What about Bob?

The Lions' rookie coach said he has no timetable for when his rookie quarterback will get into the starting lineup.

"We go into this process the same way," Schwartz said at team headquarters in Allen Park. "Not with, 'Hey, we're going to sit him for a year regardless.' Or, 'Hey, he's going to start right away.' I think we go in and say, 'If he's ready -- in our eyes if he's ready -- and if he's our best quarterback, then he plays.' "

Schwartz has some flexibility, because the team has retained Daunte Culpepper, who has lost close to 30 pounds from last season, when he came out of a brief retirement to continue his career.

Said Stafford: "I'm a competitive guy, and I'm going to get ready as quick as I possibly can. And if that's Game 1, then that's Game 1. If it's Game 8 or not even in the first year, it's up to the coaches. I'm there for them and I'm just going to be out there working hard, trying to help the team win any way I can."

The Lions and Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford have agreed to terms on a six-year, $78 million deal late last night, FOXSports' Jay Glazer reports. Here's more on the deal.

Despite the contract agreement, look for Lions fans to boo heartily at this pick. They're still stung by the Joey Harrington disaster (and the Andre Ware disaster before that), so they're naturally skeptical of taking another quarterback.

The Lions have made it known that they'd like to have their top choice signed before Saturday's draft, and, after meeting with Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry's agents over the weekend, their attention has turned to Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford, according to ESPN.com's John Clayton.

Clayton reports that no deal is in place as of early Wednesday night, but Stafford has repeatedly indicated he'd be happy playing in Detroit and the sides are trying to hammer out a deal.

Money is the key component in the deal (duh). Clayton reports that, because quarterbacks receive a premium contract due to the value of their position, Tom Condon and Ben Dogra (Stafford's agents) will be seeking more than the $11.5 million per year over five seasons that the top pick of last year's draft, Jake Long, received. (Condon and Dogra also represent Long.)

It is unclear, however, if the Lions can eclipse (or even match) the $12 million per year over six seasons given to last year's No. 3 pick, Matt Ryan.

If the Lions are unable to reach a deal with Stafford by Friday, they may settle on Curry, who they are believed to have the parameters of a deal with in place already.

Stay tuned...

(*Here is an update on the situation from the NFL.com draft blog. If Stafford signs tonight, we'll be sure to let you know.)

-Chris Mascaro

More hints that the Lions are poised to make Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford the No. 1 overall pick on Saturday:

Our Motor City buddy Mike O'Hara of Detroit News fame fills us in on the latest. In an interview on a Detroit radio station Tuesday afternoon, Stafford appeared on the Mitch (Tuesdays with Morry) Albom on WJR-760 and was asked what kind of car he drives. Stafford told Albom he drives a Chevy Tahoe.

"I’m probably going to have to trade that one out for a Ford,” Stafford added quickly.
The Lions are owned by William Clay Ford, the grandson of Ford Motor Co. founder Henry Ford.

Stafford says he doesn't mind being drafted by a team that last year became the first to go 0-16.

"I’m a competitive guy, and I love challenge,” he said. “I don’t think the Lions are that far off. Hopefully, if I come in, I can help turn things around I watched them a lot this year. What were they leading – five games in a row in the second half of games? They could easily have won five of those games and nobody’s talking about them.“It’s just an attitude change. I like the new head coach and all the guys there.”

... which means the Lions' quarterback is laying off the donuts these days.

Teammates say Culpepper, who was starting to look more like an offensive tackle than a quarterback last year, has dropped 30 pounds in advance of the team's mini-camp.

A wise move by Culpepper to trim down, because chances are he'll be competing for the starting job with either Matthew Stafford or Mark Sanchez, both of whom have been mentioned as possibilities for the Lions, who have the first overall pick.

Interesting column from MLive.com's Tom Kowalski, who wonders aloud what might happen if the Lions decide to pass on the No. 1 overall pick.

As NFL vice president Greg Aiello explains, there is no prohibition against passing on a pick. So, if the Lions decide they don't want, say, Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford at No. 1 overall, or if they decide they can gamble and take Stafford lower down, they can do exactly that.

The Lions have entertained the idea of trading the No. 1 overall pick, but no one in this draft, seems to be attracting that kind of buzz. As an alternative, the Lions can keep passing on picks until they're good and ready.

The list of potential suitors for Jay Cutler is extensive, what with close to a third of the league having some form of interest in the 25-year-old crybaby ... er, quarterback.

But when you look at all the factors, the one team that makes the most sense on a number of levels, it's the Lions. Yes, the team that became the first to finish 0-16.

Why the Lions? A few reasons:

They need juice immediately. When you're coming off the first 0-16 season in NFL history, something has to change. That's painfully obvious even to the most casual observer. And what better way to add instant juice than to trade for a Pro Bowl quarterback. First-year head coach Jim Schwartz has the No. 1 overall pick, and the Lions are apparently enamored with Georgia's Matthew Stafford.

