SB Nation - Allen Ervin

Friday Notes: Culpepper to Start; Lions Sign Alexander, Release Ervin

Sean Yuille — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:50:12 -0000

6 months ago: Detroit Lions quarterback Daunte Culpepper throws during football minicamp, Wednesday, June 24, 2009, in Allen Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

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Daunte Culpepper will start for the Lions against Indianapolis tomorrow. Culpepper will play for all of the first quarter and half of the second. Matthew Stafford will come in after that and play until the end of the third quarter. (Drew Stanton will get to play in the fourth quarter.) The starters will be in the game for both Culpepper and Stafford, allowing the coaches to get a look at what each can do with the No. 1 offense.

Jim Schwartz cautioned to not read into this very much, as someone has to go out there first. He also made sure to mention that a starter probably won't be named until the week of the Saints game, and even then we probably won't hear who is getting the start until right before the game. That way the Saints have to spend time preparing for both quarterbacks.
The Lions signed linebacker Rufus Alexander and released running back Allen Ervin on Thursday. Alexander has previously played for the Vikings and Colts. Ervin had played quite well in the first preseason game before suffering an injury the next week in practice. He was not going to play on Saturday, and the Lions probably figured he wasn't going to make the team, so it's best to move on and give someone else a chance.
Starting cornerbacks Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry both will not play against the Colts. Keith Smith will play in his first preseason game, but I think Peyton Manning is going to have a field day with our secondary. He very well may have anyways, but with the starters out this probably will get ugly really quickly.
Dennis Northcutt has also been ruled out of tomorrow's game.
Kevin Smith and Ernie Sims are going to be game-time decisions tomorrow.
Brandon Pettigrew is going to play against Indianapolis.
Daniel Loper and Manny Ramirez are battling it out for the starting spot at left guard.
People were actually lined up at Ford Field's box office to buy Lions tickets when they went on sale Thursday morning.
With all of this talk about backup kickers lately, Jim Schwartz decided to show the team a clip of when offensive line coach George Yarno kicked an extra point back when he played for the Buccaneers. He was actually the long snapper, but when the starting kicker got hurt, Yarno ended up coming in as the emergency backup and did quite well.

(More after the jump)

The Vikings' locker room reportedly is already divided on Brett Favre.
Roy Williams hurt his shoulder last night during a Cowboys practice and will likely miss the rest of the preseason. There was a report from PFT that he broke his collarbone, but his X-rays came back negative.
The Broncos have suspended Brandon Marshall.
The Cowboys are not going to have to raise their giant scoreboard, as the NFL has simply created a do over rule, meaning that if a punt hits the scoreboard, the play will just be done again. I realize it would cost $2 million to raise the scoreboard, but this rule is just stupid. The Cowboys have spent over a billion dollars on the stadium already, so what's another $2 million? Besides, they are the ones responsible for not testing this out in the first place, so they should be responsible for fixing the problem. This rule will just cause problems, and I can't wait to see the outcry the first time a do over punt is blocked.

Wednesday Notes: Lions Claim Orion Martin, Release Eric Fowler

Sean Yuille — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 08:18:20 -0000

Don't forget, individual tickets for Lions home games go on sale tomorrow morning.
The Lions claimed linebacker/defensive end Orion Martin on Tuesday. Martin was released by the Dolphins on Monday, and the Lions wasted little time in claiming him. With depth at linebacker getting a little thin thanks to Darnell Bing's injury, the Lions felt it was necessary to bring someone in to shore things up a bit. Martin is an undrafted rookie from Virginia Tech.
To make room on the roster for Martin, the Lions released Eric Fowler. With a trio of Lions receiver returning to practice earlier this week, it's not too surprising that Fowler was released. I would have rather seen Keary Colbert get released, but it's not like Fowler was doing anything special. I'm sure he will be back at some point anyways. It seems like he is always getting signed and released by the Lions.
Brandon Pettigrew was back in practice on Monday, though it was in a limited fashion. Regardless, it's good that he has returned. There is a chance he could play against Indianapolis, though I imagine things would have to go perfect for him the rest of this week for that to happen.
Anthony Henry missed the morning session of practice yesterday, and fellow cornerback Phillip Buchanon only participated in individual activities.
Aveion Cason missed practice again, as did Allen Ervin, who just stopped wearing his protective boot.
While the Lions did add a running back to the team earlier this week, they may not be done with that position just yet. If injuries continue to pile up, undrafted rookie Tyrell Fenroy, who visited the Lions on Monday, could join the team. Fenroy went to Louisiana-Lafayette and was briefly on the Bears following the draft.
Although receiver turned kicker Dane Looker didn't miss a single field goal during yesterday's practice, the Lions are going to host a few free agent kickers for a visit today. Everyone was impressed with what Looker did, but the Lions probably want him to stay focused on being a receiver. Plus, the Lions need to have a kicker ready to go just in case Jason Hanson isn't able to return when the regular season begins. Swayze Waters hasn't looked bad or anything, but Detroit has to make sure he isn't injured on a regular basis with Hanson's status in question. Considering that, a backup backup plan may be necessary.
Aaron Brown is spending time in practice working on his pass-blocking.
With T.J. Duckett becoming a free agent, there has been some talk about the Lions bringing him back. Duckett is a good player for short-yardage situations, but I'm happy with Jerome Felton.
As if Daniel Bullocks wasn't having a rough enough time as it is, news broke yesterday that he may have been a victim of a Ponzi scheme.
Former Lion Dick LeBeau is a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's 2010 class.

