."

On the forced turnovers

"I think that we've been practicing (forcing turnovers) and preaching it all the time. We're not excited to get the turnovers, because we're expecting them now. It's not a situation where we get a turnover and we're happy. We want to get, two, three and four turnovers."

Lions Postgame Quotes

From the New Orleans Saints official website

Head Coach Jim Schwartz

On the loss: "Obviously, this is not the way that we wanted to start. All of the things that we set out to do, New Orleans did a good job of not letting us do. We wanted to run the ball. We wanted to control the clock. We wanted to convert third downs. On defense, we wanted to stop drives. We had our hands full on defense against this offense. They were No. 1 in the NFL for a reason last year. (They were) No. 1 in points, No. 1 in yards. One of our game breakdowns (in preparation) was watching them hang (51) points on Green Bay last year. So we knew we had that (to deal with) and we needed to help them with the other units. We needed to help them with special teams, particularly our cover units. We did a poor job there. Defensively, we were never able to stop them from driving. They made six touchdown passes, the points, they all speak for themselves. Offensively, when you're trying to control the game, you've got to efficiently run the ball. We didn't get that done in this game."

On if he was surprised how erratic Matthew Stafford played: "Not with the way that the rest of the game was going. You get behind 14 in the game, not being able to run the football, not being in convertible third downs that we set out to. It doesn't surprise me at all when those things happen."

On struggling on offense: "We had way too many times we had great chances to make plays down the field and try to get them out of eight man fronts. We were never able to do that. We misfired on the pass, whether it was a dropped ball, whether it was a tipped ball, a pressure, one of those things. When teams are able to sit there and play in the box and you don't make them pay, you're going to have a hard time running the football."

On why Matt Stafford struggled to make accurate passes: "I'll have to look at the tape. I think he was getting hit on, but not all of them. It's on him to make accurate passes. Probably the most disappointing was an underthrow and we had one on one coverage on Calvin (Johnson) who had a step on the guy down our sideline. Let's just not put blame on one person. There is a lot to go around in this game."

On key penalties: "Ernie's (Sims) penalty is being aggressive. There is a fine line on that sideline. That guy tightropes down the sideline, it's hard to pull off sometimes. I'll take that. The play in the end zone (on Jeremy Shockey's touchdown) was dumb football. It was dumb football. That's something that we can't allow to happen. Did it hurt us? No. They move the ball and kick the ball through the goalposts and we started on the 20. Those are situations that can't happen. We (also) ran into an official coming on the field. The guys were getting ready to come on the field and they ran over one of the officials. Making contact with an official is a penalty."

QB Matthew Stafford

"Looking back, I thought I did a pretty decent job out there. I know the statistics will show I had three interceptions and it looked like I missed a lot of throws, but I felt prepared and didn't feel nervous at all. The areas we need to improve on is me hitting the wide receiver when they go deep - at least two times I missed Calvin (Johnson) long. The other thing is that we did drive into the red zone a few times and came up with field goals instead of touchdowns. That's unacceptable & I take responsibility for that."

On the interceptions: "On the first, I just threw on the wrong side of the receiver. The second one, I tried to stop the throw but it squirted out and looked like a bad throw. And the third one, I was just trying to throw it down the field and make a play. You know we were losing big late in the game and I just tried to make anything happen."

On the loss: "Believe me, you never like to lose. But what I take away from this first game is a learning experience. I was not nervous at all. I felt prepared. I just have to stop making mistakes and put our team in a better position to win."

LB Ernie Sims

"To me, I felt our defense has not improved any from last season. They (Saints) ran up & down the field and we know they scored a lot of points. We have a lot of work to do before we get a win. Losing is never fun."

WR Calvin Johnson

"I thought Matthew did a decent job for his first start. That's a lot of pressure, you know, to try to lead us to a win. I have a lot of confidence in our quarterback and I am sure we will be all right."

S Louis Delmas

On fumble return for TD: "I was making sure the running back (Bell) was down and the next thing I knew the ball popped out. I just scooped it up and that was it."

"I felt we were in the game the entire time. It was just in the fourth quarter when they pulled away. I feel we are improving as a team in general and on defense in particular. We will get a win sooner rather than later."

