"Have at it” – ESPN.com Fields Suggestions on How to Fix the Lions

ESPN.com’s NFC North blogger, Kevin Seifert, threw up a post asking his readership to lay out their blueprint for the Lions’ future.  He received just about every conceivable suggestion, from pumping up the offense, to ignoring the offense and fixing up the defense, and everything in between.  This morning, Kevin collected some of the best answers and supplied his own.

He generally supported the no-job-is-safe approach that Schwartz has taken, though cautioned that sometimes, consistency is a virtue in and of itself.  He also advocated a long-term strategy of addressing both the offensive and defensive lines—something almost every Lions fan can get behind.

Frankly, the most dire situation isn’t the OL, whose play has been somewhere between “okay” and “pretty good”.  Nor is it the DL, where injuries have either felled or limited Jared DeVries, DeWayne White, Cliff Avril, Jason Hunter, and Sammie Hill.  That’s the top two DEs at each position, and three of the four projected starters on the defensive line.  Once the DL gets healthy, the front seven should be moderately stout.

However, the secondary remains a completely unfettered disaster.  Theoretical #1 cornerback Anthony Henry started off solid, but is starting to show why the Lions have wanted to switch him to safety.  Phillip Buchanon has the talent to be a #1 corner, but his play has been wildly inconsistent.  Will James, would be an excellent nickel corner, and an okay complement opposite a true #1.  However, he’s currently the Lions’ best corner, and that is not good.  Ko Simpson has played very well next to Louis Delmas, but Simpson’s been dinged up, and Delmas is playing like the very talented rookie that he is: talented . . . but a rookie.

Don’t forget, Gunther Cunningham’s aggressive blitzes can’t work, and won’t be called, if the secondary can’t hold it down behind them.  As long as the defensive backfield is in such disarray, the Lions won’t be able to run their defense like they want to.  Minimally, the Lions will need to either acquire a veteran starting corner, or spend a weekday draft pick on one.  After that, they’ll have to either settle on Ko Simpson or scout out his replacement.  Finally, they’ll have to rebuild the depth at corner with a mid- and/or late-round pick or two.

Discuss it here, in The Den!

Schwartz showing a lack of tolerance for poor play -- how refreshing!

Good article by MLive.com's Tom Kowalski today outlining that for all of Coach Jim Schwartz's other qualities -- he seems to be an intelligent, confident, forward-looking coach who isn't overwhelmed by his new position -- he also possesses something new General Manager Martin Mayhew has shown as well: ruthlessness.

When a Lions player isn't getting the job done, Schwartz doesn't tell us he'll need to check the film to make sure his eyes worked on Sunday; he makes changes to the lineup. The latest is taking underperforming Aaron Brown off kick return duties and installing fellow rookie Derrick Williams -- and essentially putting Williams on-notice to perform or else.

But that's only the latest such move by Schwartz, Killer notes. Others have included:

* After signing Phillip Buchanon to a 2-year, $8.5 million contract with the expectation he would be a starting CB, Schwartz has replaced Buchanon in the starting lineup with journeyman Will James. James has played solid, consistent football and made it difficult to take him out of the lineup, Schwartz said. But this also has to do with how Buchanon's been performing, and it's interesting that his contract isn't saving him. Writes Killer: "Buchanon didn't just slide to the nickel back position or even the dime -- he's at the bottom of the depth chart. For two games now, he has seen only time on special teams."

*LB Ernie Sims, a first-round pick, could be losing more and more playing time to third-rounder DeAndre Levy; as could veteran Julian Peterson, who was signed in the offseason with fanfare and high expectations. Why? Levy's simply getting the job done better.

*Left guard Daniel Loper practiced with the first-team offense almost all of training camp. He's been replaced as a starter by Manny Ramirez.

*S Kalvin Pearson gave way to Marquand Manuel, who gave way to in-season signee Ko Simpson, as Schwartz continues to look for solutions on the other side of NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month Louis Delmas.

Noticing a pattern here?

