Wembley 2014

LIONS @ Falcons
Wembley Stadium, London, 2014 

Once the Falcons had been announced as one of the three host teams for the 2014 International Series game at Wembley the rumours that the Lions would be their opponents soon followed. Today those rumours have been confirmed and the Lions will indeed be coming to Wembley in 2014

It's great news for all those of us that have followed the Lions from this side of the Atlantic and as information comes through this site will continue to update and comment.

Week Two

LIONS @ Cardinals

After a first half in which they repeatedly found ways to beat themselves the Lions turned the second half of last weeks opener to the 2013 NFL season into a glimpse of what this team could do this season. The Cardinals showed that they were more than they were anticipated by many to be by running a talented Rams team very close in St Louis. They meet now in Arizona's home opener and the hosts may well be looking to last season as an encouraging sign of what to expect. That 38-10 defeat was pretty comprehensive and one suspects it took much of the off-season for the stadia staff to dispel the place of the whiff of Matt Stafford such was the extent to which he stunk out the joint in that game. The frustration, or perhaps it's a joy, of following the Lions is you never really now what to expect from them.

Week One

The Verdict

It's always good to start the season with a win, especially when it's achieved against a divisional rival. The game itself probably encapsulated much of what we can expect from the Lions this season and that is why my biggest issue with the seasons opener is with Coach Schwartz's comments post game.

Schwartz's refusal to apologise for the indiscipline of his team because they'd won says much about why discipline is even an issue with them. There can be no argument that three is talent littered throughout the Lions, both on and off the field, but if that talent is as good as it believes itself to be is another matter. It's a fine line between self confidence and arrogance and for Coach Schwartz he appears to have been drifting from the former to the latter throughout his tenure in Motown. 

Week One

Vikings @ LIONS

With this being Week One optimism for a successful season ahead should be high. A 3-1 Pre-Season record for the Lions should not be dismissed purely on the basis that 'pre-season games don't count' but nor should we be blind to the danger signs that were evident n those four games either. The quote that kept running through my mind as I watched the Lions pre-season was "those that fail to learn from the mistakes of the past are bound to repeat them". I hope I'm wrong but I think we are in for very few surprises this season in how the Lions approach games and as in the past two seasons we will be competitive to a point. If I allow myself to be optimistic then I can see a ceiling of 10/11 wins and a possible play-off victory but no more. If I get despondent then I can see a repeat of last season and therefore another classic Lions season. 

The opener against the Vikings will provide a good indicator of where the season is headed. The Vikings 2012 season was similar in many ways to the Lions 2011 season and many are tipping them to have a similar drop off to the Lions following a winning season. The Lions meanwhile, as you'd expect, are making all the right noises about how this season will be different because '(insert reason)'. The off-season moves both in Free Agency and the Draft have been encouraging without really being accompanied by the wow factor and that may well be a good thing as it could indicate solidity rather than flash. I'm interested to see how this opening game plays out and find myself very firmly on the fence between optimism and pessimism. 

Reasons to be Cheerful

1) The Defensive Line looks like it could be the best in the league and capable of winning games on its own. The Defense looks set up to be much more solid against the run which means if the opposition is forced to throw a lot they then make it a game of how long they can keep their QB upright. 

2) Reggie Bush is what Jahvid Best may have become so the offensive game plan has its feature multi use back. This should allow for a better balance of offensive play calls and keep the opposition guessing. Joique Bell has also continued to improve so this could well be the most potent Lions run game for some while.

3) Special Teams looks like it won't be the burden it has been in the past. Given the close nature of so many of our games over the last couple of seasons it's not hard to envisage that having regularly better field position having a positive effect on our win column.

Reasons to be Fearful

1) Matthew Stafford just doesn't look to have developed as we would have hoped after his 2011 season. There were worrying signs in 2012 and these were clearly evident throughout the pre-season. The 2012 version of Matt Stafford does not get this team close to the playoffs irrespective of how good others in the offense perform. Just ask Calvin.

