As it stands right now the Detroit Lions have five quarterbacks on their roster.  Jon Kitna, Josh McCown, Dan Orlovsky, Shaun King, and Joey Harrington.  Some say that there is power in numbers, but not in this case.  They may just have five back up quarterbacks.

Joey Harrington is still a Lion after deals have fallen through on trades for him with several teams.  Most recently the Browns (on draft day) and the Miami Dolphins.  The Browns were willing to give up a 4th or 5th round pick this year and Miami was only willing to trade a 6th rounder in next year's draft.  Matt Millen thinks his quarterback is much more valuable than just a 6th round pick.  I actually will have to agree with him to a certain extent.  Joey did have his issues with Detroit but has starting experience and also has had times without almost every starting skill position players in place.  On the other hand they do need to cut ties with him and try to get something for him. They really don't need him around with the attitude change he has had since wanting to be traded.  He sure has high demands for a player who has not accomplished anything in his career.  Joey and Terrell Owens have something in common and it isn't being a great player.  They both had division in the locker room causing rifts between players (right or wrong). Terrell had to go and so does Joey,  Philadelphia didn't get anything for Owens though.  Besides, the Lions weren't winning with him so now they will most likely be winning without him.

Jon Kitna may be the starter when the season rolls around.  He will have the strongest competition from Josh McCown who they recently signed from the Arizona Cardinals.  Jon Kitna is not the answer this team needs to turn the corner, is he?  Kitna joins the Lions after spending the last four years with the Cincinnati Bengals. He signed a four year deal with Detroit.  While in Cincinnati he played a crucial role in the Bengals current success. After going 12 seasons with 11 seasons below .500 and one 8-8 season, Kitna engineered a run to compete for a playoff spot in 2003. That season, he posted career highs in completions (324), completion percentage (62.3), passing yards (3,591), touchdown passes (26) and passing rating (87.4) as he led the team to an 8-8 record while starting all 16 games. The year prior, the Bengals finished the season with a 2-14 record.  For his performance in 2003, Kitna was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year by the associated Press and Pro football Weekly. He was the only quarterback in the NFL in '03 to take every snap. He led the team to an NFL-best improvement from 2-14 in 2002 to 8-8 in 2003. Kitna also had a plus-11 differential in touchdown passes (26) to interceptions (15) that was the best by a Bengals passer with at least 20 passes since 1989.

Josh McCown the biggest competition to this point for Kitna was a starter and back up in Arizona.  He was drafted by Arizona in the third round (81st overall) of the 2002 draft and has played in 33 games with 22 starts, completing 498-of-862 passes for 5,431 yards and 25 touchdowns.  To me I always wonder why teams (especially teams like Arizona) give up on young players.  Sometimes players look good from a far but are far from good.  If Arizona was comfortable letting him go to hold on to Kurt Warner doesn't that raise a red flag?  At the time they didn't know that they would be drafting Matt Leinart.  Maybe Arizona just thought it would be smarter to pay a rookie than McCown to back up Warner.

Dan Orlovsky may be the teams no. three quarterback when the season rolls around but as far as this staff sees it they all have a shot at starting.  Shaun King is in the mix to possibly make the team but he didn't even play in 2005.  King and Orlovsky may just be battling just to make the team as the third qb. 

To a Lions fan like myself, I really don't see any of the quarterbacks making a big splash this season.  Really Detroit's best hope is that McCown or Orlovsky take over because of their ages.  It would be better off for them to have a young guy be good enough to take the job from Kitna as far as the future of the team is concerned.  As long as they are the best player it bodes well for Detroit.  That is what they need.  If someone is on the field it is because they are the best player, not the highest paid or been here the longest.  Personally though I am not sold on any of these guys and have a great deal of concern for this position.  The good news is that the Lions have put in place a offense coordinator and offensive line coach in place that should get the most out of what the team has.

coming soon: 

 Ty Law and Az Hakim Lions?

"Hurtin" Ernie Sims, Brian Calhoun, and Daniel Bullocks.  What impact are they going to have?

   This past weekend the football world was entralled in the NFL draft.  Chat rooms and forums were lit up in anticipation of each teams picks and what Detroit was going to do with theirs.  The Detroit Lions have always been the biggest "hot button" in Detroit.  They have only won one playoff game since the 1957 NFL Championship.