Lions Postgame Quotes

From the Detroit Lions official website

Head Coach Jim Schwartz

On the team's performance: "We didn't play well at all. All the things we set out to do we didn't do; we didn't run the ball, we didn't control the clock, we played poorly on special teams, particularly the coverage units (and) we played really, really poorly on defense. When you give up six touchdown passes and red zone defense the way it was, obviously (it didn't go) according to plan."
On the Saints' performance against the defense: "That's a good offense. I mean, they were No. 1 in the league for a reason last year. No. 1 in yardage, No. 1 in points. We watched them hang 51 points or whatever it was on Green Bay, but you never know going into the opening game. Like I always said, preseason is preseason. You've got to leave that where it is, it's a different game once you reach the regular season."
On QB Matthew Stafford's debut: "We didn't help him very much. We didn't run the ball very well and put him in a lot of third down and long situations and we got behind. All the things that don't fall into helping the young quarterback and I'll leave the assessment of his play until we watch the tape. But it was a total team effort in losing this game, it wasn't just one person."
On dealing with the loss: "You have deal with losses in the NFL. This isn't the BCS, one loss isn't the end of the season. You have to identify why you lost it, identify the reasons for it and take every step you can to correct it. Whether it's personnel, making those changes, scheme-wise making those changes, all those different things. It's not okay. You can't sit there and say, "Hey, it's okay, we're just going to stick with the plan, the guys are working hard.' That's not my attitude. We're going to get it fixed, there's an urgency to get it fixed."

T Jeff Backus

On QB Matthew Stafford's demeanor: "He was fine. I thought he came out fine and ready to go and I think he handled the ups and downs just fine."
On whether Stafford changed: "Absolutely not. What I know about Matt is that he's been preparing for this role for a long time. He's always been in pressure-type situations, whether it's been playing high school football in Texas, or stepping in as a true freshman at Georgia. I know this is the NFL, I know this is the best of the best, but I think he has enough experience with stepping in and playing right away. I think he was just fine."
On whether the second half was an encouraging sign for this team: "I think so. There was not a lack of effort out there. Were there mistakes made? Absolutely. But it happened and now we have to correct them."
On what made running the ball so tough today: "New Orleans just came out and did a bunch of different things they hadn't shown in the preseason. They were ready to go and kept us from doing what we set out to do."
On the offense: "We had opportunities to move the ball, we just didn't score touchdowns. We had some turnovers from their end of the field that we didn't take full advantage, even with the mistakes made, I felt we ran the ball game all game long. We just have to clean up the mistakes and do a better job."

LB Larry Foote

On if there was anything from the Saints offense that surprised him: "No. We knew that they were going to try and throw the ball and we prepared, but we just didn't execute."
On how disappointing this loss was: "Anytime you lose it is disappointing, so it doesn't matter what performance you put up. Anytime you lose it is disappointing."
On getting back to work and improving for the Minnesota Vikings: "That's every week. Even if we had won you still have to get back to the drawing board. You have to keep chugging away, you know, there's 16 games. It's only one loss so we can come back."

QB Matthew Stafford

On what the first start in the NFL was like: "It was exciting. Obviously early on we left some opportunities out there. The time we had the ball at first and goal, I guess it was a muffed punt or something, and we just ... I threw that pick and I just threw it behind Calvin. But it was fun. Obviously we'd have loved to come out with a win. But you know that's one under my belt."
On whether or not there was problem with the pocket protection: "No. Some of those posts I had to throw just a little bit earlier than I wanted to. That was all it was but I didn't want to throw it up and hang it up and have the safety run over the top and take it. So, I was just trying to burn it pretty much and not take a sack."
On where the offense is overall: "We're moving in the right direction. Obviously you can't turn the ball over. We're putting our defense in a bad spots. Part of the reason they scored as many points as they did is they had a short field a lot of the time and it's tough for a defense to be put in that situation. So we've got to - I've got to - do a better job of not turning the ball over and we've got to execute inside the 10 a little better."
On playing from behind not helping an offense: "It doesn't. Still we can execute better and I can throw the ball to the right to the right guy."

DE Cliff Avril

On whether he was surprised that New Orleans was able to score 45 points: "You never win any games in the league if they're up 45 points. There are a lot of different things that we have to clean up, from the D-line to linebackers, to DBs."
On difficulty putting pressure on QB Drew Brees: "That's tough. It's tough to get to him and not be able to bring him down and we just have to get better at it as a D-line, as a whole."

