SB Nation - Gosder Cherilus

The Monday Morning Microscope: Week 13

DrewsLions — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:22:39 -0000

More photos » by Tony Tribble - AP

16 days ago: Detroit Lions coach Jim Schwartz yells to his team during the first half of their NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Cincinnati, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Tony Tribble)

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Okay, so four games have gone by since my last post. Doesn't seem like that long, but it has been. I apologize for my lack of presence on the site lately, but when you take a two week vacation, you then have two weeks worth of work stacked up that you have to dig out of when you return. That sometimes makes vacations not worth taking. What a ridiculous world we live in. Absolutely zero work/life balance out there. Everyone is just work, work, work. Does no one care about their families anymore? Sorry, just venting a little. As you can tell, my initiation back into work the week after my vacation was less than pleasant. And forgive me for complaining, because I know that I am supremely blessed to even have a job in this unforgiving economy, let alone a good job. It's just that with all the happenings of this year that have shaped my life's current perspective, I wish to spend a little more time with my family and a little less time with the triviality of my company's finances... especially around the holidays. Whew... okay, I feel better. Let's say we talk a little football, eh?

Because I'm playing a little catch-up, this week's edition of MMM might be a little longer than usual. I'm not going to go into a ton of detail for any one of the past games, but more or less just sum up where we are as a team at this point in the season and talk about where we need to go from here. I'll finish it up with some specific thoughts about the Bengals game.

With only four weeks left, there are few surprises anymore. The Lions are what they are... a struggling team with lots of holes and a few bright spots to pin future hopes upon. They will most likely lose the remainder of their schedule and be back into familiar territory... competing with the bottom of the NFL's barrel for draft position. I see that the draft has once again become the popular topic of conversation here at POD. You'll have to forgive me for not joining in that one quite yet. For me, at least the regular season and bowl games need to be over before joining the cacophony of useless fun that is mock drafting. I'll say this much though, I believe that the Lions are very much in the running for the number two or three overall pick in the draft. That just might be enough to net us Suh. But back to the season at hand...

Through Week 13, the offense can pretty much be characterized as inconsistent and mostly ineffective. At times, they can take your breath away and at others, they make you scratch your head, wondering if we'll see another first down the entire game. To get in a little more detail, I'll break it down by area:

Quarterback: Well, Matt Stafford single-handedly created one of the most memorable games in Lions history and showed why he was drafted first overall against Cleveland. But that was against Cleveland. He has subsequently stunk it up two games running and showed that he still has a long way to go to become a great quarterback in this league. He has no doubt played hurt the last two weeks and I'm sure that's affected him somewhat, but his decision making has to get better if the Lions are to become contenders. I choose to look at it this way... he's a typical rookie. He's going to make good plays and he's going to make some really bone-headed plays. That's what you get with young players. We've seen it with them all... Pettigrew, Delmas, Levy... all of them. Stafford, as talented as he is, in not immune to the huge learning curve that all rookies who start in this league have to go through. Couple that with a poor offensive line, suspect receivers aside from Calvin and a struggling running game... well, you get the mish-mash performances we've seen from Stafford. Bottom Line: Matt will be fine. He's getting some great experience and if he's really "the one", we will see many of these mistakes start to go away over the course of the 2010 season.
Backs and Receivers: I think we've all learned an inconvenient truth about the Lions' receiving corps... it is once again an area of need heading into the off-season. With as much money as we've thrown at this position in the past, this is a true exercise in frustration. Without Calvin Johnson, the offense just dissolves. The reality is that Calvin gets hurt a little too much for comfort and we must have some reliable talent behind him. That means we have to yet again focus on this position in the draft and free agency. The good news is that, before the season ending injury, Pettigrew really started to blossom. That is one position that appears to be solidified (unless this injury lingers into the 2010 season). I also disagree with all of the fans clamoring for the Lions to use a draft pick on a running back. Kevin Smith has not been great this year, but as shown by his efforts in yesterday's game, he is a hard runner and when given adequate blocking, is shifty enough to be a more than serviceable back in this league. Both Brown and Morris are valuable back-ups and add to the offensive versatility. Bottom Line: One of the more important acquisitions for the coming off-season is a complementary wideout opposite Calvin. They must find this player next year, both for the development of Calvin and Matt and for the progress of the offense as a whole. With better blocking, the running backs in our stable should be more than sufficient.