Monday Notes: Lions Place Kenneth Harris on Waived/Injured List, Sign Tristan Davis

Sean Yuille — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 02:38:51 -0000

The Lions signed running back/returner Tristan Davis (undrafted rookie from Auburn) today and put wide receiver Kenneth Harris (undrafted rookie from Georgia) on the waived/injured list. Rather than add another receiver to the team to fill Harris' roster spot, the Lions likely opted for a running back because of injuries to Maurice Morris, Allen Ervin, and Aveion Cason. Ervin and Cason missed practice today, according to CBSSports.com's Rapid Reports.
Although the Lions lost Harris, who had missed the last week or so of practice, they got Calvin Johnson, Bryant Johnson, and Dennis Northcutt back today. All three are expected to play on Saturday, which is great news for the quarterback who ends up starting against Indianapolis.
Jason Hanson said his recovery from knee surgery is on schedule, though he admitted he really doesn't know what that schedule is. Martin Mayhew said the plan is for Hanson to be ready for the start of the regular season, but he didn't exactly make any promises that that would happen.
Mayhew wasn't surprised that Matthew Stafford struggled on Saturday because he is a rookie playing in his second NFL game.
When asked about whether the Lions could cut Daniel Bullocks in the future (after coming to a settlement), Mayhew didn't rule out the possibility of that happening, though he said they don't plan on releasing him right now.

(More after the jump)

When asked if the Lions have any interest in superhuman sprinter Usain Bolt, Jim Schwartz said no and explained that "nobody ever won the 100 meters with somebody standing in their lane." While that is very true, I'd love to see what Bolt can do on a football field. One thing that is certain is that he would be a better kick returner than Aveion Cason.
Shaun Smith supposedly yelled at Browns GM George Kokinis after Saturday's game.

"According to WKNR radio, former Browns defensive lineman Shaun Smith, now with the Lions, gave Browns General Manager George Kokinis an expletive-filled tongue lashing in the stadium hallway Saturday night. The station reported that Kokinis said nothing and walked away.
I understand that Smith is upset over how his stay in Cleveland ended, but it's really not necessary to seek out your former team's general manager and swear at him. That just is really unprofessional and sort of embarrassing for the Lions. Speaking of embarrassing...
As many of you know, Dewayne White and Carson Butler got into a fight during warm-ups on Saturday night. After Butler scored on a pass from Drew Stanton, one of the TV announcers said that White congratulated him. That couldn't be farther from the truth, however. White explained after the game that he didn't congratulate Butler and that this feud is far from over.

"No," White said. "I don't kiss and make up. What's wrong with you? We'll probably have to go at it one more time -- when we're not playing a game in a few minutes. Next week sometime."

White sort of laughed as he said that. Then he grew more serious when asked if the two were not done yet.

"We might go at it," White said. "I'm not saying that we are. But it's going to be bad blood between us, yeah."

Butler has a history of fighting, as he and a teammate beat up a fellow Michigan student on St. Patrick's Day a couple years ago. It was bad enough that the victim had to suffer the effects of getting beat up, but it turned out he wasn't even the person they were after. That's right, they beat up the wrong person. Both Butler and the teammate eventually got kicked off the team, but Butler was allowed back the next summer. Last year against Notre Dame, Butler punched an opposing player and got ejected, landing him in Rich Rodriguez's doghouse. If I were Butler, I would be on my best behavior considering he is fighting (no pun intended) for a roster spot.
While White played especially well in the second half of the Browns game, don't get too excited. Why? Well, he was lining up against George Foster.
I shared my thoughts on what the NFL's Twitter policy should be for WashingtonPost.com's The League.