There's a fine line between accountability for your play and too much of a revolving door leading to no continuity or improvement. But as Killer points out, a lot of coaches talk tough, then don't back it up. Schwartz seems willing to back up his talk with action.

"I've never been known as a patient person," Schwartz said. "There's a fine line between staying the course and being on the right track and then going the other way and continuing to do the same things and not having results and expecting things to change. It's my job to recognize that.

"We keep putting the same people in the same positions and the job doesn't get done, so we need to make a change. Either put players in a different position, or put different players in the same position."

Talk about it in The Den!

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New Orleans paper breaks down the game film

New Orleans Times-Picayune football writer Jeff Duncan has an article analyzing the game film from last Sunday's game.

A couple of points were interesting from the Lions' perspective -- though don't tell anybody anything they didn't see with their own eyes:

FRESH MEAT: The Saints ruthlessly attacked Lions cornerback Eric King, a last-minute replacement for Phillip Buchanon in the starting lineup. The first two touchdowns - a 9-yard catch by Marques Colston and a 39-yarder to Robert Meachem - came against King. Brees also victimized King on the 58-yard strike to Devery Henderson and caught him in single coverage for a 20-yard connection with Lance Moore, who made a spectacular leaping grab. The Saints also were trying to set up King on the failed flea-flicker pass, but rookie safety Louis Delmas did not bite and had Colston covered deep, forcing Brees to go to his second option, Devery Henderson. Further proof that Brees, while a nice guy off the field, is a cold-blooded assasin on it. He showed no mercy on King for four quarters.

Get well soon, Phillip Buchanon.

CALL OF THE GAME: The Saints' second touchdown was a perfect example of offensive deception. The Saints had run the ball on their past two first-down calls. On this play, they lined up in a two-tight end set with fullback Heath Evans and Reggie Bush in the backfield. The lone wideout was Robert Meachem, the team's best run-blocking receiver. The personnel package and alignment screamed "run." The Lions responded accordingly, packing nine defenders in the box. Brees faked a hand-off to Bushand was able to buy enough time in the pocket to find Meachem alone in single coverage in the end zone against cornerback Eric King. A tip of the cap to Sean Payton on that play call. Excellent work.

Did I mention Phillip Buchanon should get well soon?

Duncan said the refs blew it on calling Calvin Johnson out of bounds on that long pass that should have been a touchdown. And he did have words of praise for one Lion:

The Lions got a good one in rookie free safety Louis Delmas. He was all over the field for Detroit and showed tremendous instincts and play-making ability. He flashed excellent speed on his 65-yard fumble return for a TD and also laid out Bush, Moore, Bell and Shockey with big hits. The kid can play.

Discuss in The Den.

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Lions Cornerbacks Overmatched?

Detroit's starting cornerbacks Philip Buchanon and Anthony Henry will not play today. In itself, that isn't much of a concern. They would probably both play if this was the regular season, but they are nicked up and no reason to risk aggravating anything. The Lions know what they can do.

On the other hand though, this may be a sign of things to come.

We all know that the corners are a weak spot on the team. I am fairly certain that the play will be better than last year, simply because it can't be worse, but this group of corners - particularly after Buchanon and Henry - may really limit Gunther Cunningham's options of what kinds of defenses he can run. Gunther has promised the Lions' fans an aggressive blitz-happy defense that puts a lot of pressure on opposing offenses. This can only be effective if the coordinator is comfortable putting his corners on an island, and that can only happen if they can be counted on to hold coverage for a few seconds. It is somewhat questionable whether Buchanon and Henry can be counted on for this. It is definitely doubtful that their backups can.

While there are no definitive statistics that measure the quality of a secondary, you can determine their relative worth with a glance through the numbers. Last year Detroit finished dead last in yards per attempt at 7.9, with the next worse a full half yard better and league average 6.2. Detroit finished dead last with 4 interceptions. Only four teams had fewer than 10 and the league average was 14.5. Detroit allowed a practically unfathomable opposing quarterback rating of 110. By way of comparison, only five quarterbacks in NFL history have had full season ratings as high as Detroit allowed its average opponent.