     The Detroit Red Wings played game five in their best of seven series against the Edmonton Oilers.  They lost game five and head back to Edmonton facing elimination.  Detroit won the Presidents trophy this season for the best overall record.  However they are in danger of doing it all for not.  Have we seen Steve Yzerman play his last game?  Game six in Tonight in Edmonton at 8pm.

     The Detroit Pistons also had the best record in their respective league.  The also lost on Saturday to the Milwaukee Bucks.  Michael Redd scored 40 in a 20 point win at home against the defending Eastern Conference Champion Pistons.  Game four will be played tonight in Milwaukee at 8:30 pm.

     Last but not least the Detroit Tigers swept the suddenly inept Twins out of town yesterday with a 6-0 shutout and outscored the Twins 33-1.  The Tigers had their best April since 1993 which just happens to be the last season that the Tigers had a winning record.  The Pitching has been outstanding and the hitting has been timely.  Both add up to wins and are only 1 1/2 games out of first behind the World Champion White Sox.

     Having said all of that what does the Detroit Sports report decide to run?  You guessed it a Ron Mason spotlight.  Makes sense right?  Have all this action people care about and run a half hour spotlight on Ron Mason, the athletic director for Michigan State University. What a joke.

     This is a long line of blunders they have made at this station.  In an attempt to help them out I have put a short list of things to do to get better ratings and fan support.

1. Check all name pronunciations (before the show)
2. Broadcast from Detroit more than once or twice a year.
3. Here is a an idea, show all of the highlights from the games.  you have a half hour to kill, show me all the Tigers runs, Red Wings goals, and every draft choice.
4. Listen to the fans, like this blog and all who comment on this.  Most fans in Detroit follow all four pro sports, and are very passionate about them.
5. No more spotlights on anyone, I never watch them and have never heard anyone talk about them.

 


Well it turns out that Mario Williams is the man. The Houston Texans today announced that they will select Mario Williams from N.C. State. Charlie Casserly says it is a football decision and they have reached a tentative contract of six years, $54 million.

This is not what most Texans fans ever really wanted. Most want Vince Young from Texas. That is not really what the team needs however. They believe that Mario Williams fits their 4-3 defense perfectly. The Texans already have a 1,000 yard running back and a number one draft pick of David Carr at quarterback.
Reggie Bush may go to New Orleans but they have Deuce McCallister. He would NOT slip past the Jets (who don't need a quarterback anyway) at number four. The Titans will be taking a quarterback with the number three pick. The Titans are interested in all three top prospects at quarterback.  But will it be Leinart or Young though in Tennessee?

New Mock draft without any trades made in the top ten.  

1. Houston Texans - Mario Williams - DE - N.C. State

2. New Orleans Saints - Reggie Bush - USC

3. Tennessee Titans - Vince Young - Texas

4. New York Jets  -  D'Brickshaw Ferguson - OT - Virginia

5. Green Bay Packers -  A.J. Hawk - OSU

6. San Fransisco 49er's - Vernon Davis - TE - Maryland

7. Oakland Raiders - Michael Huff - DB - Tex

8. Buffalo Bills - Donte Whitmer S - OSU

9. Detroit Lions - Ernie Sims - LB - FSU

10. Arizona Cardinals - Matt Leinart - USC

(edited after the draft to cover up my terrible mock draft.  Plus a lot of people didnt read this small print and think I am a genius!)

wdfnclick to listen

Michael huff was intervied on WDFN sports radio in Detroit  yesterday(4/26).  He has drawn the most attention to Detroit Lions fans and is the player of choice by many as well.  A.J. Hawk is the other player many in Detroit want the Lions to draft as well.  Michael Huff would be a great fit for the Lions due to the losses of Andre Goodman and R.W. McQuarters.  He says he has family in the state and would love to play for the Lions.  This is what any team would want from players they draft.  Players who want to actually  play for them.  It would be a nice fit for him as well with all the other Longhorns on the team.  The Lions will need to find defensive backs, linebackers, and offensive lineman.  This Saturday there may be a lot of action on the trade front in the top 15.  If A.J. Hawk is who they want, the Lions might just have him available too.  It will come down to the Green Bay Packers.  The Packers have serious offensive line needs.  If both Huff and Hawk are both there the Lions will trade down a few picks with a team looking to jump in front of Arizona for Jay Cutler.  If that is the case The Lions may have several offers for the number nine pick.