For quite sometime, the Detroit Lions have been awful. They are the only franchise in history to finish a season 0-16 and haven’t won a playoff game since 1991. That’s probably why the casual NFL fan was happy to see them get off to such a great start this year. It wasn’t hard to cheer for a franchise that was finally winning after decades of ineptitude. As we reach halftime of the NFL regular season, the Lions supporters are dwindling, and it’s their own arrogant fault.
It all starts with their head coach, Jim Schwartz. In NFL circles, it’s widely accepted that Schwartz has a bit of a temper and coaches with a fiery passion that can sometimes cross the line. He’s been caught on national TV yelling obscenities at Dez Bryant and almost got in a fist fight with 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh in the post-game ‘pleasantries’. I will defend Schwartz regarding the Harbaugh incident as he was not the instigator, but he is one of only a few NFL coaches that would’ve ran after Harbaugh through a crowd of officials and security to try and get at him. As I said, it’s clear he coaches with an edge – and it’s working for the 6-2 Lions.
What isn’t working is the lack of respect they show for opponents both during the games, and after. If you turn on a Lions game I can almost guarantee that you will witness numerous occasions where Lions players will taunt their opponent after a tackle, try and insult them and get in their face as they walk back to the huddle, or take the occasional ‘extra’ shot after the whistle has gone. Ndamukong Suh continues to tell everyone that he isn’t a dirty player, but his numerous illegal hits on quarterbacks would suggest otherwise. Even this week, LB Stephen Tulloch got a sack on Tim Tebow and mocked him by “Tebowing” over him. While that was clearly all in good fun, what happened after the game was just uncalled for.
An ‘unnamed’ player told reporters after the game that Tebow was a ‘joke’ and reiterated "Come on – that’s your quarterback? Seriously?” Just goes to show what type of man that player is that he made the statement anonymously. Other players such as Chris Houston and Cliff Avril spoke out implying that Tebow doesn’t belong in the NFL. Whether they turn out to be right or wrong, the comments are unnecessary and show everyone just how immature the Lions really are.
If you think I’m being too harsh, ask yourself one question. If the Packers, Patriots or Steelers had pounded the Broncos in a similar fashion, do you think you would hear a peep from any of their players regarding Tebow other than “we made it tough on him out there today.” If you’re not a fan of the three teams I mentioned, just remember they’ve collectively won 6 of the last 10 Super Bowls. They must be doing something right. Those teams know that there is no sense in kicking a team or player when they’re down. I guess the Lions just haven’t won enough to know how to win with class.
As the bandwagon filled up this pre-season, I was happy for the Lions. Even though I thought Suh took it too far sometimes, he is a real treat to watch. I admire Stafford for coming back from injury to play as well as he has, and am happy that Calvin Johnson finally has been able to show how good of a receiver he really is. It’s a shame that all of this has me turning against the upstart Lions. You’d think a team so used to losing would appreciate what it’s like to be on the other side.
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