Marinelli's Lions Still in Trouble
Detroit Football Coach Faces Steep Challenges in Upcoming Weeks
Detroit Lions coach Rod Marinelli has an extra week to assess the five-game performance of his football team. Too bad he doesn’t have time to find a Pro Bowl running back. He could sure use one.
The Lions were 3-13 last season and have gotten off to a 3-2 start, which has Marinelli convinced that he has a good football team and has players like quarterback Jon Kitna predicting a 10-win season in the Detroit newspapers.
Time will tell if the Lions are for real or if it's the same old song.
It looks more like 6-10 or 7-9
The Lions don’t appear any better than a 6-10 or 7-9 team, if they’re lucky. That would still give them their best record in seven seasons, so that kind of a record isn’t anything to take lightly.
The offense still doesn’t have the running back it needs to give Detroit the consistent running attack required to have a dangerous offense. Kitna has proven to be a capable quarterback, whenever he gets sufficient protection, which isn’t often.
Kevin Jones continues to have been plagued with injury problems at running back. Other Lions trying to carry the ball haven’t done much better. Ever since running back Barry Sanders left the team in disgust seven years ago — frustrated with the mediocrity surrounding him — Detroit has struggled big-time to have a decent running attack.
Until Detroit picks a highly-touted running back or gets one via free agency, all the defenses on the other side have to do is focus all of its resources on stopping the passing game to hold down the Lions.
But running backs like T.J. Duckett, who played his college football at Michigan State, remain optimistic.
"I'm excited about it," Duckett said in an interview with NFLHS.com in August. "This is a good team and I want to be a part of it."
Johnson might be the answer
Wide receiver has been a strong position for Detroit, but not much thanks to highly-touted No. 2 draft pick Calvin Johnson, who hurt his back in the third game and has seen limited action. The Lions seem to have a knack for drafting high quality wide receivers who turn out to be busts.
Sure, the Lions have three wins. It is encouraging that they have a road win even if it’s against the lowly Oakland Raiders. The Lions beat Minnesota and Chicago at home, but the Vikings and Bears would have beaten anyone the way they played. But the Bears did beat Green Bay at home so the Lions have to get credit for having defeated Chicago at Ford Field.
But as the Lions enjoy the bye week, the coaching staff needs to realize plenty of work needs to be done. In their three wins, the Lions had 11 sacks and nine interceptions. But there were no interceptions and just three sacks in the losses. Detroit remains one of the worst pass rushing defenses in the league. The defense needs plenty of work.
Philadephia and Washington demonstrated that it’s the same old Lions when they shellacked Detroit on their home fields.
Fiasco on the road
The Lions haven’t played Green Bay yet and they still have the hardest part of their schedule coming up. Their last two fiascos on the road indicate that this is a team unlikely to win any more road games.
Many fans think the Lions are good enough and the NFC is weak enough to allow Detroit to win a playoff spot. It’s possible, but still a long shot. In the meantime, if the Lions can come up with a Pro Bowl running back somewhere, they could be championship material. But that’s an awfully big “if.”
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