Offensive Line: The most disappointing and biggest problem on our offensive line right now is Gosder Cherilus. We all know that the Lions need a big-time upgrade at left guard... that's a given. In my mind, at some point between the second and fourth round, the Lions must take an offensive lineman. The problem is that Cherilus' poor play throws a massive wrench in the gears of the Lions' long term strategy here. Do the Lions take a guard or will they have to take a tackle to replace Cherilus? Can they move Cherilus to left guard and draft a good young right tackle? If so, how will his play translate to guard and will he simply be the next useless player in the revolving door at that position? See... he creates a pickle for the front office. We were supposed to be able to forget about the right tackle position for the next twelve years, yet here we are once again... questioning the ability of a Millen-drafted first round pick. Forget about even attempting to replace Backus or Raiola. We NEED them. How's that for a cold prickly? Bottom Line: The coaching staff needs to determine if Cherilus still has enough potential to waste time with him at right tackle. He is so inconsistent - will it end at some point... who knows? At the very least, the Lions' need to draft a guard. But is that enough? In my opinion, they need another tackle. I'd try Cherilus at left guard and draft a new right tackle that has the ability to move to left in a few years to replace Backus. Anyway you slice it, the line has not played well consistently and something has to be done. Finding a working combination of players will be the biggest off-season challenge for the front office offensively.

As weak as this defense is roster-wise, I think they've played surprisingly well at times. There just isn't enough talent to fend off opposing offenses if our own offense can't score a lot of points. This gives me hope that with sufficient talent, Schwartz and Cunningham can put together a defense worth fearing. I'll break the defense down by area as well:

Defensive Line: One word... ineffective. Much more so against the pass than the rush, but we cannot expect to get pressure against any team in the league with any combination of four players on our current roster. There's simply not enough talent. I wish there was an elite pass rusher at the top of the draft this year. I know we are all salivating over Suh and there is no doubt he would be a valuable addition to the Lions, but an elite pass rusher is probably the biggest need on the entire roster. It would fix so many problems. The defensive line and secondary have a cause and effect relationship. The defensive line pressure, or lack thereof, causes the quarterback to either be rushed or to have time. That effects the play of the secondary and how much time they are asked to cover. Our line gives the quarterback all day, which causes the virtually talent-less secondary to have to cover much longer than they are capable. Bottom Line: This year can be scrapped for our defensive line. No one capable of coming close to double-digit sacks is on this roster. Unless they can find that guy in the later rounds of the draft, I'm not sure where the upgrade is going to come from next year. Maybe free agency... ala, Aaron Kampman or someone like that? Either way, this has me very nervous.
Linebackers: I think most of us agreed before the season that this was going to easily be the strength of the entire team and we were right. Really, we have five good linebackers on this team. Foote and Peterson are solid, not spectacular players that have been one of the big reasons why the defense has played well at times. Regardless of ranking last in a lot of defensive passing categories, there is no denying that this group has played better this year than last. We've had many more stops on third downs, tackling has been good at times and play against the run has definitely improved. Now, this is all relative to what the Lions were a year ago, but progress is progress. The key decision heading into the off-season will be what to do with Ernie Sims. It should be a no-brainer to try to resign both Foote and Peterson in my opinion. I think it would be a step backwards not to try. For once, there is an area of our team that we shouldn't have to worry about going into next year. Bottom Line: Although Peterson and Levy started slow, both have joined Foote as quality additions to our defense. I believe that we should hold on to all five linebackers next year (Peterson, Foote, Sims, Levy and Dizon) and allow the front office to focus elsewhere. Even though they can't be considered the best corps in the league, they are a vast improvement over what we've had in the recent past. Paris Lenon anyone?
Defensive Secondary: Ugh... where to start? Well, Delmas was a home run hit in the second round for Mayhew. Anyone want to argue that? Didn't think so. Beyond that? Nothing. Not sure if there is anyone even worth keeping for next year besides Ko Simpson. James? Maybe as a nickel. Buchanon? Played well sporadically, but we know that he is nowhere close to a great player. Henry? Even the interception yesterday doesn't help mask the fact that he's pretty much washed up. We know by this point in the season what our secondary is... the worst in the league. It's going to be hard to find a good starting corner in the upcoming draft, too. That is disheartening. Hopefully, Mayhew can work his magic and find a late round gem. This is a passing league and if we can't cover or get pressure, we can't compete. The front office has its work cut out trying to piece together a foundation that will be able to dramatically increase production in the secondary next year. Bottom Line: Aside from Delmas and Simpson, they will basically have to start over in the secondary. Our foundation should have been on guys like Keith Smith, A.J. Davis, Gerald Alexander, Daniel Bullocks and Stanley Wilson. What a shame. It's just too much to do in a year. The more I look at it, the more it looks like it might take two more drafts to put this secondary together.

