With all of the crap people, and myself included have given the Lions ownership/management, this is a sad day for the organization and Detroit.
Please keep this thread classy.
Ilitch is the only longtime Detroit pro sports owner left.
RIP Bill Davidson & W.C. Ford
I don't think Ilitch will be around that much longer either. He wasn't even at the Lidstrom retirement ceremony which probably means he's in pretty poor health.
medical procedure which is why he missed Lidstrom's retirement. Supposedly the porcedure went well and he is doing well. I hope this is the case.
Such class.
I send my thoughts and prayers to his family. I just wanted to point to the fact that being a great man doesn't mean he was a great owner. When I die my buddies will not call me a great athlete just because I am dead. They will joke about how bad I was. I wouldn't have it any other way.
I will go back to ripping on Tom Crean, Al Borges, and Tom Izzo now like the rest of the board. Should I also start ripping on 17 year old recruits because that is more acceptable?
I said he was a great man especially to the entire city of Detroit. Being called a great man by people who never met you probably means he did a lot of good in his life.
He loved the city, his employees, and his organization. However, he still was a bad owner by the numbers and moves.The city will still miss him. I am sorry if my factual statement was seen as disrespectful.
I admit the timing may have been disrespectful. Just curious though...the comment wasn't disrespectful yesterday and won't be tomorrow?
I agree and apologize for any offenses. Some other posters below conveyed the same message I tried a little better.
But hey, at least you're here to point out very disrespectful things at a very inappropriate time and then continue to defend it! Kudos to you for your bravery and class.
that you were telling any of us something we didn't already know?
No one. You were refuting a statement no one made.
"I just wanted to point to the fact that being a great man doesn't mean he was a great owner"
It didn't need to be said.
I learned more about you than I did him with your post...what I learned is at best forgettable
Why the hell would you point out a man's failures on the day he passes?
I'd prefer to remember him for his good intentions. This was a guy that bought the Lions because he thought the group of owners weren't doing enough to be successful.
the board a few days ago. With posts like that, I predict you NEVER get into positive territory. Your screen name should have been "Sub Zero" like the hockey dude in Marathon Man.
How about you try to run a team while the auto industry is slipping away from you.... and then have Nixon take us off the gold standard and really crush the auto industry........ I'd like to see how you'd have done....
FACT is that the Fords are GREAT people, and Detroit folk including Lions fans, are very unappreciative of them... the fans deserve a losing team, in that light.
RIP Ford Sr.
Sad day for the city.
The curse is lifted!! No but prayers to his family
It is the end of a era. Good man never heard a ill word about his charchter or integrity.
Ford Sr was a bridge to a time when his family helped Detroit become the 4th largest city in the US and a cultural center as well. It is a very sad day for Detroiters.
its rather symbolic of the state of Detroit...
prayers to his family and all that jazz...
My condolences to the family. That said, hopefully the curse has been lifted and we can now go and win a Super Bowl!
(eye roll)
The only thing 'bad' that he did was not hiring people that would make a sports team win more. I use the word 'bad' lightly since it's sports. It really doesn't matter. His multitude of other positive impacts for Detroit and Michigan clearly overshadow any imaginary slight negative impact from owning the Lions.
It's not as if WCF lived a bad life. The Lions sucked while he was owner. That's really about all there is. Can you tell me what evil things he did that merit a badmouthing?
And people saying he was a "terrible owner" are using W/L record as their only criterion - time and time again the people who actually worked for him have said how terrific it was to do so. Some owners are reviled by their players and employees as nasty old skinflints. WCF was exactly the opposite.
William Clay Ford will always be associated, sadly, with a futile half-century of NFL football in Detroit. A good man. But GMs eluded him.
The fact that Lynn Henning says something that you agree with does not make you right. It makes him as big a dick as you're being.
Sorry if "a futile half-century of football" is your definition of evil.
Just like the Brown family in Cincy. His employees may like him, but that doesn't mean he made the right hires. That means he's a nice person who made bad personnel decisions. That's how I will have to remember him from a football standpoint.
Under his watch, possibly the greatest running back ever walked away from the sport because he was tired of the losing atmosphere.
He allowed Matt Millen to happen...for seven season.
of a long session of introspection.
As the last living grandchild of Henry Ford, WCF was a big part of the Ford family legacy in Detroit for many years. I really hope the Ford family continues to own the Lions. I think Bill Jr. would do a very good job running the team if he were interested. Time will tell.