August 17, 2011

8:00 PM EST

M&T Bank Stadium

After a tough loss in the preseason opener last week, the Lions are looking to rebound against a Baltimore Ravens team that made a 31-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons look awfully hard last week.

Both teams have been plagued by the injury bug this offseason and both struggled to get their first team offense going early on.

The Ravens and Lions will return several players tonight who missed the opener, and it could mean a more consistent attack on both sides of the ball. Defensive end Cliff Avril, strong safety Amari Spievey, and wide receiver Titus Young are all expected to be active tonight for the Lions, while Baltimore will welcome back veteran center Matt Birk and rookies Courtney Upshaw and Bernard Pierce.

Here are some things to watch for: » Continue reading “Preseason Game 2: Detroit Lions vs. Baltimore Ravens”

If preseason was any indication of how this year is going to go for the Detroit Lions, then last night’s 19-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns would mean three things:

1. We’d be 0-1,
2. Shaun Hill would be more valuable than Matthew Stafford, and
3. Our running backs more productive than our receivers.

Hello, parallel universe.

Luckily for everyone, preseason — in the grand scheme of things — means nothing. Sure, it’s important. But it in no way is it proof of what will happen for the 16 games of the 2012 regular season. The 2008 Lions are proof positive of that.

I saw positives in last night’s game. Jim Schwartz did not. Fortunately, it’s his job to be overly critical. Also, that’s just the way Schwartz is.

“Let’s be clear: Preseason games, we don’t use them as a barometer,” Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. “But you want to play well and I don’t think we played well on offense, defense or special teams from the beginning to the very end.” » Continue reading “Lions Drop First Preseason Game 19-17 to the Cleveland Browns”

According to Anwar Richardson, the Detroit Lions have agreed to a one-year deal with running back Kevin Smith. The remaining details of the contract  are not yet known.

After not being re-signed following the 2010 season, it was unclear whether Smith would see the football field in 2011. But with Mikel Leshoure and Jahvid Best both hurt, the Lions brought him back for the final eight games of the season.

Smith made an immediate impact, compiling 201 yards and three touchdowns against Carolina in his second week back. Unfortunately he injured himself the following week against Green Bay and battled that injury the remainder of the season. » Continue reading “Lions Re-Sign RB Kevin Smith to One-Year Deal”

Yep.

This news and notes might be a bit long, so I apologize in advance. I feel like I’ve missed a few things over the past week that are definitely worth mentioning.

So I won’t bore you with idle chit chat and instead get right down to it.

• I suppose by now everyone has seen the redesigned NFL logos that have incorporated Peyton Manning’s face into them. They are quite hilarious — and equally creepy. Check out the Lions logo to the right.

• Dave Birkett reported yesterday that Shaun Hill is expected to stay in Detroit, which is good because Hill wants to stay as well. Injuries to Stafford the first couple years of his career proved how important a reliable backup QB is and Hill has certainly stepped in and contributed when needed. I would hate to see him go.

The Lions have told Hill, his representatives and others that they want him back as the primary backup to Matthew Stafford. Hill also wants to return to Detroit — and might even take a slight discount to do so. » Continue reading “Lions’ Droppings: News, Notes and Nonsense”

January 7, 2012

8:00 PM EST

Superdome

Well, this is it. We’re only hours away from one of the most important games I can remember as a Lions fan. There’s really not much to say about this game that we don’t already know.

Will it be high scoring? Most likely. Will it be a serious home field advantage situation? That’s an understatement. Will the biggest different be penalties for the Lions? I think so.

The Lions are the heavy underdogs tonight, but that doesn’t mean anything. They have the talent to beat this New Orleans Saints team. But they are going to need just about everything to fall into place exactly like it should. Penalties will kill them, a poor game from Kevin Smith will hurt them, and turnovers from Matthew Stafford and Co. will guarantee a loss tonight.

Here are some things to look for: » Continue reading “NFC Wildcard Preview: Detroit Lions vs. New Orleans Saints”

To kick off the pregame festivities before Saturday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, I had the opportunity to share my thoughts with Aerys Sports Saints writer, Krissy Vogel of Halftime Voodoo.

Later today, I’ll post Krissy’s responses to the questions I asked her about the upcoming game. Read on for our interview:

Q: The last time the Lions were in the playoffs was 1999. Last year, the Lions had a 6-10 record. What accounts for the team’s turn around this year?

A: Several things: First and foremost, a healthy Matthew Stafford was paramount in how successful this team would be this season. And he’s played spectacularly. Obviously having weapons like Calvin Johnson don’t hurt, but we’ve had Megatron for a few years and haven’t played like this. But I think the Eagles proved this season that it takes more than just an all-star roster to perform at a high level. The Lions have had the right tools for winning for a couple years but they had to gel as an organization — both as teammates and under Jim Schwartz.