Quick note on Special Teams: I don't believe I've ever written anything negative about Jason Hanson, but I'm about to. His kickoffs are getting shorter and shorter each game. With poor special teams play to begin with, the opponent's returner fielding the ball between the 10 and 20 is not acceptable. For the first time, I believe his age is showing and affecting his kicking power and subsequently, his distance. As for Nick Harris... I believe he's having one of his most inconsistent seasons. For every two good punts, it seems like he's having a horrible one. That's not good. We might have to replace both of these iconic players soon if these trends continue. How do you guys feel about this?

Thoughts About the Bengals Game:

As usual, I'll start with Stafford's performance. In a nutshell, it was another sketchy outing by the rookie. The big TD pass to Johnson was a thing of beauty, but that's where the love affair ends. He seemed okay at the start of the game, but during one of the many hits he took, he re-aggravated that shoulder and it seemed to affect him the remainder of the game. I can't believe I'm going to say this, but it might be time to sit him for a game and let that shoulder recuperate. I want him to have as many opportunities as possible to get valuable experience, but if that experience is hampered by injury, then it's time to sit him down.
Kevin Smith had a fantastic game yesterday. Yeah, maybe the numbers don't say "fantastic", but in my opinion, it was his best performance of the year. He ran hard and with purpose. He showed his ability to be shifty, nimble and powerful at the same time. He made quicker decisions and made a few cuts that gave me goosebumps. He needed that game, because he's a good back and has taken a lot of heat for the ineffective play of the line.
Speaking of offensive line... Gosder had another horrible game yesterday. I forgot to DVR it, so I can't watch it back to see how bad it really was, but I spent a fair amount of time cursing his play yesterday. I thought that the interior, with Gandy and Ramirez, held up fairly well... especially against the run. The blitzing is where the Lions fell apart and part of that was on Stafford to get the ball out quicker. All-in-all, not the worst day for the Lions' O-line... which still isn't saying much.
Defensively, it was a decent performance. The Bengals by no means blew out Detroit. We stopped them on several key third downs, forced turnovers and pretty much kept them in check for most of the game. The offense was the real problem yesterday. I think Cunningham and Schwartz have really made the best of this unit. I think the scheme is sound, but the talent is what is missing. Like I've said before, I believe wholeheartedly that once the talent is in place, Schwartz will give Detroit an outstanding defense.

So, there's four games left in the season. Any winnable? Maybe the Bears game at home. Does it matter? Not really. We will have another 10+ loss season written down in the annuls of Lions history and another top 5 draft pick on the way to further destroy our salary cap. For me, this season is and continues to be about the progression of the young talent. More and more, it looks like - realistically - that we will be waiting until 2011 to really be able to compete in this league. There are simply too many holes to repair in the upcoming off-season. That's a discouraging thought, but the front office does appear to have a plan in place and another two drafts like 2009 and we will be an up-and-coming powerhouse in this league. Unfortunately when you are building a team, the last thing to come is the wins.

Go Lions!

Friday Injury Report: Lions at Green Bay Packers

Brandon — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 03:36:39 -0000

It's a brutally long injury report this week for the Green Bay Packers and the Lions. While it could be hitting the Lions hard, it's just long for the Packers.

