So here I sit watching the Lions get stomped by the Bears (Kyle Orton is my awesome QB pick of the week for fantasy by the way) and I wonder if the Lions have any hope to improve in the next few years.  The Lions play with no passion, no drive, and hardly look like they are interested in the game.  Rod Marinelli just finally benched Kitna, only to play Dan Orlovski.  Roy Williams is blaming everything but his hands for why he isn't catching the ball.  This is sad.  I say it's time to trim some fat and let the new guys play.

First things first, fire Marinelli.  The man is lost, and has no hope of fixing this team.  At halftime Rod said "We know what we need to do we just need to start doing it".  Duh.  Even assuming the Lions as a team know what to do, there is no reason to believe they can do it.  Marinelli came in to Detroit preaching fundamentals, defense, and dedication and this team has no idea about any of them.  The tackling is the worst in the league, the defense is pathetic and the only dedication I see in Detroit is William Clay Fords dedication to Rod Marinelli.  Rod Marinelli has been hindered by Matt Millen, but the choices for offensive and defensive COs came from Marinelli and are just wrong.  Son in law can't lead a pee wee football teams defense to victory and Jim Coletto just is not O-line coordinator quality. 

Does firing Marinelli make the Lions better?  No not at all.  In fact finding an interm or even new head coach at this point in the season would be very hard.  But it again pacifies the fans, and WCF needs to do as much of that as possible.  The Lions need a GM and a new head coach.  A quaterback a new offensive line, some DBs that can tackle, I mean the list goes on.  Here is my solution.

Hire Floyd Reese as GM.  This is the guy that made the Tennesee Titans the team they are today.  He can evaluate talent, he has some kind of draft crystal ball, and he is not Matt Millen.  This man is asking for the job.  He wants to come to Detroit, and I can't imagine he is just looking for Millen like job security.  Reese must see something here in Detroit that he can work with.  I say hire him, give him 3 years and see what happens.

Find Bill Cowher and pay him whatever he asks.  Marty Shottinheimer is another option.  The guy took his last team to a 14-2 record before getting fired.  Either way you are getting a quality head coach with a proven track record.  Personally I think Cowher would be a better fit here, he is a take no #### kind of guy and that is what the Lions need.  Rod Marinelli is supposed to be that guy now, but he hasn't lived up to the hype.  Cowher will come in here, clean house and smack some heads until this team listens.  I will give WCF some credit, he sticks with a head coach until they have proven they can not get the job done, unlike Al Davis.  So give Cowher the reins, 4 years, and a GM he can work with and turn him loose.

Next on the agenda, clean house.  Kitna is worthless as the Lions quarterback, the guy is not the future here.  Trade him now while he still has some value to a team that has a shot.  The Patriots need a quarterback so let's make a deal.  Kitna has enough skill to lead a team like the Patriots into the playoffs, easily.  So get a 3rd round draft pick for him.  Hell float the conditional draft pick idea like Green Bay did with Favre.  Detroit gets a 3rd round, a 2nd round if the Pats make the playoffs, and a 1st round if they win the Super Bowl.  Even going 4th, 3rd, 2nd makes sense.  It is time for Drew Stanton to get his shot as the starter, so the team can see if he is the answer for the future.  I doubt it myself.  Stanton in the second round was one of the worst reaches I've seen in the draft in years, but the guy deserves a chance to prove himself.

Next up on the chopping block, Rudi Johnson.  Send him to Pittsburgh for a 4th or 5th round pick.  He isn't worth that much sitting on the Detroit sidelines so get what you can for him.  The Steelers are hurting for a decent RB and Johnson can fill in until FWP is healthy.

This one makes me happy inside.  Let's ship Roy Williams to Dallas for a 2nd round pick.  The Lions are going nowhere this year so why keep all this dead weight around?  Roy Williams doesn't want to stay here in Detroit, is gone in 3 months anyways, why not try to get something of value for him?  Jerry Jones would love to see Williams line up across from T.O.  Another good place for Williams is Cleveland.  The Browns are going to stick with Anderson because they spent so much money on him, so why not try to pry Brady Quinn off the bench and into the silver and blue?  Of course it's gonna cost Detroit more than Williams to get Quinn, but I think adding a late round pick would be worth it.

Those three players are the only ones on the Detroit roster that any other team is going to show interest in besides Ernie Sims, and to give him up would be insanity.  Sims is going to be the cornerstone of the Lions new defense, and I hope he is ready for that.  Personally I would like to see the Lions cut everyone but Sims, Kevin Smith, Stanton, Calvin Johnson, and maybe Gosder, and sign jobbers for the league minimum and play this year and the next.  Detroit is so #### up when it comes to the salary cap that they need two years of a 20 million dollar roster to make room to rebuild. 

This is my way of making the Lions better, even though it may take two to three years to pay off.  We need draft picks, and lots of them to make a difference.  Lemmie know what you think, any better ideas or trades out there?