But can the Lions really afford to develop another young quarterback for down the road, when what they really need is a guy who can play right here, right now? Lions fans have had their share of first-round disappointments over the years, and the risk of adding Stafford to that list is certainly an issue.

But if you acquire Cutler, you have instantaneously addressed your biggest need with a player who can step right in.

Conversely, the Broncos face a huge conundrum now that they've given up on coaxing Cutler back. Yes, they'd like a quarterback who can play right now, but who's out there for the taking? Kellen Clemens? Brady Quinn? Derek Anderson? Luke McCown?

Realistically, there isn't a quarterback as good as Cutler available in a potential deal. So if you're the Broncos, why not squeeze the Lions for the first pick and take Stafford? Or, if you prefer, get the No. 1 pick, deal your way down a few spots to collect more draft choices and settle on USC's Mark Sanchez a few spots later?

With Cutler gone, the Broncos might as well accept that the situation got screwed up beyond believe and then move on from there. McDaniels is only 32 and isn't going anywhere. Team owner Pat Bowlen has been through the wars and can stomach a situation where Chris Simms gets a year or two to play while Stafford or Sanchez learns the ropes from one of the top quarterback coaches in the league.

All the other suitors for Cutler - including San Francisco (10th overall) Tampa Bay (19thl), the Jets (17thl), Bears (18th), Vikings (22nd), Redskins (13th) - are too far down for Denver to be assured of getting Stafford or Sanchez. If they are willing to take a shot at Kansas State's Josh Freeman, then it's safe to deal with a team other than Detroit. But that's not expected to be the case.

This according to SI.com's Tony Pauline, who reports that Stafford made a solid case for being the top overall pick in next month's draft.

Many mock drafts have gone away from the notion of Detroit selecting Stafford at No. 1, but we believe it will be him. Thus, there will be no need to change our original choice in our first mock draft, published last week.

I have a feeling, however, that I might be inclined to switch the Giants' pick from linebacker James Laurinaitis to a wide receiver, based on the predicament faced by Mr. Burress.

Of course, we hear that type of thing just about every year at this time, so it's no surprise Lions GM Martin Mayhew is being purposely vague on the issue.

There has been speculuation the Lions will take Georgia QB Matthew Stafford at No. 1 .... or Wake Forest LB Aaron Curry ... or Baylor T Jason Smith ... and now they aren't ruling out a deal for the top spot.

The Part 2 of a possible trade would be Jay Cutler, since the Lions have already tried to work a deal with the Broncos for the QB.

We're still in the process of putting together our first mock draft, but we're a bit concerned about all this speculation in Detroit over the first overall pick.

Everyone and his brother has assigned Matthew Stafford to the Lions with No. 1, but new head coach Jim Schwartz is sending out some pretty strong signals that he's not wed to that idea.

"It is the most important position, I'll grant you that," Schwartz told the Detroit News at the NFL owners meetings in Los Angeles. "I think when you're building a team, it's the first question you have to answer. If you're drafting first (overall), I don't know that you can say the same thing. There's plenty of ways to build a team."

More Schwartz: "There's plenty of ways that you can do it. I don't know that you necessarily say, 'Hey, if a guy's there, you have to get him.' I mean, just look around the league, and look at Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner -- first pick in the draft, (and) a guy that wasn't drafted. I think that player is the most important position on the team. But I don't know that it's the most important thing when you're talking about the first pick in the draft."

I'm still thinking the Lions will take Stafford at No. 1 overall, but their recent experience with first-round bust QBs - see: Joey Harrington and Andre Ware - may leave them leery. And don't forget this factoid about Schwartz: He got his start in the NFL in the mid-1990s doing research for Bill Belichick during his days as the Browns' head coach.

Why do I mention this? Because Belichick has won three Super Bowls with a quarterback who was drafted in the sixth round. Last year, he went 11-5 with a quarterback who was drafted in the seventh round.

Just sayin'.

The Lions will work out Stafford on March 31, and they'll visit with USC quarterback Mark Sanchez the next day.

In his news conference in Tampa earlier today, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the Lions will remain a part of the Thanksgiving Day slate in 2009, but maybe not beyond that.

Goodell said he would discuss the situation with the owners "as we get later into the year."

Your thoughts?

...but it's not the man to the right. We'll get to him in a second.

According to ESPN.com, the Lions have decided on Jim Schwartz, the Titans' defensive coordinator for the past eight seasons, to be their next head coach. He has agreed in principle to a four-year deal.

His defense in Tennessee allowed 14.6 points per game this season (second in the league), while Detroit's gave up an NFL-high 32.3.

The Lions are expected to announce Schwartz at a press conference tomorrow.

(*Also on the coaching front, New Orleans has hired Gregg Williams (pictured above) as its defensive coordinator. Williams spent last season with Jacksonville after four years with Washington, where he had the bulk of his success but was passed over for the head coaching job in favor of Jim Zorn. Williams has three seasons of head coaching experience with the Buffalo Bills.)

(Photo by Phil Coale, Associated Press)

Rod Marinelli became the first coach to go 0-16, but the man went out with as much dignity and class as anyone.

