The Lions WANT YOU BACK

The Lions, moreso than any time in recent history, are appealing to their fans.  According to Nick Cotsonika of the Free Press, yesterday the Lions sent an email to former season ticket holders, saying they "WANT YOU BACK".  It invited those who'd cancelled their season tickets--from all the way back to 2002--to an exclusive minicamp session on the 24th.

It's quite interesting to see the continuing committment that the Lions' leadership has shown to the fans . . . of course, the cynical person says, "that's because they want the money", and that's certainly true.  However, it would be one thing to run some ill-advised TV spots and call it a day--it's quite another to hold town all meetings, send personal letters from the head coach, and hold exclusive practice sessions . . . after decades of not only not reaching out to fans, but practically bending over backwards to spite them, the Lions are now working overtime to mend fences.

Whether these measures result in more season-ticket packages being sold or not, no one can say.  However, if it took forty years of mediocre capped by ten years of absolutely wretched to drive the fans away, these outreach measures--plus a little bit of winning--should at least melt the ice encasing many fans' hearts.

Discuss it here, in The Den!

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Jared Devries' seventh "fresh start"

Nick Cotsonika over at the Free Press has written an interesting little post about both the forgotten man, Jared DeVries--the only Lion (not named Jason Hanson) who's seen Millen come and go--and the new defensive alignment.

"You get down to it, it's the total opposite," DeVries said. "Instead of making the corners make the tackles, you make the linebackers make the tackles."

When he puts it that way, it makes an awful lot of sense.  The new ends-wide alignment should cut down on the screens, pitches, and bounce-outs that the Lions have had chronic difficulty slowing in recent years.  Often, the DTs would disrupt or penerate on running plays, only to have the DEs be easily sealed off or blocked down; the runner could make one quick adjustment and get into the second level untouched.  Regardless of the tremendous amount of sense the philosophy switch makes, I think doing "the total opposite" of what the worst defense of all time did is at least a good starting point. Discuss it here, in The Den!

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Lions add even more beef up front; but where?

With Nick Cotsonika's report that the Lions have signed OT Ephraim Salaam, there are even more questions about the Lions' offensive line.  The 6'-7", 310-pounder was most recently with the Houston Texans--who made him expendable when they drafted his replacement, Duane Brown, in the first round of the 2008 draft.  Salaam visited back in early April, but didn't make a decision at the time.  The timing of this announcement is interesting; did someone's performance at the OTAs prompt the Lions to give Salaam another call, or were they just waiting for him to make up his mind?

The question becomes, "what happens to Jeff Backus?"  Many were anxious to see the Lions draft an elite franchise left tackle with the #1 overall pick, or possibly the #20 if Michael Oher fell that far; then move Backus to fill the hole at left guard.  Could Salaam displace Backus at left tackle?  Unlikely; Salaam is a journeyman veteran; he's older than Backus and has never been an elite player.  More likely, he's being brought in to compete with George Foster for the backup swing tackle position.

Discuss it here, in The Den!

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Follett finished with school, but just starting education

When Larry Foote was asked about how he was handling the transition from from a 3-4 ILB to a 4-3 MLB, he said, "I had my first meeting with the linebacker coach, and we put in a couple of the base defenses and it was similar to some of the stuff that we did at Pittsburgh.  My mind wasn't as lost as the other guy who was next to me."  Foote declined at the time to mention who that other guy was--but now, we can guess.  Nick Cotsonika of the Detroit Free Press has posted an article about rookie OLB Zack Follett, who's still trying to wrap his head around Gunther Cunningham's playbook.  Follett's not stupid--his woodworking skills reveal a creative brain--but thanks to NFL rules and Cal's academic schedule, today is the first day he's allowed to formally work out with the team.  After struggling in minicamp, he's already a couple of days behind on the OTAs.  Still, if he can keep his head above water, Follett's straight-line speed, playmaking ability, and love of the big hit make him an excellent fit for this defense.

Discuss this in The Den!

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