What am I meant to say?
If you credited any weight to the four preseason games, you came into the first game of the season with at least a modicum of optimism for the Lions this season. I don’t think you’d necessarily have thought they would contend, but with the Atlanta Falcons appearing first on the schedule, it wasn’t necessarily a stretch to think Detroit could against start off 1-0 on the season.
However, if you really watched last season and realized the 6-2 start was due more to a soft first half of the schedule and also that the 1-7 season was definitely a more-realistic picture of the apparent talent level on the roster, well, you’d STILL have thought the Lions could win their first game against a team coming off a horrible year and featuring a new head coach and rookie starting quarterback.
Man, but if you’re a long-time Lions fan, you surely should have known better.
And, if you didn’t this morning, you surely do tonight.
The increasingly-irritating Jon Kitna experiment continued in its typical dull fashion. He put up some numbers, to be sure, but failed to make key plays you hope to get from your quarterback. That is, he’s a perfectly acceptable and serviceable NFL backup who should be coming in as a back-up for a team with more talent. He’s never shown he has the physical or mental tools to be the sort of leader the team needs. I know the players love and respect him, but these are also players who also seem to be fine with getting embarrassed on a semi-regular basis, so I’m not sure how much value to invest in that.
Certainly, I would put less in it than do the coaches and Matt Millen appear to do. We’ll see how long before they realize this team is not going to be a win-now proposition and maybe take a chance with Dan Orlovsky or Drew Stanton (if he’s ever healthy). Kitna is not the future, so why is he the present? Even the Packers realize you eventually have to turn the page at that position and they were divorcing someone with a slightly-better track record than has Kitna and are coming off a great season.
In fairness, however, quarterback play was far from the main problem today and is also not the thing that should be giving Lions fans cause to get an early start on their 2009 draft wish list.
In case you hadn’t heard, the Falcons amassed 313 yards on the ground with Michael Turner and Jerrious Norwood. Turner, who racked 220 yards on 22 carries, is the new Atlanta franchise record-holder for rush yards in a single game.
By contrast, the Lions ran the ball 19 times for 62 yards on the entire day.
I guess that “pound the rock” thing sorta takes a back seat when you’re down 21 points before you’ve even needed to find the Gatorade, eh?
Mysteriously, rookie Kevin Smith appeared to be running pretty well, but when his stats came up (16 rushes for 48 yards) it was hard to figure what we thought we had seen. I have hope for the kid, regardless of the numbers. He simply did look good.
Of course, a large part of that problem was that the Lions couldn’t really afford to go to the running game because they were always behind.
Literally, ALWAYS!
Rookie QB Matt Ryan’s first NFL pass found teammate Michael Jenkins a good five steps beyond the guy who could say he was covering Jenkins in only the loosest sense of the term, allowing him to cruise into the end zone for a 62-yard score.
On the following Atlanta possession, Turner scored on a 66-yard run and…yeah…
Oddly enough, the best stretch of the game for the Lions came once they were down 21-0 and started focusing on the passing game.
As anyone who follows football knows, the most-dangerous weapons on the Lions roster are Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams, both of whom are among the league’s most-talented receivers.
This might make some wonder, “Then, why have the Lions decided to concentrate on the run as their primary attack?”
All I can say is, “because it’s the Lions.”
That might not be much of an answer to you, but Lions fans know exactly how that’s the best, if not only, answer.
So, what we’re left with is a defense seemingly incapable of imposing their will on either the passing or running game of even what seemed to be a weak and inexperienced opponent and an offense determined to try to beat you with the weakest part of their game.
Fifteen more weeks of this nonsense and then our only worry will be whether Matt Millen finds a wide receiver he cannot pass up with the number one pick.
I need a drink.
