FROM KITNA TO REDDING: How Lions' off-season ruined their regular season

[A2Leo]

...this is why I was really excited about the 07 draft?

FROM KITNA TO REDDING: How Lions' off-season ruined their regular season
December 11, 2007

BY MICHAEL ROSENBERG

FREE PRESS COLUMNIST

The big story of the Lions' off-season was Jon Kitna's guarantee. Depending on which interview you heard, Kitna either said the Lions should win 10 games, would win 10 games or would win more than 10.

The exact words did not seem terribly important. When Noah built the ark, did the passengers ask where they were going? (EDITOR'S NOTE: Of course not -- they were animals.) What mattered was that the Lions' quarterback believed in his team, and he wanted the whole world to know it.

Kitna's guarantee led to plenty of conversations like this:

LIONS FAN NO. 1: "Was he drunk?"

LIONS FAN NO. 2: "That's not funny. Kitna used to have a drinking problem."

LIONS FAN NO. 1 (blushing): "Oh ... sorry."

When the Lions started 6-2, Kitna seemed prescient. Now they are 6-7, which means they can win 10 only if they sweep the last three games -- which would mean winning in San Diego and Green Bay -- then win a playoff game, and ... hahaha, OK, I'll stop now.

So the 10-win thing just went kaput. And if you want to know why, just look at everything else the Lions did in the off-season. Almost nothing has worked out.

1. They slapped a "franchise player" tag on Cory Redding. In 13 games, Redding has zero sacks. If Redding is a franchise player, what does that say about the franchise?

2. The NFL held its annual draft, and once again, the league invited Matt Millen to provide the entertainment.

Millen used the second overall pick on receiver Calvin Johnson. I loved this pick. Most analysts loved this pick. And Johnson might justify it next year. But it's fair to say that two players Millen passed on -- left tackle Joe Thomas and running back Adrian Peterson -- have helped their teams much more this season.

As I write this, scientists are studying the rest of Millen's draft to figure out how anything could burst into flames so quickly. Millen's second pick, quarterback Drew Stanton, has been on injured reserve all year. His third pick, defensive end Ikaika Alama-Francis, has barely played.

Only one player from the entire draft, second-round safety Gerald Alexander, has made an impact commensurate with his draft position. And Alexander has played mostly out of necessity.

3. They babied Big Baby. I don't remember all the details of coach Rod Marinelli's Save Shaun campaign, but I think the idea was that he would let Shaun Rogers do whatever he wanted.

I might be wrong on the details. But Marinelli let Rogers work at his own pace, with the idea that the supremely talented defensive tackle would have no excuses if he didn't perform.

Did it work? Rogers's conditioning is still poor. Lately, his most consistent move has been the Huff and Puff. In his last five games, Rogers has just five tackles, no sacks, no forced fumbles and no fumble recoveries.

Marinelli pointed out Monday that Rogers has knee problems. That kind of thing tends to happen to overweight men who ram into other large men. Is Marinelli saying Rogers' poor conditioning is not his fault?

"I didn't say it wasn't his fault," Marinelli said.

4. They signed free-agent defensive end Dewayne White.

White has been a pretty good player and a team guy. This worked out fine.

5. They traded their best cornerback, Dre' Bly, for tackle George Foster, running back Tatum Bell and a 2007 fifth-round pick.

Foster has lost his starting job. If Bell had not asked for a trade, most fans would not even remember he was on the team. And the fifth-round pick, Johnny Baldwin, is long gone. Total wipeout.

6. The Lions traded former top-10 pick Mike Williams and backup quarterback Josh McCown for a fourth-round pick, which they used on cornerback A.J. Davis. The Lions liked Davis so much, they cut him twice -- first from the team, and then from the practice squad. Another total wipeout.

Jon Kitna was wrong. But the Lions' problem is not the quarterback's belief in his team. The problem is the team.