1. Pound the rock
This is a message posted in bold letters on a wall outside of the Lions' locker room at their training complex. It is a message they are feeling each day in physical, grinding run-game drills in practices.
There is a need. A year ago, the Lions ran the football 324 times, last in the NFL. That was 31 fewer attempts than San Francisco, which finished 31st league-wide and 59 fewer than Kansas City, which ranked 30th. It was a stunning 219 fewer attempts than league leader Minnesota. That makes little sense for a no-nonsense, fundamental, back-to-basics football coach like Rod Marinelli and he is bent on changing the approach.
The Lions have options in the run game. Their offensive line is adequately seasoned and tailbacks Tatum Bell, Artose Pinner, Aveion Cason and Brian Calhoun along with rookie Kevin Smith give the attack diversity. The intense competition among them is exactly what Marinelli desires. The Lions have moved to a zone-blocking run scheme that especially favors Bell, since that is what he used during his career in Denver before being traded to the Lions in March of last year.
Marinelli described the Lions' training camp as "punishing," especially in view of the run-game emphasis. Bell said the team has already had two goal-line practices, something he has rarely experienced in his previous four NFL seasons. The Lions believe that this ground-rooted approach will color their entire effort and production across all avenues in their season. I agree.
2. Martz out, Colletto in
The reason for the Lions' pass-happy penchant (263 more passes than runs last season) is traced directly to their former offensive coordinator, Mike Martz, who now holds that job in San Francisco. Martz, in most corners, is not missed here. Jim Colletto takes over for Martz.
Colletto has coached college or pro football since 1967. He spent time as the head coach at Purdue and was also Baltimore's offensive line coach during its Super Bowl XXXV championship season in 2000. Colletto was the Lions' offensive line coach last season. Everyone around the Lions notices the change. Colletto is in line with what Marinelli is demanding and in the team's preseason opener against the Giants (a 13-10 victory) showed it. The first-team offense ran the ball seven times in its 14 plays. For the game, it was 35 rushing attempts in 59 plays. That is a major reversal from these Lions games last season where the total rushing attempts were as follows: Arizona (8), Minnesota (7) and San Diego (9), all road losses.
With more than 40 years of coaching experience, Colletto is a solid choice to simplify, implement, teach, lead and kick the Lions' mental attitude about its rushing game into gear.
3. Details, details, details
Detroit began last season 6-2. Playoff visions were dancing in their heads. But they failed to finish, limping home with a 1-7 record in the season's second half that included a six-game losing streak immediately after the sixth victory. Marinelli insists that the lousy finish was in the details. Or lack of them.
"I looked at that long and hard, how you start that way and finish that way, and we just didn't do things the right way under pressure," Marinelli said. "We played lights out in some of those losses but we simply did not do things correctly in some of our details. We've emphasized that."
He is optimistic that the message is being received based on the preseason action against the Giants, especially by the defense. It was disciplined it its approach and worked hand-in-glove as a unit, critical to the Cover-2 scheme.
Linebacker Ernie Sims continues to be the team's most flashy and dependable defensive playmaker and the secondary has been transformed. Newcomers in cornerback Leigh Bodden via a trade with Cleveland and free-agent signee safety Dwight Smith from Minnesota have given the secondary teeth. And there are impressive, noticeable young players in the unit, among them safety Daniel Bullocks (6-feet, 212 pounds). He was injured all of last season but has returned and is turning heads.
4. In Kitna they trust
Camp: Allen Park, Mich.
Preseason games:
Aug. 7:
Lions 13, Giants 10
Aug. 17:
at Cincinnati, 7:35 p.m. ET
Aug. 23: Cleveland, 4 p.m. ET
Aug. 28: at Buffalo, 6:30 p.m. ET
Is Jon Kitna a franchise quarterback? That is a question debated in several NFL circles. Often, the answer is no. But not here. The Lions believe in Kitna, trust him, and are certain that on and off the field they possess one of the league's most capable and inspiring quarterbacks.
His career included stops in Seattle and Cincinnati before he became a Lion for the 2006 season. He has started each of the Lions' 32 games over the last two years and has finished with 3-13 and 7-9 records. He passed for 4,208 yards with 21 touchdowns and 22 interceptions in his first Detroit season. He threw for 4,068 yards with 18 touchdowns and 20 interceptions last season.
"We started pressing to make the playoffs last season and kept digging a bigger hole," Kitna said. "We have a core group here now who knows more about what it takes. I have to be more patient. I'm really excited about where we are and where we are going."
Kitna knows this is a big season for him to reward the Lions' trust. He knows this is a season where his production must outweigh any predictions. He features the temperament and tools to succeed.
5. Devestating duo
While watching the Lions' Wednesday morning practice with their Hall of Fame tight end Charlie Sanders, I was surprised by something he said about Lions receivers Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams.
Sanders, without blinking, stated: "This is the best pair of receivers on one team that I have ever seen. Ever. You come out and watch them practice every day and it is like watching a good movie. There is no pair in the NFL that is bigger, faster, stronger and with better hands. Ever."
Wow. This duo in on-field production has not come close to supplanting ones like Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne in Indianapolis or Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzedeh in Cincinnati or Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin in Arizona. But in raw talent and potential, Sanders is correct.
Williams (6-3, 211) is a dynamic, fearless receiver. Johnson (6-5, 239) is not quite like any receiver in the game, commanding in presence and in his combination of strength, quickness and speed. In practice on Wednesday morning, he was running free throughout the day, open, seemingly, on nearly every play.
With the Lions seeking to run first, their hope is that Williams and Johnson will catch defenses napping and hit 'em when and where it hurts most. It is a nice plan, less actually meaning more. If both can stay healthy for the entire season, we all just might see that the assessment by Sanders is not a fluke.
Johnson said: "Our receivers coach Shawn Jefferson always says that hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. We know why we both are here. That's what we're here for. We expect big things."
