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Why do the Detroit Lions suck?

Snail Shell

Snail Shell

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I know this topic is a no-brainer for most, but bear with me. I'm not a fan of pro football and I keep sports on in the background for noise while I'm drawing. I typically watch hockey, so that's what I'm basing this on.

In hockey, every team ebbs and flows up and down the standings.

A few seasons ago, the Pittsburgh Penguins finished last in the league twice in a row. Now they have back-to-back Stanley Cup appearences. The Chicago Blackhawks were bottom-rung a few seasons ago. Now they're the favourite to win it all this year.

On the other hand, the Carolina Hurricanes made the conference championship last season. This season, they're last in the league. The Detroit Red Wings have been the dominant team in the league for the last 15 years. This season, they may not make the playoffs. Every team ebbs and flows.

Is the NFL that much different from the NHL that the Detroit Lions just can't ebb up the rankings? For as long as I've had an ear, albeit distracted, on football, they've been terrible. What's the deal, exactly? Are they having a time at the bottom to restructure or have they just always been bad?

Thanks for helping adhere football to a puny Canadian brain.

Snail Shell
 
Well Snail the problem with the Lions right now is this...Matt Millen was the GM of this team from 2001-2008. His drafts and his terrible moves took an okay franchise and just flushed it down the toilet. Now this team had a draft in 2009 without Millen. Now they will draft again without him.

This team is showing progress and that is all you can ask from a franchise that has been flushed down the toilet. The Detroit Lions will contend in probably 2013. Figuring that this team builds slowly and stays healthy through the process...this team should be ready to go into contending mode in about three to four years. Living with a fan of the Lions this has been a tough watch for the last five years. It will be nice to have Sadira see a winning team again.
 
Gotcha. So, they were a decent team at one point. I was listening to this and going, "Huh. Were they ever good?"

That makes sense though.

Snail Shell
 
The Lions had one of the greatest players in NFL history in the 90's with running back Barry Sanders. If you've never seen this guy play, look up some clips of him on youtube. He was one of the most exciting players to watch that I've ever seen...and I'm not a Lions fan, just to clear that up. The Lions made the playoffs many of the years Sanders played, but they didn't have enough talent around him to win a Super Bowl. Their offensive line was average at best. I don't think there's a player like him in the NFL today. Chris Johnson from the Titans might be the closest thing to Sanders right now. If you put Barry Sanders with the Cowboys offensive line in the 90's, he would have shattered every rushing record in NFL history. Sanders actually retired while he was still at or near the top of his game because he was tired of the losing attitude of the Lions organization and he saw no signs that the team was trying to improve. That pretty much just sums the Lions organization up right there.
 
Definently. The Lions were somewhat respectable with Barry Sanders. They were a game away from the Super Bowl in 1991 and haven't won a game since. They didn't even appear in a playoff game between 2000-2009.

There's the same ebb-and-flow in the NFL, it's just that certain teams are ebbing when they should be flowing. Front office mistakes have held them back for a while. Maybe things will change with the new management.
 
ticklingfeet4fu said:
Well Snail the problem with the Lions right now is this...Matt Millen was the GM of this team from 2001-2008. His drafts and his terrible moves took an okay franchise and just flushed it down the toilet.
Click to expand...

This, right here.

Charles Rogers, Roy Williams, Mike Williams.

Three WR's, three years in a row, all three washouts in Mo-town.

Throw in Millen's other draft picks and you've got your answer.

But don't worry too much, because this team is finally moving on and turning it around. Stafford looks legit (he had a good year considering what he had to work with) and if they keep Calvin Johnson, they have alot of potential.
 
Matt Millen-one of the dumbest sons of bitches ever to gain access to a front office, certainly did his damage- but the malaise had set in long before he arrived.

The Lions were THE team of the 1950s. Several times, they played their arch-rival Cleveland Browns for the NFL championship, in an era that was exciting even before the TV contract. The last championship came in 1957 (the last year for the Dodgers and Giants in New York, but that's a story for another day), and Detroit slowly went into eclipse. After the retirement of Alex Karras, it was like, crickets, until Sanders arrived.

It's been a long time already. I think it's a disgrace.
 
The Lions are just a crappy team in a crappy division. Their draft picks have been pretty horrible and they haven't really made any progress.

The entire division that they play in NFC north is pretty bad and usually not in contention with anyone but themselves. The biggest thing that put any of the four teams (Bears, Packers, Vikings, Lions) in sort of spotlight is probably Brett Favre. Maybe Lions should trade for Favre or Cutler. heh.
 
tkpatience said:
The Lions are just a crappy team in a crappy division. Their draft picks have been pretty horrible and they haven't really made any progress.

The entire division that they play in NFC north is pretty bad and usually not in contention with anyone but themselves. The biggest thing that put any of the four teams (Bears, Packers, Vikings, Lions) in sort of spotlight is probably Brett Favre. Maybe Lions should trade for Favre or Cutler. heh.
Click to expand...

Haven't made progress? Obviously you aren't paying any attention.
 
2 for 16 is better than 0 for 16, but last time I checked it's not a winning record. The Bears didn't have a winning record either. I'm waiting to see the Vikings (Last team in the division) to get defeated by another team. That would make this year like any other year.
 
tkpatience said:
2 for 16 is better than 0 for 16, but last time I checked it's not a winning record. The Bears didn't have a winning record either. I'm waiting to see the Vikings (Last team in the division) to get defeated by another team. That would make this year like any other year.
Click to expand...

The Lions have made great progress. They are a younger team. They address defensive issues and stay healthy...this team can get better fast. They have made progress. Their first move was moving Matt Millen out of there. That was 8 years of stentch this team NEEDED to get rid of. Improvement is a gradual progress. It takes time.


Winning records don't necessarily translate to progress. The Steelers were Super Bowl Champions last year. They finished this year at 9-7. They had a winning record, did they make progress?
 
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