9102120159
DETROIT FREE PRESS
911111
Monday, November 11, 1991
METRO FINAL
1D
MITCH ALBOM
Copyright (c) 1991, Detroit Free Press
SHHHHHHH . . . LIONS RESTORED THE SNORE
TAMPA, Fla. -- Shhhhhh. Quiet. I don't want to disturb the Lions. They
managed to sleep through the whole game Sunday. Why wake them now?
Besides, if they were awake, we'd have to ask them a lot of nasty
questions, such as: "WHAT THE HELL IS WITH YOU GUYS?" or "KNOCK KNOCK?
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR?" or "YO? LIONS? HOW DOES A SUPPOSED PLAYOFF TEAM GET
FLUSHED DOWN THE SEWER BY TAMPA BAY?"
You know. Stuff like that.
No, better to let them sleep like children after a big meal, which is
pretty much how they came out Sunday, fumbling on the first possession,
missing tackles, giving up four straight Tampa scores and converting just one
third down the entire game.
What amazed me is how they even managed to take the snap, seeing as THEIR
EYES WERE CLOSED THE ENTIRE TIME!
But there I go, raising my voice, and we don't want to do that. If the
Lions woke up, they'd have to look at the game film, and then they'd want to
jump back in bed and pull the covers over their heads.
You want to talk nightmare? Here are the Lions, two-thirds of the way
through the season, and they still don't have a clue as to what to do with
Barry Sanders for an entire game. First, it's give him the ball every time.
Then, don't give it to him at all. Then, run him into the teeth of the
defense. Then, come out with the Jumbo package. That's a real winner. They
ought to call it the Dumbo package. Even an elephant could figure it out.
Nightmare? We could talk about the defense (30 points to Tampa?). We could
talk about the bad special teams. We could talk about Erik Kramer's two
interceptions, or the Lions' four delay-of-game penalties, which several
players would blame on -- and let's everyone write this down, shall we? -- "an
inability to see the clock."
Hmmm. That's a new one.
But why bother? The point is this: There are certain humps a team must get
over before it can become a winner. The Pistons could never be great until
they beat the Celtics. Navy can never have a good year unless it beats Army.
And the Lions will never be real contenders until they STOP LOSING TO LOUSY
TEAMS LIKE TAMPA BAY!
Ooops. I think I woke them up.
New Lions always fall into same old rut
"We can't keep doing this, being an inconsistent team," Chris Spielman
fumed, after the embarrassing 30-21 defeat. "We're black and white, we're
night and day, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde . . ."
You get the point. The Lions talk about a new attitude. Bury the past.
Then they collapse to an old junkyard dog. You want a telling statistic? In
the history of this rivalry, Tampa, a recent expansion team, and Detroit, one
of the oldest franchises in football, are now dead even, 14 wins, 14 losses.
Nice legacy, huh?
"They were a better football team than us in every way," Wayne Fontes
said, shaking his head. "They tackled. We didn't. They scored. We didn't. They
executed. We didn't."
Well, that about covers it. Thanks for sharing, Wayne. Unfortunately, the
one question he didn't answer was this: If Tampa Bay is so great, how come it
came into this game with a 1-8 record? How come it lost to Green Bay two weeks
ago, 27-0?
Besides, if the Lions managed to beat Dallas and Minnesota, why not
Tampa? Isn't that the mark of a good team? Beat the guys you should beat?
Wait. Does that mean the Lions aren't a good . . .
Shhhhhh.
Why is the offense so confusing?
Let's deal with this Sanders situation, seeing as Barry was one of the few
guys not in his pajamas out there Sunday. Although he had nice numbers (118
yards rushing, mostly on his own), you still get the feeling the NFL's best
running back is a mystery to his own coaching staff. One week, Fontes admits,
"We didn't get him the ball enough." Next week, it's, "The defense took it
away." One week, Barry gains a zillion yards. Next week, he barely touches
the ball.
Why is this so confusing? If the defense is stacked for Sanders, that
should be a good thing. Receivers should be open. Weren't the Lions one of
the best passing/scoring squads in football last year? Didn't they draft two
supposedly promising receivers?
Throw the simple pass. Make the defense play honest. And if they cover
the receivers, then get the ball to Sanders and let him do his magic. I'm no
football genius. But obviously, neither is whoever is running the Lions'
offense.
"Do you feel they know what to do with you?" Sanders was asked.
"That's a good question," he said. "There's an uncertainty as to what
we're gonna do offensively. Sometimes, with our lineups, (the defense) knows
exactly what's coming, I'll say that."
And when Barry bothers to say it . . .
Yes, I know Rodney Peete is out. But he'll be out next week, too. Yes, I
know the Lions still have a winning record. But it's disappearing fast. They
have no right to get lackadaisical with winning. And they can't keep waiting
for home games (they are 1-4 on the road), not if they expect to make the
playoffs.
So maybe they bounce back next week. Maybe not. But I'll tell you this:
If they miss the playoffs again this year after such a promising start, they
won't just be having a nightmare.
They'll be living one.