FB Korey Hall and RB DeShawn Wynn are out, but FB Quinn Johnson will come off the inactive list for his first action and RB Brandon Jackson is back from injury for the first time this season. Recently resigned RT Mark Tauscher is out, but that's expected since he's practicing himself back into football shape. Although both centers (Jason Spitz and Scott Wells) are listed, Mike McCarthy expects them both to play.

The injuries have hit hard in Detroit. Obviously WR Calvin Johnson and QB Matthew Stafford are the two big names. At this point in their careers, QB Daunte Culpepper is just as good, so Stafford's loss won't matter much in this game. Except Johnson's absence is a tough loss no matter the QB. I'm not sure which other potential starters are missing, except LB Ernie Sims would start if he were healthy. RT Gosder Cherilus is a starter, but he'll play on Sunday. Even if they aren't missing any other starters, their depth is certainly being tested this week. On all the injuries, from Pride of Detroit:

All I can say is that I'm glad the Lions have a bye next week.

The complete injury lists after the jump.

Green Bay Packers:

Player	Pos.	Injury	Friday Participation	Friday Status
Atari Bigby	S	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Chad Clifton	T	Ankle	Limited Participation	Probable
Daryn Colledge	G	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Korey Hall	FB	Calf	Out	Out
Brandon Jackson	RB	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Cullen Jenkins	DE	Ankle	Full Participation	Probable
Quinn Johnson	FB	Not Inj. Related	Did Not Participate	N/A
Ryan Pickett	NT	Hip	Full Participation	Probable
Brady Poppinga	LB	Illness	Full Participation	Probable
Jason Spitz	C/G	Back	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Mark Tauscher	T	Knee	Limited Participation	Out
Jeremy Thompson	LB	Knee	Full Participation	Probable
Scott Wells	C	Hamstring	Limited Participation	Questionable
DeShawn Wynn	RB	Knee	Did Not Participate	Out

Detroit Lions:


Player	Pos.	Injury	Friday Participation	Friday Status
Gosder Cherilus	T	Shoulder	Full Participation	Probable
Jordan Dizon	LB	Foot	Limited Participation	Probable
Jerome Felton	FB	Shoulder	Limited Participation	Questionable
Casey FitzSimmons	TE	Thigh	Limited Participation	Questionable
Sammie Hill	DT	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Jason Hunter	DE	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Grady Jackson	DT	Knee	Did Not Participate	Probable
Calvin Johnson	WR	Knee	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Maurice Morris	RB	Hip	Limited Participation	Questionable
Brandon Pettigrew	TE	Hamstring	Full Participation	Probable
Koe Simpson	S	Hamstring	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Ernie Sims	LB	Shoulder	Limited Participation	Probable
Matthew Stafford	QB	Knee	Did Not Participate	Questionable
Dewayne White	DE	Hamstring	Did Not Participate	Questionable

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

Lions Sell Out Steelers Game; Stafford Misses Practice Again

Sean Yuille — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:11:12 -0000

The Lions sold out the 1,500 tickets that were remaining for Sunday's Steelers game, meaning that there is no blackout and it will be shown live on CBS in the local area. Once it was announced on Wednesday that only 1,500 tickets were still available, the feeling was that the game would be sold out today or tomorrow if an extension was granted. Usually extensions are granted when a team needs 24 more hours to move the unsold tickets, with a sellout being almost guaranteed. For the home opener, the Lions received an extension to sell out the game, but this time around a sellout was reached before the normal deadline.

Even though the game will not be blacked out, it doesn't look like fans will get to watch Matthew Stafford on Sunday. He missed practice again today, meaning he has been sidelined for back-to-back days. That isn't a guarantee that he will miss Sunday's game, but it is certainly a sign that he isn't all that close to being ready to play. Daunte Culpepper will step in as the team's starter if Stafford is indeed out on Sunday, but he won't be the only backup who gets a chance to start.

Aside from Stafford, Dewayne White, Sammie Hill, and Ko Simpson all missed practice today and according to John Niyo, are "likely out" against Pittsburgh.

Some good news is that Calvin Johnson, Gosder Cherilus, and Kalvin Pearson returned to practice on a limited basis, meaning they will likely be in the lineup on Sunday barring any setbacks.