For starters, he held a press conference on Tuesday, the day after his firing. That’s more than former Lions coach Steve Mariucci did.

Marinelli started off every press conference with his injury report, and he held true to form in his last one.

“The only injury today is me,” he said, smiling.

And then he talked about what it meant to go 0-16, and why he’ll always make the distinction between the record and the effort.

“I said the record will speak for itself, but I should've added also, when you say 'worst,' I always look at quitters,” Marinelli said. “That's what ‘worst’ is to me – non-caring, people who give up, pout, cry, point fingers. That's ‘worst.’

“Let our record speak for itself, but when I look at worst, that is worst, and this group of men, we didn't succeed on the field in terms of our record, but they succeeded in everything I wanted them to do. We came a long ways in terms of how to be a football team and the record doesn't show it, but it's a start and it's a foundation.”

Class act, coach.

This from Millen's appearance on NBC for today's playoff coverage:

Dan Patrick interviewed Millen about his tenure with the Detroit Lions. Highlights follows:

PATRICK: "Would you have fired you?

MILLEN: "I would have, actually. Probably not this year until after the season. I think when you start having changeover in an organization it filters down into the locker room. That's tough to do. I thought that was a tough position for Rod Marinelli to be in. Rod's a stud. Rod's an outstanding football coach."

ON WATCHING THE LIONS GO 0-16 AFTER HE WAS FIRED: "It was brutal. Obviously knowing everybody up there, knowing and understanding the details, watching it unfold, it was probably harder watching it from home than it was when you're up there. At least when you're up there, you have some interaction. At home, you're just sitting there -- your wife just keeps beating on you. So it's tough."

PATRICK: "How responsible were you for this season and the last eight years there?"

MILLEN: "Oh, completely responsible. When you're head of football operations, you throw it back on me. You can say something about coaching, say something about the players, but inevitably, I'm responsible for them so I'm completely responsible for it in my mind.

Continue reading "Matt Millen would have fired himself" »

Rather than embark on an exhaustive search to find a suitable replacement for the recently departed Matt Millen - the architect of the NFL's only 0-16 team - the Lions have decide to stay in-house for their top executive positions.

Say hello to new general manager Martin Mayhew, a former assistant to Millen, and longtime Lions executive Tom Lewand.

The Lions haven't had a winning season since 2000.

Oy.

After chronicling the Jets' debacle over the last several weeks and producing far too many words on the subject than we'd ever imagined, let's leave it to Profootballtalk's Mike Florio to deliver the appropriate punchline to this sad, sad joke of a franchise in Detroit:

"So, if we understand this (and we’re not really sure that we do), having a front-row seat for a train wreck makes the witnesses to the calamity the best persons not to crash the next train?
The bottom line is that neither Mayhew nor Lewand will be saddled with any accountability for the past eight years of futility.

Instead, they’ve been rewarded.

Oh, poor Detroit fans. We hope your hockey team does well again this year."

Say this much for Lions head coach Rod Marinelli. Despite closing in on the first-ever 0-16 season, he hasn’t lost his sense of perspective. Or humor.

Asked by a reporter this week if he wanted someone to throw him a lifeline, Marinelli said: “I’d throw it back.”

The Lions are at Green Bay in the regular season finale.

“This is one big nightmare,” center Dominic Raiola said. “You’d like it to end, but it hasn’t ended yet.”

Soon enough, big guy. Soon enough.

Um ... ok .. fine.

He goes to an 0-7 team whose coach is about to be fired and whose next general manager is working somewhere else in the NFL.

Right.

Hallelujah.

Unfortunately for Lions fans, it's Bill Ford Jr., not William Clay Ford, who has final say over general manager Matt Millen's fate.

Here's what Bill Ford Jr. said when asked earlier today at a Detroit Economic Club event when he was asked about the Lions' blowout loss to the 49ers yesterday.

"It was an embarrassment, the fans deserve better, and if I had the authority, I would have fired the general manager,” Ford said. He was asked again a few minutes later if he'd have fired Millen, and he replied: “Yes, but I don’t have that authority.”

The Lions, in case you've been living under a rock during the Millen era, are a complete joke. And at 0-3, there is little hope of turning this thing around.

But at least the son is now openly at war with the father over this one. And you have to believe - please, let us believe - that Ford Sr. will look at this fiasco and mercifully pull the plug on the Millen era.

Here's the condensed version:

Running back Rudi Johnson was signed by the Lions on Monday after being released by the Bengals.

To make room on the roster, the Lions released running back Tatum Bell.

While Johnson was somewhere else in the team's practice facility, Bell allegedly took two pieces of Johnson's luggage from the locker room.

The luggage was eventually returned, although $200 in cash and credit cards were missing.

"He left the money clip, but he didn’t leave no money in it," Johnson told a reporter. "He should have took the clip, too. … If anybody’s got some Perry Ellis boxers for sale, you know where they came from."

Bell says it was all a mix-up.

Strange.

Very, very strange. Although I love Johnson's quote about the Perry Ellis boxers for sale.