2) Despite another overhaul the Secondary looks as vulnerable as it ever did and the way the Lions appear to grab waived corners suggests that the team are not fully convinced by the group they've assembled either. If the D-Line fail to exert sufficient pressure on the opposition QB then this group could be badly exposed.

3) Aside from a few new faces among the supporting cast, both on and off the field, where some are stronger than what was here before and some are weaker this is essentially the same team that we went into the past two seasons with. Schwartz has stuck to his beliefs and, importantly, has retained his two principal co-ordinators believing continuity is the key to success. I'm not convinced last seasons failings can be excused away as being the result of key individual errors and the negative influence of a bad apple wide receiver.

The Vikings may not be able to fully test all the elements I've listed but I think they'll have enough about them for this to be a close game. I'm hoping that home field makes the difference and the Lions get off with a win. As for the season I think momentum will be the key on how it pans out. If they win a couple of the close ones (like this Vikings game) belief could see them get on a roll and make the playoffs but at this point I'm leaning ever so slightly to the glass being half empty and so see a 7-9 record. This may be enough for Schwartz to hang on to his job but I would think he could only do that if he were ready to be bold about cutting adrift Linehan and Cunningham. 

Prediction: Vikings 16 LIONS 20

Off Season Musings #2

On The Field

The main moves of Free Agency have taken place and after them the Lions appear a stronger team than before them. The key additions were Reggie Bush at Running Back, Glover Quin at Safety and D-Lineman Jason Jones while the headline losses were that of O-Lineman Gosder Cherilus to the Colts, Defensive End Cliff  Avril to the Seahawks, Linebacker Justin Durant to the Cowboys and Defensive Tackle Sammie Lee Hill to the Titans. It doesn't seem as if the Lions were too fussed about losing Durant, Cherilus or Avril and were resigned to losing Hill as he sought more playing time. There was also the retirement of long time starting Left Tackle Jeff Backus to add to the earlier departures of Titus Young Snr, Kyle Vanden Bosch and Stephen Peterman. The most significant Free Agents they retained were all on the defensive side of the ball with former 3rd round pick Linebacker DeAndre Levy returning along with Secondary stars Chris Houston at Cornerback and Louis Delmas at Safety. Of the Free Agents yet to find a home only Lawrence Jackson remains as a possibility to return.

Off Season Musings #1

Off The Field

From the absolute depth of a 0-16 season the progression curve was supposed to be upward and up until last season it was. The 2011 roster had returned relatively unscathed and whilst some anticipated a slight regression in form most were predicting continued progression in 2012 with another tilt at the playoffs come January. If doubts had been expressed about Coach Schwartz or GM Martin Mayhew before the 2012 season they tended not to come from Lions fans or the local beat writers that make their living following the team. If there were any mutterings at all then they tended to be from fans not entirely convinced by the performance of Schwartz's Co-Ordinators. The regression to a 4-12 season though put everyone's performance under the microscope and for Schwartz and Mayhew, in particular, the scrutiny was intense.

Whilst there were probably questions raised at the highest level about whether to retain GM & HC I doubt that these questions prompted too much discussion. There is much to be said for continuity of personnel in key management positions and it's no coincidence that successful teams have this and unsuccessful ones don't. Both had done enough in the restoration of the Lions to earn the right to correct the mistakes they had made through 2012. It should also be remembered that both Schwartz and Mayhew have no previous experience as Head Coach or GM and so it would be unrealistic to expect them to be error free as they continue to develop in their roles. The key to both of their futures now is to prove they have learnt from last season and to demonstrate they are evolving into the kind of managers that lead winning organisations.