Thursday Notes: Stafford Misses Practice; Sellout Likely for Steelers Game

Sean Yuille — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:02:44 -0000

More photos » by M. Spencer Green - AP

2 months ago: Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, foreground, walks the sidelines with a taped knee during the second half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears in Chicago, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009. Chicago won 48-24. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)

Browse more photos »

Matthew Stafford sat out practice on Wednesday. If he misses practice again today, chances are he will not play against the Steelers on Sunday. Usually a player needs to get a couple days of practice in to play when he is injured, and although anything could happen, I doubt Stafford would play after missing a couple days of practice toward the end of the week.
Stafford wasn't the only player to miss practice on Wednesday, as Calvin Johnson, Gosder Cherilus, Dewayne White, Sammie Hill, Kalvin Pearson, and Ko Simpson were all sidelined as well. Ernie Sims and Grady Jackson were limited in practice. I think this week's injury report is going to be a bit more lengthier than usual.
For the Steelers, it appears that Willie Parker is not going to play on Sunday. The status of Troy Polamalu isn't so certain just yet, as he was limited during practice yesterday. I'd say right now it's not looking like he will play, but it's not looking like he won't, either.
There were 1,500 tickets available for Sunday's game against the Steelers as of Wednesday. The deadline to reach a sellout is 1 p.m. today, but the Lions will receive a 24-hour extension if the game isn't already sold out by then. Considering the number of tickets left is so low compared to the other home games, I'd say the chances of this game selling out are very, very good.
Due to injuries and a lack of depth, Julian Peterson has played some defensive end recently.
Based on some of the things Zack Follett has said this week, I expect him to play like he was shot out of a cannon on Sunday.
The Lions came in 27th in SB Nation's first power rankings of the season. (For the record, I ranked the Lions as the 26th best team in the league.)
I thought I heard during the Tigers-Twins game earlier this week that the Metrodome was renamed to Mall of America Field. Actually, only the field was given a name, as the stadium is still called the Metrodome.

Know Thy Enemy 2009: Detroit Lions - December 27

Fooch — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:00:13 -0000

Let's start by stating that a lot could certainly change between now and the last two games of the year. However, at this point, if the 49ers are in the midst of a playoff chase, they face a potentially easy close to the season at home against Detroit and on the road at St. Louis. Certainly not gimmes, but exceedingly winnable games. Those could be seriously exciting games when we reach that point. At the same time, both teams, and particularly the Detroit Lions are intriguing this year. The Lions have made some major additions that will make or break this season (at least in terms of actually winning a few games).

The Detroit Lions are represented here at SB Nation by Sean Yuille over at Pride of Detroit.

2008 Overview
Not much needs to be said about the 2008 Detroit Lions. There are train wrecks and then there are train wrecks. For those that were living under a rock, the Lions managed to become the first team in league history to finish 0-16. There had been numerous opportunities in the past, but the Lions stepped up to claim the prize. It's not exactly shocking then to take a look at their offensive and defensive DVOA and general team efficiency and see a team at or near the bottom in every category. One interesting note is that in looking at their overall efficiency, they really weren't that much worse than the Rams. Of course, the question becomes, do you want to go 2-14 and be generally ignored? Or would you rather go 0-16 and take history with you? Me, personally, I want infamy. Why be bad when you can be historically bad? It's one reason (of many) 7-9 can drive me crazy. You're middle of the pack of mediocrity and nobody cares about that. Either be good or god-awful.

After the jump we look at the Lions offseason additions and subtractions, 2009 Questions and Answers and a quick preview of the matchup...

Additions
Aside from the #1 pick, the Lions dealt for the 20th pick in the first round, giving them 3 of the first 33 picks. For believers in building through the draft, that's definitely a good start. They added QB Matt Stafford, TE Brandon Pettigrew and S Louis Delmas with those picks. Injuries have gotten in the way of Pettigrew and Delmas but both are expected to get extensive playing time early on. One draft pick of particular note for Bay Area sports fans was 7th round pick, OLB Zack Follett. Lions fans were happy with the pick and I have to say I can't blame them. Maybe he doesn't have superstar athleticism, but he's a badass plain and simple.