Matthew Stafford to Start Against Cleveland

Sean Yuille — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:13:43 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

4 months ago: Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford passes against the Atlanta Falcons during the second quarter of an exhibition NFL football game Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009 in Detroit. Stafford passed for for 114 yards and a touchdown in a 27-26 win.(AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

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As expected, Jim Schwartz has named Matthew Stafford the Lions' starting quarterback for tomorrow's game against the Browns. I say this was expected because Daunte Culpepper got the start in the first game, and now it is Stafford's turn to work with the first team. Similar to the rotation they have in practice, both Culpepper and Stafford have had their fair share of work with the starters, and the hope for the coaches is that after tomorrow's game someone will have played well enough to stand out as this team's starting QB. That way naming a starter for the third preseason game, which usually mirrors a regular season game the most, wouldn't be too tough of a decision for Jim Schwartz and company.

I doubt a starter for the season opener will be named publicly until the week of the first game or days before it, but we should get a pretty good indication of who that will be based on the depth chart for next week's game against Indianapolis. Like I said, the third preseason game usually is the most like a regular season game, and the coaches probably would like a starter to be in place by then. Of course, chances are that both Stafford and Culpepper will play pretty equally, keeping us wondering a while longer. Then again, if Stafford is already equally as good as Culpepper, shouldn't he get the nod to start based on how little time in the league it took him to do that? I guess only Schwartz knows the answer to that question, but really any speculation before tomorrow's game is pointless.

Safety Louis Delmas is also going to be in the starting lineup tomorrow. He missed the first preseason game because of an injury, but it looks like the injury list in general will be a little smaller for the Browns game.

Receiver Calvin Johnson (thumb), rookie tight end Brandon Pettigrew (thigh), kicker Jason Hanson (knee), tight end Casey FitzSimmons (ankle), running back Allen Ervin (ankle) and receiver Kenneth Harris (ankle) will not play.

Receivers Bryant Johnson (leg) and Dennis Northcutt (hand) will be game-time decisions.

I'm really hoping at least one of those two game-time decisions end up playing, as I'd like both quarterbacks to have decent receivers this week. At least for Stafford's sake, I hope Keary Colbert isn't on the field until Culpepper comes in at QB.

Wednesday Notes: Four Injured Lions Return to Practice

Sean Yuille — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 20:23:54 -0000

More photos » by Paul Sancya - AP

4 months ago: FILE -- This is a June 24, 2009, file photo showing Detroit Lions safety Louis Delmas watches during NFL football minicamp, in Allen Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

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Calvin Johnson and Louis Delmas returned to practice on Tuesday. Johnson was without his cast, but he didn't have any passes thrown to him just to be safe. Delmas made his presence felt by destroying Aaron Brown with a ferocious hit during today's practice. Jim Schwartz made sure to tell Delmas to be a bit more careful when jacking up teammates, but he seemed to enjoy the hit. Gunther Cunningham, as expected, seemed to like what he saw as well.
Casey FitzSimmons and John Standeford returned to practice today. FitzSimmons was limited, but the fact that he simply returned is good news, as I didn't expect him to be back so soon. Standeford fully participated in practice.
Wide receiver Kenneth Harris was carted off the field because of an ankle injury.
Daniel Loper didn't practice today and was replaced by Manny Ramirez at left guard.
Running back Allen Ervin was wearing a boot at practice because of an ankle injury. Jim Schwartz said it was more serious than a day-to-day issue, which is too bad. Ervin played well against the Falcons and certainly looked better than Aveion Cason. Ervin and Aaron Brown pulled ahead in the competition for the third running back spot for sure. Obviously Brown has the upper hand (and will continue to have it with Ervin out), but losing a player means less competition, which is never a good thing.

(More after the jump)

Jim Schwartz compared Brett Favre unretiring again to this famous quote from Godfather III: "Every time I think I'm out, they pull me back in."
Favre's decision to sign with the Vikings caused a big increase in ticket sales for the Lions. The Vikings play at Ford Field on September 20 -- the Lions' home opener -- and it seems like there is a very good chance of it being a sellout. In that sense, thank you, Brett Favre.
Nick Schuyler, the lone survivor of the boat accident that involved Corey Smith, was interviewed by Bryant Gumbel and recounted what happened during the tragedy.
Tarvaris Jackson's days with the Vikings are numbered, and it is expected that he will be released or traded by Friday. The Pioneer Press speculated that the Lions could be interested in him based on the fact that he was with the Vikings and has knowledge of their offense, but I highly doubt Detroit would waste anything on him. It's not like he would be anything more than the Lions' third-string QB, so I would be shocked if he ended up joining Detroit via a trade. If he does become a free agent, I wouldn't be too surprised if the Lions showed interest in signing him, but does anyone honestly think Jackson is going to sign with a team that already has a couple QBs that would be ahead of him?