I'm not exactly sure how relevant the statistics are. Detroit will be starting at least three new players in its secondary, with the only possible holdover being safety Kalvin Pearson. By the time the season begins it is very possible that Pearson will be the only returning player in the defensive backfield. Last year's problems were both awful starters compounded by awful backups. Detroit had no good young players in the secondary, and the entire unit needed to be rebuilt.

And while this year will be different, it may still be ugly.

Detroit's #1 corner (presumably) is Buchanon who only left Tampa Bay because he would no longer start there. He came to Detroit because it is one of the few places where he would.

Yikes.

Henry was part of one of the other defensive backfields that had fewer than 10 interceptions last year, and at this point in his career would probably make a better safety than a corner but there isn't anyone behind him who is even close to pushing him inside.

Double yikes.

In a way, today's game might be good for Lion Fan because with Peyton Manning throwing the ball around the field against the Eric Kings and Ramzee Robinsons of the world we will be a little more grounded on what this season has to offer. Buchanon or Henry will inevitably miss time throughout the year, but even with them we might experience some ugly flashbacks. I expect Cunningham will be forced to deploy the Tampa 2 with soft zones as a way of disguising inadequate cornerback play. Gunther might be prevented from putting either safety in the box very often and opposing running games might gash Detroit in the way with which we are already so familiar.

I hate to be so pessimistic, but it is hard to find the light at the end of this defense's tunnel. Not this year. But the nice thing about the glass-half-empty approach is that the Lions will have ample opportunity to prove me wrong.

Feel free to disagree with me Here, in The Den

The jumble at CB -- and who's that with the Fords?

Detroit News football writer John Niyo reports its become a sad rite of spring for the Lions in recent years -- the annual roster purge of the team's secondary.

After an historically bad performance last year, the Lions are at it again. The top four cornerbacks on last year's roster are gone, and only two of the eight in camp -- Keith Smith and Ramzee Robinson -- have been with the team longer than 10 months, Niyo writes.

Coach Jim Schwartz admits he has "a stew" at CB -- a mix of young and veteran with backgrounds in a lot of different schemes. (Feeling confident about the secondary's improvement this year yet?)

Still, things are beginning to take shape. The starting CBs look like they will be Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry, and Eric King, who was with Schwartz in Tennessee the past three years, has been making plays in practice and may be tightening his hold on a nickel back spot.

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As an odds-and-ends aside at the end of his article, Niyo notes that Wednesday's practice was attended by owner William Clay Ford, vice chairman Bill Ford Jr., and former Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi.

What's that all about? No explanation. Is Accorsi a buddy of the Fords? If that's the case, where was he during the Matt Millen era, when we needed him?

Talk about it in The Den!

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NY Times: Lions awful at choosing O-linemen, DBs

For those who grumble that preaseason stories are relentlessly positive and hopeful, I give you a rather caustic assessment of the Lions by KC Joyner, "The Football Scientist," at the New York Times' NFL blog The Fifth Down.

Joyner points out that before last season he wrote that the Lions seem to be OK to good at building certain parts of their team. (But he lists LB, D-line and RB as areas the Lions do fairly well personnel-wise, which to me lessens his credibility. Linebacker and D-line have been underperforming and thin, and beyond Kevin Smith, RB hasn't been even decent.)

But the Lions, Joyner said, can never seem to get solved their offensive line or defensive secondary. And at least the secondary should be one of the easiest personnel pieces to solve, he said, because it comes down to pure, physical talent.

Heading into 2009, Joyner said new GM Martin Mayhew does appear to have added quality to the secondary with Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry (though like many, Joyner thinks Henry may be destined for safety).

But Joyner calls Mayhew out on his approach to the O-line: "It doesn’t look as if he is approaching personnel roster stocking in this area any differently than it was approached under previous top management."