Week Seventeen

Bears @ LIONS

The most disappointing of season's comes to an end today with the visit of divisional foe the Chicago Bears. Pre-season this particular fixture was seen as at worst a likely decider for a playoff position, and for the Bears it may still be, rather than the opportunity to salvage a little pride at the expense of a higher draft pick. The game also has the added bonus of affording the opportunity to Calvin Johnson to gain an unprecedented 2,000 receiving yards for the season. It is unfortunate that such a magnificent individual achievement should be entwined with such a woeful team performance but in many ways the poor form of this years Lions team actually enhances Johnson's achievement. As the season comes to a close there has been much speculation as to the reasons for the failure to meet pre-season expectations. Blame has been cast in the direction of ill-disciplined players as well as to the man that drafted them and the coaches that coached them. Without having knowledge of what has happened within the confines of Allen Park we can only speculate on what has gone wrong with the team and why it has happened. It's also difficult to say that Schwartz's refusal to point fingers or aportion blame other than to say we failed to make key plays is anything more than his attempt to keep his real thoughts within the team. As outsiders we can but look at what we see the team do on the field and now we must wait to see if moves those performances suggest should be made will be during what will be a longer off-season than last year.

Week Sixteen

Falcons @ LIONS

I'm sure I wasn't alone in being amazed at how the Lions capitulated in Arizona last week and I would think that abject display has left very few believing this game will be anything other than a Falcons win. It's perhaps worth remembering back to this game last season which was played while many of us were meeting up at Wembley for the International Series game. It was the second loss of the season but like the previous weeks defeat to the 49ers the game was close and could well have gone the Lions way. Sound familiar? Look back on those two defeats now and the warning signs of this season's collapse are glaring. Ill discipline and the inability to make the key plays whether to extend an offensive drive or to stop an opposition in their tracks. The games were close enough to suggest that all three teams were stocked with similar talent and yet this season the Falcons and 49ers look to be contesting the top two seeds in the NFC while the Lions head towards a possible top five pick in the Draft. If we accept that there is little between the teams in terms of playing talent then we must accept that the difference between them now is players attitude and coaching. If these Lions are serious about competing at the highest level then it is games like this that they must be able to perform in. It is also true to say the coaches must be able to cope with the pressures of such games too which is something they have yet to show themselves capable of.

Week Fifteen

LIONS @ Cardinals

This is a meeting of two teams heading in the same direction, unfortunately that direction is downwards and the speed of their descent is in danger of becoming terminal. The Lions need to find some sort of positive momentum from these last three games to take into the off-season if for no other reason than to feed the coaching staff's seeming belief that there has been little wrong with the team or their game plans this season. The Cardinals fall has probably already become terminal and it will be a big knock on the Lions if the Cards are able to arrest their run of defeats with victory over them. A few years ago there was good cause to almost hope the Lions would continue to lose so our Draft position improved but now there is a danger that high first round draft picks will be replacing former high first round draft picks that we can no longer afford to keep. The modern free agent salary capped NFL tends to negate many of the advantages that the Draft was intended to produce. Before the Thanksgiving game I likened the Lions situation to that of the Texans from recent years and the Cardinals also represent a potential model of what we may expect over the next couple of seasons. The Cards ensured they retained the service so of Larry Fitzgerald, just as the Lions have done with Calvin, but perhaps crucially they have not been able to replace the QB skills of Kurt Warner so maybe we can allow ourselves hope that the Cards path is one we won't be travelling. The danger is there though and the Cardinals are a good representation that sustained success is not guaranteed no matter how good an individual season may be.

Week Fourteen

LIONS @ Packers

Can the Lions set a new futility record this week by losing a lead in the last 2 minutes of a game for the fourth successive week? If the game is reasonably close going into the last few minutes then it would probably be a safe bet to say the Lions are likely to find a way to lose it. Whether that be by failing to prevent the Packers from scoring or by failing to mount an offensive drive to score themselves. The inability to win games they could or should have won has been what has distinguished this season and we can but hope for signs that this has not become a trait. With snow forecast for the game then it has to be hoped that the offensive game plan drawn up by Scott Linehan does not rely heavily on plays that are not conducive to such conditions. With the playoffs no longer something to aim for this season we have to look towards next season and establishing ourselves within our division with wins at Green Bay and home to Chicago would be a good step in this direction. Likewise with contracts expiring and roster spots for many not guaranteed there are plenty of reasons for the players and the coaches, for that matter, to keep themselves motivated.