Outside of the draft, the Lions were extremely busy in the offseason. Of course, given how awful they were is that all that surprising? Their most high profile move was a trade that sent away DT Cory Redding and a fifth round pick for old 49er favorite OLB Julian Peterson. They also got former 49ers WR Bryant Johnson. He's been banged up in camp (shocker there) and continues to struggle to make the "leap." We'll see if he can do it with a rookie QB (or even Daunte Culpepper). Aside from that they added an assortment of new starters including CB Phillip Buchanon, TE Will Heller, DT Grady Jackson, MLB Larry Foote, and LG Daniel Loper among others. We'll see if they improve, but at least they look a heck of a lot different.

Subtractions
Considering the Lions made a lot of offseason additions, it's only natural that they would also have numerous subtractions. They of course dealt Redding away for Peterson. In free agency they lost DT Shaun Cody and FB Moran Norris, among many others. Given how bad they were I'd imagine a lot of turnover is not really a bad thing, even if it included their leading tackler Paris Lenon. Rather than go into more depth here, I thought I'd move it down to the more fitting...

2009 Questions and Answers
My biggest question in a broad sense is how quickly the turnover will be reflected in the record? The team has added a variety of players across the board, and also added a new coach in former Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. The 49ers made some drastic moves back in 2005, but it did not really seem to be along the lines of this. It was more build down in order to eventually build up (or something like that). One way to assess it: The over/under on Lions wins in 2009 is 4.5. Would you go over or under that number?

Getting a little more specific, a big early question is the QB position. The Lions drafted Matt Stafford #1 overall and I'm wondering how long it will take for him to claim the starting job. The current unofficial depth chart at Lions.com lists Culpepper #1 and Stafford #2. I wouldn't be surprised to see Culpepper rolled out early on, but I'm wondering if he'll hold onto the job all season long. Given how bad the Lions look to be, is it worth just rolling out Stafford, or do you let him sit and learn for a year? Good teams tend to sit the QB while bad teams throw him to the wolves. Personally I say sit him and avoid getting him killed. Maybe they'll struggle but why destroy his confidence within the first month of the season?

Other than that it's really a question of how the youngsters (such as Kevin Smith and Gosder Cherilus) continue to develop. If the Lions can continue to grow, they could get back to respectability in the not too distant future. They simply need to show patience in the process (fitting coming from a 49ers fan).

@ San Francisco
I don't care how quickly the Lions improve, the 49ers simply cannot lose this game. In Bigelow and I's early season discussion, it was fairly easy to agree on a win here. As I said then, I do think the Lions will be an improved team, but I think the 49ers are simply better at this point, no question about it. The 49ers had very few statement games last year, but the home win over Detroit was probably the easiest. It's safe to say we would like a lot more statement games in 2009.

Monday Notes: Lions Play Host to Former Season-Ticket Holders

Sean Yuille — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:04:39 -0000

Jon Jansen sounds like he is open to playing any position on the offensive line if it means he will get playing time. All backup offensive linemen need to be versatile, as that allows the Lions to keep fewer linemen on the team and active during games. Jansen is no exception, and although he will primarily be a right tackle (likely backing up Gosder Cherilus), he will probably get time at every other position on the O-line as well.
Around 120 former season-ticket holders attended practice on Wednesday of last week. More than 6,000 were invited, and there were only 60 or so left by the time practice was over. The numbers may not seem all that impressive, but at the end of the day the Lions sold 30 season-ticket packages, meaning the event was a success in that sense. The invite was a way for the Lions to reach out to ex-ticket holders, hoping to get them back in the team's good graces. I doubt this will be the last effort to do that, as Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz seem committed to getting the team to be more open to the fans, especially the ones that dish out money for tickets or used to do that.
Pontiac still hasn't sold the Silverdome, and unless some unforeseen sale is made, it looks like the former home of the Lions will be put up for auction sometime in the future.
Former Lion Reggie Rogers was sentenced to two years in jail for two different DUI cases. Both of these came after he killed three teenagers in an accident where he ran a stop sign back in 1988. That accident led to the end of his career with the Lions, and the latest two incidents have led to an end of his freedom for a couple years.