For example, the Lions ranked 31st in sacks allowed. That is bad enough, but their starting offensive linemen last year also had a combined Point of Attack (POA) run block win percentage of 79.8%. To give an idea of just how bad this is, if a single lineman put up that total in this metric, it would be a sure sign that he is a candidate for replacement.

Despite the inability to either pass block or run block with any consistency, the Lions look as if they are going to keep this line pretty much intact. The only change will be at left guard with Damion Cook taking over for Edwin Mulitalo, but Cook was on the Lions’ roster last year and doesn’t look to be much of an upgrade.

What is amazing to me is that Detroit didn’t even try to make wholesale changes here. The only offensive lineman they drafted was Nebraska offensive tackle Lydon Murtha in the seventh round. Free agency could offer some help, as former Washington right tackle Jon Jansen posted an 87.6% POA win rate with the Skins last year, but in order for him to hit the lineup, he’d have to replace last year’s No. 1 pick, Gosder Cherilus.

That could be an indication that the Lions are acknowledging that Cherilus can’t cut it, but that thought raises the question of what their front office staff looks for in linemen in the first place.

Joyner said it appears the Lions picked Cherilus in the first round in 2008 based on his size, because a breakdown of his performance showed "he never seemed to overwhelm defenders in pass blocking" despite "having a huge physical advantage over most of his competition." And that while Boston College did very little running, Cherilus in run-blocking "seemed to lack motivation and (looked like) he was trying to get by on physical talent alone."

The Lions downplayed what the tape said about Cherilus’s collegiate performance and instead said, “He’s big, wide and strong and that’s enough for us.” That mind-set gave them a guy with a 74.1% POA win rate (one of the lowest in the league not only at his position, but at any position), six false start penalties and four sacks allowed in only 13 starts.

Ouch!

Discuss in The Den!

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Niyo: 10 hot Lions topics heading into training camp

Lions writer John Niyo of the Detroit News lists 10 hot Detroit Lions topics heading into the start of training camp. I won't list them all here (follow the link to see them all), but a couple that caught my eye:

So, who are these guys, anyway? It's way too early to suggest the 2009 Lions can repeat the feat of the 2008 Dolphins. Miami rebounded from a 1-15 finish in 2007 to win the AFC East and make the playoffs last winter under rookie head coach Tony Sparano. And the key was a Bill Parcells-led purge that saw 27 new faces on the Dolphins' 53-man roster to begin last season.

Lions general manager Martin Mayhew is on a similar pace, with nearly half the players from last year's Week 1 roster (25 of 53) already gone -- and others sure to follow in the next six weeks. Mayhew has made five trades since last October, claimed seven players off waivers since the start of free agency in late February, and signed 27 new players, not including draft picks, since the end of last season. In short, he's trying to, as new head coach Jim Schwartz puts it, "take advantage of being crappy."

When you stop and quantify it like that, there really has been a lot done to try to turn over last year's awful team. Many of us were calling for a major roster overhaul to start the road back, a la the Dolphins or the Saints under Jim Haslett years ago. We sort of got that -- and like Niyo said, with more to come.

But who'll emerge as a playmaker on defense? There simply wasn't one last season, though defensive end Cliff Avril showed promise as a rookie. The Lions finished 2008 with a NFL-low four interceptions, with only one by a defensive back. Not surprisingly, the secondary is almost all new, and free-agent cornerback Phillip Buchanon, along with rookie free safety Louis Delmas (Western Michigan), will be counted on to make a big splash.

So will the revamped linebacker corps, with Julian Peterson and Larry Foote helping to free up Ernie Sims. And while the addition of Peterson, a five-time Pro Bowler, may have been the team's biggest offseason move outside of the draft, the more noticeable difference could be schematic.

The answers will all start to become clearer -- for better or worse -- very soon.

Discuss in The Den!

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Buchanon's titles: CB, Delmas Mentor

Good article on the revamped Lions secondary from Chrissie Wywrot at DetroitLions.com.

