I also want to take full responsibility for this horrible excuse of a game, team, etc. I am a very superstitious guy. Maybe I'm not "never change your socks during a winning streak" obsessive, but I do believe wholeheartedly in "the jinx." When a kicker lines up for the 45 yard FG and the announcer says "so-and-so has been automatic all year for his team. He hasn't missed yet this year." Inevitably, that kicker will miss. Or at least have a much higher percentage chance of missing. I don't have any stats to back me up on this, just 30 years of watching all level of football to fall back on.
"So-and-so has gone 130+ pass attempts without throwing a pick. That's why this team has won three in a row." Is directly to blame for "So-and-so" will throw 3 picks today.
Again, no statistical evidence...just know it. This really boils down to the same thing as the "Madden Curse" and "sophomore slumps" and the "SI cover jinx." It is more of a mounting of pressure, whether conscious or sub-conscious, which effects the player.
So why do I bring this up?
Because I jinxed the Lions Sunday morning. And, apparently I did a great job of it.
At 2 a.m, Sunday morning, 3 pitchers in, my out of town friend started to talk about how the Lions had pretty much killed all of his interest in the NFL and that he was teaching his children to be Giants fans, if they were going to be any kind of fan, since they now lived in NY/NJ.
Normally, I would applaud his effort to save his children from years of unnecessary pain and suffering which the Lions are prone to induce, but on this night, as I tried to eat something called a "hooburito," I thought I'd defend the hometown team for the billionth time.
"The Lions will be good again, and it'll be sooner than you think."
That's what I said. After watching all the highlights, reading the gamebook and several articles about the game, I'm more than a little embarrassed. First, that I said it at all. Second, that I jinxed the Leos. And apparently it was a doozy of a jinx.
My logic was sound, albeit misguided. The premise of my argument was "How is a team supposed to be built?" And invariably the answer is always the same, through the draft.
And how did the Lions draft this year, in Martin Mayhew/Jim Schwartz's first year? It looked pretty good. 6 of 7 picks are still with the team. The seventh was stolen by Bill Parcells. All 6 have played, 5 have had major roles. That is unheard of.
Until you realize that those players didn't beat out proven vets to play. They played because the Lions don't have anybody else. It's very misleading. This team is so far away from just being mediocre, it's sad.
1. Kevin Smith is admirable and now he's gone too. He plays with heart, but he can't break tackles and he doesn't have the top end speed to finish. Maurice Morris will step in now that Smith is most likely going to the IR and I don't believe there will be much of a drop off. Hopefully, Aaron Brown will get more opportunities and he can convince himself he might be good enough to be an every down player.
2. Daunte Culpepper thinks he should be a starter in the NFL. Good luck. It'll never happen. No team is bad enough to let you start full-time, not even the Lions.
3. The Detroit Lions took Jordan Dizon instead of Ray Rice. Just one more thing that I think says a lot about Matt Millen. 13 rushes, 166 yards. 12+ yards per carry. The Lions can't defend the run or the pass.
4. Joe Flacco had a 120 QB rating. Good to see things getting back to normal.
5. Louis Delmas also went down with an ankle injury, whereas Smith is almost assuredly going to IR. The Lions will take a few days to evaluate their best player on defense.
6. Most people are trying hard not to say the Lions "quit" in this game, but they did. Jim Schwartz insinuated that he'll be looking hard at the game tape and probably cutting players who quit. He needs to make sure those are not empty words. I think the Lions could gut the whole middle of this team and replace them with practice squad players from around the league. Play kids, see if you can find any diamonds in the rough. Because it can't get any rougher than what Baltimore, a team on the outside of the bubble for the playoffs, did to the Lions.
7. Cleveland beat Pittsburgh on Thursday primarily using a RB that they pulled off the streets named Chris Jennings. The guy ran fast, with power, anger and a chip on his shoulder. It was fun to watch. The Lions need to be looking too.
8. But it is very unlikely they're going to find a whole lot of OL and 300+ lb DT's. Those guys just don't grow on trees. Jimmy Johnson, on the Fox post game show, stated that you have to get your DL in the first round. He knew a thing or two about building teams.
Cheerleaders?
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Just a little something to help my readers as we continue to suffer under the tyranny of the Ford's and their incomprehensible aversion to professional dance teams.
Currently only six of the NFL's 32 franchises have chosen to go without the all important cheer brigades--Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Green Bay, Detroit, Chicago, and the New York Giants.
3rd and 3 or less
Just like every other aspect of "football" the Lions were so incredibly inept at on Sunday, they were also pretty bad on 3rd and 3 or less. This week they followed the rule of 3rd and 3 or less, which states that "it is better to have rushed and failed than never to have rushed at all." Or something like that. On Sunday the Lions were 2 of 5 rushing in the situation and 0 of 1 passing. For the season, the numbers still bear out. 12 of 18 rushing and 9 of 21 passing.
Tales of the Inept
The Cleveland Brown (2-11) managed to beat the defending SuperBowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, 13-6, behind a spirited effort by Chris Jennings and Brady Quin. They still, due to strength of schedule have a higher pick than the Leos.
The St. Louis Rams (1-12), a team that beat the Lions, is currently lined up for the #1 pick. They lost in Lion-esque fashion to the once 0-6 Tennessee Titans, 47-7.
The Tampa Bay Buccanneers (1-12) lost to the New York Jets, 26-3, who sat the Sanchize, Mark Sanchez.
PS Stay away from anything called a "Hooburito," it's not good for your judgment or your lower intestines.
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