Jon Jansen Is A Lion; Pisa Tinoisamoa Is A Bear; Brad Childress Is In Disguise; and Mark Roman Is Still A 49er

Brandon — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:00:22 -0000

After the Washington Redskins released veteran RT Jon Jansen, some of us considered signing him to add some veteran competition for the right tackle opening. We came to the conclusion that he was too injury prone, and he too awful last season when he did play. But the Lions disagreed and quickly signed him. Now he might push 2008 1st round pick RT Gosder Cherlius to the bench. Same old Lions; another awful signing (which makes it a good signing for the Packers).
When St. Louis released their leading tackler, LB Pisa Tinoisamoa, at the beginning of May, Mitchell kicked around the idea of signing him for depth. The Packers never showed any interest in him. Instead, Chicago signed him last week and he'll likely be starting for them as their strong side linebacker. Does signing a castoff from St. Louis' bad defense to start on your defense sound like a good idea?
Brad Childress had a bad hair day. Oh, and WR Percy Harvin is running the Wildcat. The little guy is going to get himself killed if he runs it too many times.
Former head coach Mike Sherman was a disaster when it came to signing free agents. DE Joe Johnson are LB Hardy Nickerson two of his worst moves. He was awful at handing out extensions to guys like DT Cletidus Hunt and WR Robert Ferguson too. One of his last moves wasn't as bad, signing SS Mark Roman as a free agent. He was a lousy player, but he didn't get hurt and he didn't cost too much money. I thought his career was over after the Packers released him, but instead he became a starter in San Francisco, starting 16 games in each of the last two seasons. He still must be awful, but instead he's been trying to get a new contract or force a trade.

Monday Notes: Roderick Hood to Visit Lions Today

Sean Yuille — Mon, 18 May 2009 04:02:07 -0000

More photos » by Reed Saxon - AP

7 months ago: Matthew Stafford of Georgia, (9), the No 1 overall first pick of the NFL draft, joins fellow Detroit Lions rookies Derrick Williams (12) of Penn State, and Brandon Pettigrew (84) of Oklahoma State, as they are photographed by Scott Clarke for Top Deck as National Football League draft pick rookies posed for NFL trading card photographers, at the Los Angeles Coliseum Saturday, May 16, 2009. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

Browse more photos »

Rookies are going to report to Allen Park today to get ready for the first full-team OTA on Tuesday.
Cornerback Roderick Hood is going to visit the Lions today. Hood was released by the Cardinals mainly due to cap reasons and visited the Bengals and Browns last week.
The Lions released offensive tackle Junius Coston and wide receiver William Franklin, who was claimed in mid-April, last week. They also signed rookie tryout Ryan Kees to a contract.
Maurice Morris thought the Lions should have won eight games last year. I think that was just a general estimate based on watching highlights, but his point was that the Lions were not as bad as their record indicated last season. Quite a few of their losses were because of fourth quarter collapses, and others were just close games that didn't go in the Lions' favor.
Gosder Cherilus is more comfortable now that he has a year of the NFL under his belt.
Jim Schwartz brought Daniel Loper in to compete for a starting spot at left guard.
The salary cap has again gone up, this time by $947,000. The increase is due to accounting numbers being finalized, and usually the jump wouldn't be applied until the following year's cap. Since the cap is going to expire after this year, though, the NFL is applying the increase to 2009. (By the way, labor talks between owners and the NFLPA are going to begin next month.)
An interesting tidbit mentioned in the above-linked article is what the NFL's first ever cap number was, $34.6 million in 1994. It's pretty amazing to think about that when you consider that Matthew Stafford got $42 million of guaranteed money in his contract. It definitely shows you how much things have changed in the last 15 years.
According to Pro Football Talk, prior to the recent increase, the Lions had $7.4 million of cap space.
Calvin Johnson is 3rd in NFL.com's and 5th in The National Football Post's wide receiver rankings. I think those rankings are much more accurate than the Sporting News' rankings, which placed Megatron 11th.
Lions tight end Dan Gronkowski was quite the hockey player in high school. He said he will become a Tigers fan, but he isn't going to ditch the Buffalo Sabres for the Red Wings.
Former Lions defensive end Roger Brown is a member of the 2009 College Football Hall of Fame Class.

