Good rundown of new Lions coaching staff

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Chrissie Wywrot at DetroitLions.com provides a good primer on Jim Schwartz, his coordinators, their philosophies and the rest of the coaching staff.

From the article ...
Head Coach Jim Schwartz on his defensive coordinator, Gunther Cunningham:

“We worked together three years in Tennessee, two of which were playoff years,” said Schwartz. “We’re like-minded when it comes to not just defense but how you want to build a team.”

Gunther on his philosophy:
“One of the things I’ve always believed in is high blitz,” said Cunningham. “Up to 40-percent in a game, which is off the charts for most people – but that’s what I believe in. I think you have to keep the quarterback nervous all the time.”

Gunther again, on a versatile LB like Julian Peterson allowing him flexibility to run different plays, such as the quarters formation, which includes three down linemen, three linebackers and five defensive backs:
“(With that formation) we can start moving around and get a feel for it and confuse the offensive line,” said Peterson. “We can make them think there’s more people coming than there actually are.”

There's more comments regarding the offense and special teams. Nothing especially earth-shattering here, but a decent summer read.

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