RB Aaron Brown

On his contributions as a kick returner: "Starting off the game the first few kickoffs were touchbacks. I was kind of excited leading up to that point, I really wanted to get the ball in my hands and really try to get something started for our team. We had two returns run back deep into their field, I think that was a really good spark for us. Just to really emulate what this team really can do."
On what the team will take from losing a game in which it scored 27 points: "We haven't watched today yet but we definitely know what we have to do better. That's the good thing about it: that we can learn from this and keep moving forward. If we didn't know what we had to do right then, that's when we have to really work, but right now we know where we've got to go and we know where we're headed."
On if anything surprised him in his first NFL game: "To be honest, not really. The adrenaline got me pumping a little bit earlier, and the flow of the game was just a tad bit faster but I can adjust to about just anything."

Tuesday Notes: Foote Wants Long-Term Deal with Detroit After This Season

Sean Yuille — Tue, 12 May 2009 12:57:14 -0000

Larry Foote's reasoning for not signing a long-term deal is that his value will go up after this season. He is obviously expecting big things from himself, and he hopes to sign a long-term deal with the Lions next year if everything goes according to plan.
Jeff Backus feels as if he won't be switching to left guard since the Lions only selected one offensive tackle in the draft (Lydon Murtha in the seventh round).
Drew Stanton and former Lion Drew Henson rode the Zambonis during the second intermission of Sunday's Red Wings-Ducks game.
Sammie Lee Hill is a pretty good cook.
Peter King ranked all 32 NFL teams, and the Lions surprisingly weren't last. King has Detroit at No. 31, saying that the Lions will win four games this year and Jim Schwartz will get a bronze statue. He had the Browns at No. 32, because they have "too many holes" in "too tough a division."
Despite reports that Brett Favre wasn't going to unretire, it seems like it's 2008 all over again. Favre threw at his local high school again, and the Vikings confirmed they are interested in him. Considering it is only May, my guess is that this story is just starting to get going. Once training camp nears, I foresee an ESPN filled with nothing but Favre-related stories.
Tight end Michael Gaines, who was released by the Lions recently, signed with the Bears on Monday.

Thursday Notes: Raji, Pettigrew Visit Lions

Sean Yuille — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 20:10:31 -0000

Just a heads up, tomorrow I will be posting information on the SB Nation Mock Draft. It is going to get started next week, so I will be posting a poll with potential top picks much like I did last month.
Boston College DT B.J. Raji and Oklahoma State TE Brandon Pettigrew visited the Lions on Wednesday.
Matthew Stafford's pro day was today. Look for information on how that went tomorrow.
Aaron Curry talked about his visit with the Lions in his latest diary on SI.com.
The Lions are reportedly going to attend Penn State WR Derrick Williams' private workout on Friday.
Jeff Backus probably won't be moved to left guard before the draft.
Drew Stanton talked about his future with the Lions recently and is going to do his best to prove that he is capable of starting.
Dominic Raiola can sense the change that has occurred with the Lions since Matt Millen left. Raiola also thinks that Daunte Culpepper lost at least 20 pounds and looks great. Considering Culpepper weighed 290 when he joined the Lions, I certainly hope he has been losing weight.
Phillip Buchanon signed with the Lions because of the good things he heard about Jim Schwartz and the good things he heard from Jim Schwartz.
Ernie Sims hid out in the woods after the Lions wrapped up their season to avoid all talk of 0-16.
Season-ticket renewals are at a level that the Lions expected, according to Tom Lewand.
The Ravens waived Samari Rolle.
A memorial for Corey Smith is going to be held on Saturday.

Saturday Notes: The Latest from Indy

Sean Yuille — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 23:02:49 -0000