Week Thirteen

Colts @ LIONS

The chances have been there throughout this season to win games that we've ended up losing. The reasons have been various and generally game changing events or chances could be attributed to individual player errors. In post-game press conferences Coach Schwartz would point to these 'individual errors' and justifiably point out that but for these we may well have won, not lost, said game therefore faith must be maintained by staff and fans alike in the game plan/scheme/call it what you will. 'Successful teams have faith in what they do and maintain that faith in times of adversity' was the message to all those that were raising concerns about the Lions performances this season. The teams was slow out of the blocks, the team seemed incapable of maintaining an offensive drive until the 4th quarter, Special Teams looked like an accident waiting to happen etc The coaching staff were absolved of blame and even those of us that were raising concerns restricted the criticism to the Co-Ordinators. But now as we head into the final five games of the season, all of which need to be won if we are to finish with a winning season, the spotlight, in my opinion, should be shone very brightly on Coach Schwartz.

Week Eleven

Packers @ LIONS

When the Lions used to lose what seemed like every week it was frustrating to watch because watching them just confirmed what we already knew, the players just weren't good enough to be truly competitive in the NFL. Yes there would be the odd game where they surpassed expectations and either came through with an unexpected victory or went down in flames in glorious defeat, as opposed to the usual inglorious defeat, but ultimately the frustration we felt came from the fact that the team seemed incapable of correcting what we knew was wrong. The frustration we feel now is different to what we felt then. Now we know our team is stocked with players of ability and that they are capable of beating all that the NFL has to offer.The fact that they seem unable to do so and even seem to find ways of losing games they should be winning easily has brought a whole new kind of frustration. If the old frustration was that of a resigned acceptance then this new frustration is one of anger and annoyance at an under performing roster and dubious play calling. What should have been a glorious continuation of last season's playoff run has turned into another season of struggle with the team winning just enough to keep itself on the periphery of the post-season places. For the Lions the playoffs effectively start here at home to Green Bay. We can only hope that they start to play like they need to win.

Week Ten

LIONS @ Vikings

Halfway through the season and the Lions are sitting at .500 at the bottom of the NFC North. Perhaps the most disappointing of the four defeats from the first half of the season was the home one to the Vikings and its impact on the season can be lessened with a result reversal in this fixture. A win would also leave the Lions at 5-4 with five of their remaining seven games to be played at Ford Field. Sadly the quality of the opponents that will be heading towards the Lions home is such that whatever advantage home field brings will be needed if they are to be overcome. As we head into the second half of the season the Lions form appears to be improving which is a good sign. The Vikings conversely, after a great start to the campaign, have struggled of late and will be looking for a win to get their season back on track.

Week Nine

LIONS @ Jaguars

Sadly for those of us on this side of the Atlantic this fixture has come a year too early with the Jaguars series of London games not beginning until next year. There may well have been a strong chance that the Lions with their array of young stars would've been the perfect opponent for the International Series game but we'll never know what might have been. Whilst it may be a disappointment for us on distant shores the Lions players will probably prefer the warm Florida air to that of a drizzly autumnal London. Encouragingly going into the game the Lions finally seem to be finding their form. Having resolutely refused to buy into the Game Plan I've been offering them the last few weeks the Lions persistent belief that they were right offensively received a much needed boost in last weeks victory over the Seahawks. It now has to be hoped that the team are able to build on that win and start to put themselves back into the playoff hunt.

Week Eight

Seahawks @ LIONS

Halloween weekend is turning into a bit of a nightmare for Michigan sports fans and the Lions have the opportunity to pull the states sports fans out of the horror weekend with a win over the Seahawks. Those watching the Tigers in the World Series may well have wondered if the Lions offense had been giving the Tigers lineup batting advice as they replicated the impotent offensive Monday night display against the Bears. Amid growing fan unrest Coach Schwartz has reiterated his belief in both his players and his staff so this would be a good place for them all to start repaying his faith. 

