Detroit Lions Make Crucial Mistake in Round Two of NFL Draft

Using their second round pick to address their glaring need at linebacker, the Detroit Lions selected Jordon Dizon, a very productive linebacker from Colorado. And I'll leave the debate over whether Penn State's Dan Connor would have been a better fit for another day, because honestly, I don't know which of the two would have been best, and I'll take the Lions coaching staff and scouting department's view that Dizon fits their scheme best.

But the big mistake was not trading back into Round 2 and picking up running back Ray Rice. Rice would have filled a desperate need for them and is an all around back who could have stated from day one for the Lions. And the Lions have extra picks (the third rounder they picked up in the Shaun Rogers trade and the fifth they got today from Kansas City) they could have used to move up. Instead, they sat back, and now who knows which running back will be available when they pick tomorrow. They could have come out of today with a starting offensive tackle, starting linebacker, and starting running back. They failed at getting a running back, and whether Dizon will be good enough to start right away is a serious question.

This was not what the Lions needed coming out of Day One.

Rich Rodriguez Agrees To Coach Michigan

A new era begins today for the University of Michigan's Men's Football team as the school has hired Lloyd Carr's replacement. As ESPN reports (and unlike the last time ESPN reported a coach is coming to Michigan, they have it cold this time, West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez has agreed to replace Lloyd Carr as Michigan's head football coach. This all came together really quickly after Rodriguez met with University President Mary Sue Coleman and Athletic Director Bill Martin on Friday and after a few days of consideration (and rumblings that Rodriguez was going to stay at WVU) Rodriguez told his team at a Sunday team meeting that he was headed to Ann Arbor.

In an early afternoon meeting with his football team, Rodriguez announced he was leaving to become the head coach at Michigan.

Rodriguez walked into a scheduled 1:30 p.m. meeting with his team and emerged 10 minutes later without comment and walked briskly back to his office. Shortly thereafter the players began to file out of the meeting room, somber-faced and generally without comment.

(HT: M-Go-Blog.

After it looked very bleak, and after Les Miles turned us down (in fact, perhaps, turned us down twice) and Rutgers' Greg Schiano did the same it looked like Michigan was going to be caught without a top-tier head coach. Reports had the school contacting Sean Payton of the NFL's New Orleans Saints, but he wasn't interested either. But then the Rodriguez story broke on Friday and everyone in Ann Arbor got excited again.

As I wrote on Friday, Rodriguez may not be Les Miles, and may not have the connections to Michigan Miles did, but he may be every bit the coach. He turned a West Virginia team that was 3-8 in his first season into a national power, with a 32-5 record the past three seasons (11-1, 11-2, and 10-2 going into this year's BCS Fiesta Bowl) with two BCS Bowl births. He's known was an incredibly hard worker, and as an offensive mastermind, who helped turn Shaun King and Tulane into household names while guiding them to a 12-0 record in 1998 as the team's offensive coordinator.

It will surely be a change for Michigan, which may ditch it's usual pro-style attack for the spread offense Rodriguez has helped make famous. Whether current quarterback Ryan Mallett, who has a gun for an arm, but isn't nearly as mobile or athletic as Rodriguez' former quarterbacks, will be able to run Rodriguez complex offense is certainly a question mark. Rodriguez, though, is such a talented offensive mind, that one would think he would be able to adjust his offense to suit Mallett's strengths, while recruiting a quarterback who is better suited to run his offense. Mallett has so much potential, especially given his incredible arm-strength, so hopefully Rodriguez can design a system which gets the most out of a very talented sophomore quarterback. Michigan's defense will be interesting too, with that side of the ball never being a strong-suit for the WVU Mountaineers. Whether the team keeps current defensive coordinator Ron English, or Rodriguez brings in someone new, that will be an issue to keep an eye on.

Today is a great day for the future of the Michigan Wolverines. At only 44-years-old, Rodriguez has already amassed an impressive resume, and if successful, he could be the Michigan coach for the next 15-years (though, that may be getting a bit ahead of ourselves). We certainly will see a change from the traditional and conservative offense which has defined Michigan for decades, but it's a change Michigan needs to make if they will continue to be an elite program in college football. This coaching search may not have started on the right note, but it certainly finished on one.

Another Ruined Thanksgiving -- Packers Carve Up Lions 37-26

The Green Bay Packers score touchdowns. The Detroit Lions score field goals. The Green Bay Packers make tackles. The Detroit Lions do not. And that's why the Packers are 10-1, on their way to an NFC North championship and a first round bye in the 2007 NFL Playoffs and the Detroit Lions are 6-5, in a tailspin of a three-game losing streak and are likely to miss the playoffs, again, after starting off the season 6-2. It was another lost Thanksgiving for the Lions, who have not won on Turkey Day since 2003, and likely another lost season, with games at Minnesota, 9-1 Dallas, and at San Diego on the agenda.

This game, like the Arizona game, started off so promising too. The Lions drove right down the field to start the game, and appeared to have a first and goal on the one-yard line. A chop block on center Dominic Raiola, though, set the Lions back, and they were forced to settle for a field goal. The first Packers play from scrimmage was a Brett Favre fumble, and the Lions recovered, deep in Packers territory, with a chance to take a 10-0 lead and put some distance between them and the dangerous Packer passing attack. The Lions offense, though, went three-and-out (a common theme) and were held to a field goal. The Lions defense then forced Favre and the Packers to punt again, and the Lions moved the ball. But then they hit a brick wall and were forced to punt from the Packers 38-yard-line. And that was it. The Lions dominated the first quarter, holding the ball for over 12 minutes, putting up over 100 yards of total offense, and forcing a Green Bay turnover. But all they had to show for it was six points, and that haunted them the rest of the afternoon.

The Packers intercepted a Kitna pass to start the second quarter, the Packers scored one play after that, and before the Lions could turn around, it was 14-6. And even after a great kickoff return (the first of the season really), the Lions again we held three plays and out, and it was another Hanson field goal instead of a touchdown. Brett Favre then went to work, picking apart the Lions defense, as he did, all game long, and by the time the Lions scored two late fourth quarter touchdowns, it was already over.

The Lions did fix some things from their previous two losses. They ran the ball well, Kevin Jones had 93 yards and the team had over 130. And Calvin Johnson was actively involved in the offense, and was targeted all game long. Unfortunately for the Lions, he dropped a number of catchable passes in the first half (odd for Johnson who has proved himself sure-handed this season) and while he had some nice catches late, again, it was already over by that point. The Lions seemed to move the ball at will when they were in their own territory, but as soon as they crossed the 50-yard-line, they fell apart. Penalties, dropped passes, sacks. They would seemingly be in a rhythm, but then they would cross mid-field and the drive would stall. The defense wasn't much better, as they could not get pressure on Brett Favre, and despite the Packers all but abandoning the running game, wide receivers were open all over the field, and Favre, who may have the best field vision of any quarterback to ever play, found them every single time.

Is the season over for the 6-5 Lions? Probably not. While Philadelphia, Washington, and Arizona are only half a game back of the Wildcard lead (and all have the tie-breaker over the Lions, so the Lions must end the season with a better record than each of them, unless Arizona wins the NFC West), the Eagles must play the Patriots, and the Reskins must travel to Tampa Bay. The Cardinals will likely have an easy time with the 49ers, so Lions fans have to hope Seattle stumbles at St. Louis. But most importantly, the Lions have to start winning and the last three weeks, the Lions have shown no evidence they'll be able to do that again anytime soon.