OT: Lions Uncaged
Well I just returned home from the Detroit Lions practice at Ford Field and I thought I would share my un-expert opinion.
First off, I had a great seat, sitting front row on the 50 yard line.
Few observations:
1. Stafford is so much more polished looking this year.
2. Burleson was one of his main targets all day. Most balls thrown to CJ were deep balls, but the touch is definately there.
3. Chris Houston made an outstanding play to break up a deep ball catch on CJ. Other than him, the secondary looked weak (Delmas was in street clothes)
4. It's obvious that Kyle Vanden Bosch is the leader of the DL, which, by the way, looked very good. The addition of Corey Williams was a good one for a 4-3 D and Cliff Avril looked okay too.
5. Timmy Toone was getting cheered all day. He also burned a corner badly for a TD in the 1-on-1 drills.
6. Jahvid Best makes defenders look foolish in space. He put a nasty move on Suh at one point.
7. The OL was doubling Suh all day. Speaking of them, the OL does look better than last year.
8. A little worried about the LB's outside of Peterson, though Levy didn't participate. Caleb Cambell, also a LB now, is a HUGE man.
9. We are going to have some of the top TE production in the NFL.
10. Drew Stanton looked awful. Thank God they got Shaun Hill as a #2 now. All those people saying Stanton just needs a chance to play and prove himself are wrong. Practice is your chance and his balls had no touch, and he frequently missed open WRs.
Nothing earth shattering here, but good to actually witness a bit of the hype I've been hearing about. Should be an exciting year, and I really think this team is onto something for the future.
Not saying Stanton would have ever been a fulltime Sunday starter, but he had a good amount of potential coming in. An unpolished player like Stanton needs some stability when he gets in the league to help him develop and this is the first year he's had a returning offensive coordinator I believe. I kinda feel bad for him, even though he's a sparty :P
Definitely some good news there. I think this team is starting to turn around. I think Stafford will be a special player, and I think Best has a good skill set as long as he can stay healthy. I'm guessing since Suh was doubled all day that he didn't have much production, or am I wrong? I think the addition of Burleson will work out and the TE play should be much improved. Overall, this is the first time I've actually been excited about where this team could go. I don't think they will do great things this year, but they could turn into a decent organization.
but I'm honestly not that worried about Suh right now. The DL is definately the best position group on the team when you think about it. Corey Williams and KVB are both Pro Bowlers. Avril, Suh, Sammie Lee Hill....not bad man...not bad. The others can help take pressure off Suh to dominate right away.
I'm sorry, but even if they looked better they're still one of the worst in the nfl. Did anyone else notice how often Stafford was under pressure last year?
August 7th, 2010 at 10:55 PM ^
of Sims at left gaurd and Stafford understanding the offense better this should be atleast average NFL line. They should have a better run game and some serious recieving weapons so that should cut down on the blitzing which will automatically make the offensive line and give Stafford more time.
***Optimism***
Stafford threw a lot of his passes with a pistol formation. The D had a lot of trouble stopping him on it.
He was drafted 22nd overall by the DETROIT LIONS. If that doesn't instantly validate his potential then I don't know what does...
August 7th, 2010 at 11:21 PM ^
A head of David Harris..
August 7th, 2010 at 11:49 PM ^
He was 43rd overall (i.e., early second round). Still too high, though. I'd have been fine with it if they'd picked him in the fourth or fifth.
Restore the Roar, Another One Bites the Dust, and the Silver rush. Lions top out at 8-8 will be the suprise of the league. Go Lions
I will be pretty satisfied with the 2010 off-season moves/2010 season results and will be VERY pumped for 2011.
If the Lion's go 8-8 I'll run through the streets naked
August 7th, 2010 at 10:41 PM ^
Me too!
If UM goes 5-7 again, I think they'll have more wins than the Lions. I don't think the Lions improvement is going to show in the win column. I feel good about this team and where its headed, but they also have one of the toughest schedules. They could go 2-14 again and still be significantly better. The only teams I see us having an advantage against are the Bucs, St. Louis, and maybe Buffalo. . Everyone else is significantly better than the Lions. I think the Lions get between 2 and 6 wins. I think UM gets 7 wins.
must not have hope...must not have hope...must not have hope...
You have learned well, young Jedi.
Lions picked up Stanton over LaMarr Woodley, just so sad that we missed out on him for someone who can't even be considered a decent back-up that they took in the 2nd rd.
I mean, look at some of the picks the lions made over the past several years (especially the Millen years). We could start a whole thread on shitty moves by Lions GMs in my lifetime that would break 100 posts.
The Stanton pick always felt like a grab for local fans, since anyone who watched Stanton play knew he wasn't a sure thing as even a backup. Woodley, on the other hand, at least produced consistently in college.
August 7th, 2010 at 10:32 PM ^
Let's not forget that David Harris was available as well. That's 2 other stud locals that have turned out to be amongst the best at their position in the NFL while we have Stanton. Heck, we had 3 second rounders that year and we ended up with Stanton, Ikaiki Alama Francis and Gerald Alexander. 2 of which are no longer with the team and Stanton will surely not be resigned when his contract is up.
I'd say it's pretty good when you're getting production from Mr. Irrelevant.
The first game against the Bears will be very interesting I think. Chicago talk-radio has been putting it in the win column all summer, although they"re pretty much putting the Super Bowl in the win column too (I've never seen a fan base so deluded by some questionable off-season moves...Mike Martz and a completely un-motivated Julius Peppers are suddenly going to put your team over the top, really???) I think it could be a decent match-up for the Lions though, yes our secondary sucks but so do the Bears receivers, and it's not like Martz is going to attempt to establish the run so our D-line should be able to tee off on Cutler. If the Lions manage to get some early points on the board and force the Bears to play from behind I think they can take it. Then again, maybe I'm the most deluded fan in the NFL to think the Lions can beat anybody on the road...I guess that's August for you!
Good call on the Chicago sports radio. I have had the misfortune many times to listen to it, and many times I have had to ask myself "Did I just step into an alternate universe?". I mean, you're talking about the same Bears, right? The same Cubs? That old George Wendt, Mike Meiers, etc. Ditka skit just about encapsulates the general Chicago sports fan paradigm.
August 7th, 2010 at 10:23 PM ^
us Lions Fans are deluded just by fact that we believe that the Lions are an NFL team. That said I stand by my pick Lions 8-8. deluded me thinks so
August 7th, 2010 at 10:35 PM ^
delusional
August 7th, 2010 at 11:04 PM ^
can BEGIN to turn it around.
August 7th, 2010 at 11:40 PM ^
August 8th, 2010 at 12:33 AM ^
More than two wins! More than two wins!
While I would rather the Lions win than lose, I can't say I'm a die-hard fan. Michigan athletics consume any fan energy I have. That said, I have a lot of friends who are as hard core as they come, and if they could win even five or six games this year, it would bring such joy to their lives. I feel like they've played the role of Tiny Tim the last few years, just holding on to whatever hope they can find. Maybe this year is the year Scrooge decides to buy them a Christmas turkey.
Although we couldn't see his name as it was obscured by his dreads. The Lions have a lot of dreads this year, including the incredibly rare albino dreads of Tim Toone.
That's all the extra analysis I've got, as the OP had the same vantage point as I did from the seat next to me.
I think the Lions will replace Stanton at #3 before the season starts. They'll pick up someone.
I like Shaun Hill, they are in much better shape with him as backup.
If they stay healthy I think they can go 6-10.
February 15th, 2011 at 1:47 AM ^
cuz i remembered making it, but not what i wrote. Good call, sir. Good call