Q: Matthew Stafford threw for 5,000 and had his first healthy season. How do you think he’ll fare in the first playoff game of his career?

A: I think he’ll rise to the occasion. The Lions aren’t favorites to win Saturday, but that doesn’t mean they can’t win. There was a lot of talk this season about whether Stafford was a “Franchise quarterback.” But what he’s done best this season is prove he can play in tough situations when the game is on the line. That’s not to say he hasn’t struggled. But he’s proved himself when he needed to and when his team has needed to. And that’s important going into a playoff game as big as this one. I think tomorrow will be no different. Win or lose, I think he’ll give Drew Brees some competition for performance of the game. » Continue reading “Behind Enemy Lines: Playoff Preview from Detroit”

Seriously, Kevin Smith cannot catch a break. Detroit Lions RB Kevin Smith and TE Tony Scheffler collided today at practice while both were running routes with their respective groups near the endzone.

The 6-foot-5, 255-pound tight end reportedly rebounded quickly and appeared to be immediately fine. Smith, however, stayed on the ground for quite some time before getting up and limping to the sidelines with the help of trainers.

“It was scary, and it hurt a little bit,” Smith said. “I was feeling too good to get nicked up in practice. It’s a big game Saturday.”

Despite the collision, head coach Jim Schwartz says both Smith and Scheffler were able to finish practice.

“Both guys finished practice,” Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said. “Certainly, you don’t expect those, but that’s why they wear helmets. I’m glad there’s not some new rule that you’re not allowed to wear helmets because we might have a couple of broken jaws.”

You can find me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MelissaHeyboer and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/barrysandersmemorialblog.

The hurt just won’t stop for the Detroit Lions. At this point in the season, it’s easier to ask who is still healthy than to ask who isn’t.

It was made plainly obvious last week just how depleted the Lions secondary really is. And unfortunately it’s not going to get any better any time soon.

Cornerback Chris Houston and safety Louis Delmas both have grade 2 MCL tears.  Headcoach Jim Schwartz doesn’t currently have a timetable for their recovery as it could be anywhere from a couple weeks to a month or more.

“We’re going to get (all of our injured defensive players) back, it’s just a matter of when,” Schwartz said Thursday. “We don’t have anybody there that, other than maybe Lawrence Jackson, which is a little bit more long-term — but we haven’t put any of those guys on the (injured reserve) and all those guys are expected back. And they’re all making progress. They’re all doing well, but whether or not they’ll be available this week, it’s still too early to say.” » Continue reading “More Bad News for Lions on Injury Front”

Who else is still reeling from a turkey overdose? Only me? OK. I don’t know what it is but my vacation hangover seems to be a hell of a lot more pronounced this year than in years past.

Part of it is because I had such a great time at home and with family that I didn’t want to leave, so getting up for work this morning was next to impossible. Add to that the roller coaster sports weekend of the Lions getting trounced and Michigan ending its seven-year drought against Ohio State and you get an emotionally exhausted and homesick girl.

I want sympathy, people.

To help myself heel from this current state I will distract myself with Lions news — lots of it!

• Calvin Johnson was mic’d up last week against the Carolina Panthers for NFL Network’s Sound FX. If you remember the one that was done on Matthew Stafford earlier this season, you remember just how awesome these can be. This one doesn’t disappoint. Johnson obviously isn’t as animated as Stafford or many other guys on the team, but he still serves up some memorable sound bites. And so does defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham, who tells Johnson that he’s the basically the best receiver in the game. It’s a good watch. Check out the video here.  » Continue reading “Lions’ Droppings: News, Notes and Nonsense”

This is one of those surprising news bits that really isn’t all that surprising. With each passing week that RB Jahvid Best missed and with little discussion as to his current state of health, I think most Lions fans assumed this day would come.

It doesn’t make it any easier, especially with the recent injury to Kevin Smith. But, as much as I hate to say it, it was probably the right thing to do. Concussions are no joke, and Best’s history with them doesn’t help the matter.

Best suffered a concussion during the game against the 49ers — his second of the season — and has subsequently missed the five games following. Immediately following the San Francisco game there were rumors that Best was being advised to sit out the remainder of the season, however, Best and many from the Lions organization were quick to deny those sentiments.

Unfortunately today, they came true.

“From the outset, we have been appropriately cautious and have followed all medical protocol with respect to Jahvid’s injury,” Lions coach Jim Schwartz said Friday. “We look forward to his continued improvement and eventual return to the field.”

Obviously this is a blow to the Lions, especially with the onslaught of injuries in the past two days. Fortunately, one of those injuries may not be as bad as initially thought. » Continue reading “Lions Place RB Jahvid Best on Injured Reserve”