Did The Draft Help The Lions?

Brandon — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:00:14 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

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How could it not?

The mid-season trade of WR Roy Williams provided Detroit with Dallas' 1st and 3rd round picks, giving them five picks in the top 82. With nearly every spot on the roster in need of improvement, this was a very important draft for them.

Detroit slipped from a promising 6-2 start in 2007, to a 7-9 finish, to a 0-16 disaster. Their defense was the worst in the NFL in 2007, based on total yards allowed, and it got even worse in 2008. Their offense was respectable in 2007, thanks to a solid season from QB Jon Kitna. But Kitna got off to a poor start in 2008, was soon thereafter lost for the season with an injury, and eventually traded to Dallas this offseason.

Now they're building around No. 1 overall selection QB Matthew Stafford.

Looking back, I gave Matt Millen a thumbs up last season. He drafted two offensive starters, RT Gosder Cherlius and RB Kevin Smith, and added three defensive players in the first three rounds. Cherlius was good last season, when he wasn't taking a shot at DE Jared Allen. Smith was good too, but he had too many carries in college to expect a long NFL career and his mouth isn't doing him any favors. Millen did waste his 2nd round pick on LB Jordon Dizon, who seems destined to remain strictly a special teams player. 3rd round DT Andre Fluellen is strickly a backup. 3rd round DE Cliff Avril had 5 sacks as a rookie and has been described as one of the three best players on the team. Not a bad haul.

Here's what Detroit found in this April's draft:

1st round (No. 1 overall) - QB Matthew Stafford. I'm not a fan of this pick. He's a combine superstar who doesn't play like it on the field. That said, he's a high risk-high reward pick in a draft without a clear top player. As much as the franchise needs a boost, they can't automatically name him the starter. In recent seasons, I've watched QB Aaron Rodgers and QB Brian Brohm struggle horribly as rookies. They have to wait until he's ready.
1st round - TE Brandon Pettigrew. At first, this seemed like a luxury pick. Few tight ends are drafted in the 1st round and Detroit has so many holes on the roster. But GM Ted Thompson considered drafting Pettigrew with the No. 9 overall selection and he was the best receiver available at that spot.
2nd round - SS Louis Delmas. He's a good tackler, good in coverage, and very aggressive. But at 6'0" and 200 lbs. he's also undersized at safety. I would have liked this pick if Delmas could play cornerback. He's similar to, but a little lighter than, SS Atari Bigby, but I doubt anyone in the NFL would trade a 2nd round pick for Bigby.
3rd round - LB DeAndre Levy. I really want to like the selection of a Wisconsin Badger, but I don't like this pick. Levy is a little too slow and a little to small to play outside linebacker in the NFL. And he rarely stood out when I watched the Badgers play.
3rd round - WR Derrick Williams. As Sean notes, they could really use him as a return man. The Lions depth at WR behind Calvin Johnson is really weak, so they needed to address this position in the draft. But it seems like they drafted him a couple rounds too early.

They might strike gold with one of their later picks, but it's hard to expect anyone drafted outside top 100 players overall to be an impact player.

The more I look at this draft class, the less I like it. If Stafford and Pettigrew are future Pro Bowlers, then it's a good (maybe great) draft. But I'm not high on any of their top 5 picks except Pettigrew.

And as Sean points out, new GM Martin Mayhew doesn't represent a break from the Matt Millen era, but a continuation of it:

I will just say that I am furious with the promotion of Lewand and Mayhew. Both are from the Millen era and need to be relieved of their duties as well. No offense to Mayhew especially, but it's time to get some new faces in the front office.

Maybe it is the beginning of an improved Lions franchise. But it's more of the same; a weak draft class, signing pointless free agents like WR Keary Colbert, and a Millen inspired front office. Now they need to make a horrible trade, like when they gave away DT Shaun Rogers, and it will be like Millen never left. The Lions look like they're still at least one more front office change away from providing the Packers some real competition.

Poll

What draft grade do you give to Detroit's 2009 class?

A

68 votes

B

211 votes

C

164 votes

D

54 votes

F

26 votes

523 votes | Poll has closed