Wywrot points out that Coach Jim Schwartz has said the two units that need the most cameraderie and teamwork are offensive line and the secondary. Daniel Bullocks said the acquisition of players like CBs Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry have given the Lions a more veteran secondary. But the communication and chemistry between the older guys and the youngsters has been good.

Rookie safety Louis Delmas and veteran cornerback Phillip Buchanon are both new to the Detroit Lions this year. Buchanon was one of the team’s first free agent signings while Delmas was the club’s first defensive pick in the draft.

Buchanon has taken priority to guiding Delmas as he breaks into the NFL, schooling him on what it takes to become a professional in the league. The pair will work out together for the remainder of the offseason at the University of Miami.

“We’ll talk about some personal stuff, we’ll talk about some stuff that I think he should do, some mistakes that I made so he can actually not make those mistakes,” said Buchanon. “Then we’ll get into some football; talking and communication and stuff like that. We’re going to get our quality work in and we’re going to come back and be ready to play.”

Henry added that Delmas has been doing great, but people shouldn't forget it's a big jump from the Mid-American Conference to the pro game:

“He’s been doing a great job as far as communicating and stuff like that,” said Henry. “The certain thing that he’ll get used to as his career goes is the speed of the game. In certain situations in the red zone, the coaches are telling him to look outside and then get back to the tight end.

“Well, it’s happening so fast ... he’s doing what they’re telling him to do, but he’s not used to the reaction time. I think as it goes along, he’ll be a lot better at that.”

And one secondary who's got his colleagues raving is perhaps a surprise: Kalvin Pearson.

“Kalvin is a big-time guy,” said Buchanon. “He’s physical, he does whatever it takes and he’s somebody that you can depend on. He’s definitely a leader in my eyes; he understands the game pretty much on the same level that I do because we played together. Since we were coached by some of the same people we kind of see things the same way. I actually love playing with him. He’s a guy I can actually go to battle with.”

My take? On a historically bad team last year, the secondary was perhaps the worst unit of all. The Lions made a lot of changes that can't help but be positive. But as Schwartz has said, it's all about cohesion with the secondary. How quickly these guys can mesh together will be critical to how well the turnaround for the team goes.

Talk about it in The Den!

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New Era Scouting: Lions need 3rd RB; physical DBs

An interesting read from David Syvertsen at New Era Scouting, giving a team-by-team analysis of offensive and defensive needs of every team in the NFC North.

For the Lions, Syvertsen singles out a need for a compliment to Kevin Smith:

The future is in Matthew Stafford’s hands and the future may very well begin right away on September 13th. Keeping that in mind, the Lions are need to have a few components set in place for Stafford to succeed. Just look at what the Ravens and Falcons did in 2008 with their respective rookie quarterbacks. They pounded the football and took advantage of durable, powerful running backs. Kevin Smith and the Lions offensive line really turned it on late in the 2008 season and if they can pick up where the left off, Stafford’s transition to the NFL game will be much easier. However Smith and his record setting amount of carries in college need break here and there. Maurice Morris was signed to take some carries away but beyond him, the Lions have nobody worth giving the ball to. If they can bring in a back with some youth, their offense appears to be set for the early portion of the Stafford era.

Hey Maurice Morris ain't chopped liver. And a lot of teams' RB depth falls off after the second guy. I would say of far more concern is whether the Lions have capably filled out their WR corps to take any kind of pressure off Calvin Johnson. (And I will again say, and say forever, that it is absolutely amazing what Calvin did last year with virtually no help from his fellow WRs and with four different, not-very-good QBs throwing to him.)

As for the Lions' defensive needs, I think Syvertsen is right on the money -- Physical DBs:

When looking over the Lions depth chart and comparing it to what Jim Schwartz built in Tennessee, one has to believe he is lacking the kind of defensive backs he needs for this unit to succeed. The cornerbacks will have a tough time playing physical at the line and running downfield with their cover assignment as most of them lack the complete package. Phillip Buchanon has done a nice job reviving his career but can he play within the physical scheme Schwartz has brought in? Eric King and Anthony Henry have proven to be quality, reliable cover men but how will they do when matched up with the division’s more physical receivers? With a defense that had nowhere to go but up from a dismal 2008, the defensive backs are going to be relied upon to come up and make tackles at the edge. Outside of the oft-injured Henry, none of these starting caliber defensive backs can give you that kind of confidence outside of rookie Louis Delmas.