The Lions are meeting with many potential draft picks while in Indy. As we already know, they had dinner with Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford on Thursday night. That wasn't the only meeting, though. USC quarterback Mark Sanchez had lunch with Scott Linehan earlier in the day, and Martin Mayhew and James Harris also met with Virginia offensive tackle Eugene Monroe on Friday night. Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry will likely meet with the Lions on Sunday, as his dinner today had to be rescheduled due to medical testing.
Late Friday night, a story on RoarReport.com indicated that there was a rumor Jon Kitna had been traded to, as we now know, the New York Jets. The thought of Kitna being traded was odd, because it is common knowledge that he will probably be released sometime very soon. Why would a team waste a draft pick to trade for him and be on the hook for his roster bonus and pre-determined salary for 2009? The answer to those questions is that no team would do that, as a trade did not happen. The Lions even confirmed that no trade had occurred, saying that the report is "not true."
By the way, Jon Kitna's roster bonus is due on March 3, so that is essentially the deadline to make a decision about whether or not he will stay on the roster. Unless the bonus is delayed or Kitna's contract is restructured, I'm guessing he will be gone by March 3.
As far as the quarterback situation goes for the 2009 season, it seems like Daunte Culpepper is the starter in the mind of Martin Mayhew. Although that doesn't necessarily mean he has been named the starter, it is inevitable at this point. Mayhew sees Dan Orlovsky as a backup and Drew Stanton as a "developmental guy." Reading between the lines of some of Mayhew's comments, it is clear that Stanton will not be close to starting anytime soon. Orlovsky could compete for the job if he returns to Detroit, but Mayhew is being pretty upfront that he will probably be the backup.
As Tom Kowalski alluded to recently, Martin Mayhew wants to have a contract agreed to with the #1 pick before the draft.
Mayhew also talked about free agency and how the Lions can't put all of their eggs in one basket. To me, that means that the Lions aren't considering signing someone like Albert Haynesworth, who wants to be the highest paid defensive player in the NFL. Breaking the bank for one player would be, as Mayhew described, putting all of their eggs in one basket. Since the Lions have so many needs, they have to use their cap space wisely to fill most or all of those needs.
Jim Schwartz shared another interesting story from his time in Cleveland:

"I joke around about how low I started, but I also sort of tip my cap to Thomas Dimitroff and (Browns coach) Eric Mangini because they were below me," said Schwartz, whose unpaid internship with the Browns in the early 1990s involved clipping newspaper stories and making cigarette runs for secretaries. "Thomas was cutting the grass and rolling tarps outside and Eric was a P.R. intern."
Dimitroff, now the Falcons' general manager, thinks Schwartz will "do a nice job" in Detroit.
Martin Mayhew believes that Jeff Backus could successfully move to guard.
Texas Tech wide receiver Michael Crabtree, who has a stress fracture in his foot, talked to Lions WRs coach Shawn Jefferson on Thursday. Before anyone jumps off a cliff or thinks that Matt Millen has returned or something, just know that the Lions are simply getting to know as many prospects as possible. Jefferson isn't going to go scout offensive tackles; his job is to look at WRs.
Although it is a rumor, this would not surprise me one bit:

There’s a rumor making the rounds at the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis that the Lions kept G.M. Martin Mayhew and president Tom Lewand because ownership didn’t want to have to buy out the balance of their contracts if they fired them.

In fairness, however, this rumor doesn’t account for the fact that both men were promoted on the day after the team capped the regular season with zero wins, and 16 losses.

Then again, someone had to receive the roles of G.M. and president after Matt Millen was fired.
Like I said, I wouldn't be surprised at all if cheapness was why William Clay Ford filled the vacant front office jobs with people already on the payroll.
At this point, it looks like Alabama offensive tackle Andre Smith won't be going #1 to the Lions. I say that because his stock is dropping after he decided not to work out at the combine and then was missing altogether today. It was later reported on the NFL Network that Smith flew back home since he was not going to work out, but his agent failed to let anyone know that. If not for Crabtree's injury, the top story earlier today would have been that Smith was missing and no one knew where he was.
One offensive tackle named Smith is seeing his stock rise. Baylor's Jason Smith performed quite well during the combine today, and his stock is rising as others' stock falls. If the draft were tomorrow, many would predict Jason Smith as the Lions' top pick. There is nothing but speculation behind that, but as of right now he seems to be rising to the top of the offensive tackle rankings. Thing is, there are still two months until the draft, so everything will probably change a few times before the Lions go on the clock.

Friday Notes: Lions Have Dinner with Matthew Stafford

Sean Yuille — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 11:18:26 -0000