Week Seven

LIONS @ Bears

Whilst, unlike last week, I don't think a loss would end the Lions season I do believe a loss would put us in a position that, given everything I've seen of this current Lions team, would suggest they couldn't come back from. So a virtual must win game, if you will, but one in which a strong performance in defeat may just show a spark that turns into something the rest of the way home. A 3-3 record after this game would probably be what most were predicting pre-season and given that the schedule has been skewed to road games a 2-4 record would only be going with home field advantage. Those losses to the Vikes and Titans though have left the Lions with little wiggle room now for the remainder of the season and for the season to amount to something they will need to not only win the games they are expected to win but also a few that they may not be fancied to win. This game falls into the category of not fancied to win. The Bears go into it with an impressive 4-1 record but a quick look behind that impressive stat suggests they have yet to beat anyone of note. It should also be noted that their solitary defeat, to the Packers, highlighted weaknesses that the Lions should be perfectly set up to exploit.

Week Six

LIONS @ Eagles

It's Week Six, Game Five of the Lions season and perhaps no exaggeration to say that this game will define where the Lions season heads from here. Win and they can build their way back into playoff contention. Lose and they can start to think about who may be at the top of next years Draft (just like the old days). A 1-3 start is recoverable but a 1-4 start turns a season into one of damage limitation. Despite my own and the majority of Lions fans, according to various online fan polls, desire for the coaching staff to be shaken up there have been no dramatic changes since the Vikings defeat in either coaching staff or player personnel. It seems that them's the apples that have fallen from the tree so we are just going to have to hope they can correct the ills of the first four weeks. The Tigers late season surge into the playoffs in search of a World Series has taken some of the local media attention away from the Lions struggles. The return from the Bye Week sees this game providing the entree to Game 2 of the ALCS though so the focus will most definitely be on the Lions, and after Jose Valverde had the cities sports fans squirming in their seats with an epic meltdown, more of what they were serving up pre-Bye will not be appreciated.

Week Four

Vikings @ LIONS

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your point of view) illness prevented me from posting a preview for the Titans game so this Vikings preview will begin with reflections on the two road defeats that have preceded this second home game of the season.

It would not be unfair to reflect that the Lions could have won both the games, rather than lose them as they did, as the chances were definitely there for them to win, make no mistake about that. The truth was though that despite there being more than a decent opportunity to win both of these games the Lions never looked like doing so. They failed to take advantage of a fairly lacklustre display from the 9ers, who having established their dominance early on chose to play out the game without really stretching themselves, and having given themselves an undeserved chance to steal the Titans game in OT with Young's fortuitous Hail Mary catch they then conspired to make a mess of a supposed attempt to drag the Titans offside. For me there were worrying signs with each element of the team that I believe the coaching staff would be unwise not to address. A 1-2 record is not cause for panic but a defeat to the Vikings would leave the Lions 1-3 going into an early bye week with road games at the Eagles and Bears when they resume playing meaning a 1-5 start is a distinct possibility. Victory today is essential if this Lions season is not to quickly derail and start undoing all the progress that has been made over the last few years.

Week Two

LIONS @ 49ers

Focussing on the spat between the coaches of these teams does, I believe, do the matchup a disservice. The hand shake at the end of last years game overshadowed what was, essentially, an upset win by the dogged 9ers over the flashy young Lions. It could be argued that it was the game that gave the 9ers team the belief that took them all the way to the NFC Championship game while it exposed a character flaw within the Lions that would be exploited again by others as the Lions eventually fell short of that early season promise. This season's meeting comes a little earlier than last years but is now a contest between two up and coming playoff teams which rightly has the prominence of national TV as it features as the NBC Sunday Night Football game. For those of us on this side of the pond that means free to air TV courtesy of Channel 4 and the game finishing just as the world around us is beginning to awake at the start of a new working week. The game should be gripping enough to ensure that fighting off the desire to sleep is not as difficult as it could otherwise be.

Week One

Rams @ LIONS

Football is back and after last year's winning season and playoff appearance the Lions will be looking to use that as a basis for a sustained period of success. Remarkably if this season ends with at least 10 wins it will be the first time in Lions history that they will have posted back to back double digit winning seasons. I mention that by way of caution and also to put some perspective into justifiably high expectations for the coming months. This opening fixture sees Coach Schwartz pitting his wits against his long time boss at the Titans new Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher. But whilst it may well be a meeting of minds the Lions should have a definite edge with the on field talent.