Our DB corps would seem to be much better. But how could they not be over last year? Whether "better" will equal "good enough," we'll soon know.

Agree or disagree with Syvertsen's assessment? Discuss in The Den!

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Eric King - nickel back, or more?

MLive's Tom Kowalski says Lions CB Eric King, despite little playing time in his career, has solidified his position as the nickel back.

But can he move into a starting role? Sayeth Killer:

King, who has only started three games in his four-year career, is a very good player on the inside, both in zone and man-to-man coverage. King, though, can be vulnerable on the outside on deep routes and that's the concern in making him a starter. King has good speed but sometimes has difficulty mirroring the receiver and locating the ball.

Even if he wins the starting cornerback spot, King would likely be the guy who would move inside in nickel with the No. 3 corner occupying one of the outside positions.

Right now, the starting corners are Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry, but the Lions are considering moving Henry to safety. That decision could hinge on whether the coaching staff believes they have a viable option at corner.

My take? However this plays out, the Lions seem to have definitely upgraded their secondary from last year -- which, whether due to talent, scheme or both, was perhaps the NFL's worst ever.

Your take? Discuss it in The Den!

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It's on now

A mandatory 3-day minicamp for the Lions begins today in Allen Park. And as Nicholas Cotsonika at Freep.com reports, the competitions for jobs begin in earnest now.

Previous weeks have been preoccupied with veterans learning the new coaching staff and its wants; rookies getting caught up; and the Lions' front office turning over to a great extent the largely atrocious roster from last year's 0-16 season.

Coach Jim Schwartz has pointed to this minicamp -- the end of the off-season program -- as the time to start making it count, Cotsonika says.

The battles won't begin in full force until camp opens in late July with the players in pads. The players will be in helmets and shorts this week. No hitting.

Things I'm looking to see:

1. How much do OLs Ephraim Salaam and Jon Jansen have left in them? Enough to push Gosder or even Backus? Or at least to be very strong backups? The problems last year weren't just Backus' and Gosder's inconsistency. It was a lack of quality depth, the inability to rotate in effective players as the starters got tired. If Salaam and Jansen show something -- even if they don't unseat the starters -- the Lions might have a much better rotation available to them in the second halves of games this season.

2. How much better will the Lions' secondary be this year? (It can't be much worse.) With two new CBs -- Phillip Buchanon and Anthony Henry -- and highly touted rookie S Louis Delmas.

3. Will one of the veteran WRs -- Bryant Johnson or Ronald Curry -- emerge as a legitimate threat on the other side of Calvin? It's incredible what Megatron accomplished last season with no other Lion receiver seriously taking any pressure or attention off of him.

Discuss in The Den!

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SI writer: Lions on road to respectability

Sports Illustrated.com football writer Damon Hack has a column called "Spoiler Alerts" in which he looks ahead to the 2009 season, arguing against conventional wisdom. And while the expectation is that the Lions won't sniff .500 this year, Hack's "spoiler alert" is that they will be vastly improved. "New coach Jim Schwartz need only look south to Atlanta to see what a first-year head coach and rookie quarterback can do together. Winning doesn't come easy in the NFL, but it can come quickly," Hack states. He later adds:

Like the Miami Dolphins after their one-win 2007 season, the Lions have turned over their roster in an attempt to shed the remnants from their winless season. (Heck, they even created a new logo!) Linebacker Julian Peterson and defensive tackle Grady Jackson are instant upgrades. The secondary looks better, too, with Phillip Buchanon, Anthony Henry and Eric King, who played under Schwartz in Tennessee. We're years away from a parade here, but maybe only a few months from respectability.

And he didn't even mention Larry Foote. Agree? Disagree? To The Den with it!

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