Matthew Stafford had dinner with Martin Mayhew, Tom Lewand, James Harris, Jim Schwartz, and Scott Linehan last night. The dinner apparently lasted for around two hours.
SI's Don Banks doesn't think the Lions will draft a quarterback with the #1 pick and will instead likely opt for a tackle.
Although Jim Schwartz said that Lions quarterback Jon Kitna is "expected to be" a participant of the team's offseason program, Tom Kowalski reports that Kitna will likely be released before his $1 million roster bonus is due at the beginning of March.
Even if the Lions have interest in signing Albert Haynesworth, chances are nothing will happen. According to Tom Kowalski, Haynesworth is going to take three things into account when making a decision of where to play: "money, location and victories." Haynesworth wants to be the highest paid defensive player in the NFL, and the Lions could probably offer him a deal that is in the range of that since they have so much cap space. The other two criteria, however, are not exactly anywhere near Haynesworth's standards. Detroit is not a great location for Haynesworth, as he wants to live somewhere in the south where the weather would be nicer year-round. And for victories, well, we don't need to go there.
Jim Schwartz answered a question about a "hypothetical defensive tackle" (in order to avoid tampering charges) and whether or not that DT would be deserving of being the highest paid player in the league. Schwartz was careful with his words to not actually name Haynesworth, but he did say that "if there’s a defensive tackle that dominates the game, there’s no reason that he wouldn’t be the highest-paid player."
Jeff Backus' conversation with Martin Mayhew about moving to guard apparently wasn't extensive at all. One day in practice last season Mayhew asked Backus if he had ever played guard and then hinted at a possible move down the road since there are a lot of highly rated left tackles in the draft. It doesn't sound like any serious talks have happened, but I imagine none would until the Lions decide if they want to use the #1 pick on a LT.
If Backus were to switch to guard, Lomas Brown would support the move. He thinks Backus is "built to be more of a guard than a left tackle."
Sould the Lions be interested in trading for Derek Anderson?
Both Tom Kowalski and Dave Birkett were more impressed with Baylor OT Jason Smith than Alabama OT Andre Smith after interviewing both.
Andre Smith wants to play for the Lions.
Chet Bulger, a former NFL offensive lineman that spent his final season in Detroit, died at the age of 91 on Thursday.
NFL.com is going to be streaming live coverage of the combine from Saturday-Tuesday.
The Panthers franchised Julius Peppers.

Thursday Notes: Details of Culpepper's Restructured Contract

Sean Yuille — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 11:18:04 -0000

There has been some confusion over the specifics of Daunte Culpepper's restructured contract, but it is pretty clear that the main thing that changed was his roster bonus. Here are the details:

However, the $2.5 million roster bonus has been broken into three significant parts - a smaller roster bonus that will be paid later in the off-season, incentives based on production and a workout bonus. There was no signing bonus for restructuring the deal and the new roster bonus won't be paid until some time after the middle of March.

Culpepper's incentives are believed to be based on quarterback rating, passing yards and touchdowns but the numbers are not known. The total amount of the incentive package is believed to be significantly higher than $500,000. The off-season workout bonus, which includes a weight clause, is worth $300,000.
It appears that the Lions did this to continually motivate Culpepper and to give themselves an insurance policy in a sense. Should Culpepper start and play well, he will earn much of what was once a roster bonus. Should he turn out to be a waste and not play well, chances are he won't be earning an extra $2.5 million like his roster bonus originally called for.
Jeff Backus reportedly was asked about potentially switching from left tackle to guard. That move would allow the Lions to draft a left tackle and strengthen the offensive line.
The Lions re-signed restricted free agent cornerback Ramzee Robinson, who was the last pick of the 2007 draft.
Albert Haynesworth is going to test free agency, and the Lions have more than enough cap room to sign him if they are interested.
Jim Schwartz said that the offseason workouts are going to change to make the team bigger and stronger.
Tom Kowalski raised an interesting point about who the Lions will select with the #1 pick. Basically, it is Kowalski's belief that the Lions will only use the #1 pick on someone they sign before the draft. That way there is no holdout and the Lions won't have to worry about getting a deal done. This is important to take note of because the chances of not signing a QB are much higher than a lineman or linebacker, for example. Similar to what the Dolphins did last year, the Lions very well may offer a deal to multiple players and draft the one that wants to sign first.
Hogs Haven put together a mock Wonderlic Test that is smaller version of what prospects will be taking this week at the NFL Combine. (For the record, I scored a 9 out of 10, but that is only because I ran out of time.)
Josh Freeman's father made a joke about how Dave Birkett should tell a Lions assistant he was talking with to "take that quarterback Freeman No. 1."
Another mock draft, another prediction that the Lions will draft Matthew Stafford with the #1 overall pick.
Stafford was asked about the curse of Bobby Layne, a former Lions quarterback that actually attended the same high school as Stafford. Talk about an interesting coincidence.
Scout.com's mock draft ventured outside the norm by having the Lions draft Mark Sanchez with the #1 overall pick.