11-30-2005, 06:53 PM
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...SPORTS0101
ALLEN PARK-- As the losses mounted and the whispers grew and the players bailed, the nasty moment arrived, as it always does around here. Steve Mariucci had to go. He was a good guy in a tough spot, and he couldn't handle it. Then again, when it comes to coaching the Detroit Lions, apparently no one can handle it.
Cue the circus music and spin the turnstile, out goes another coach, befuddled and besmirched, then finally fired. Lions president and CEO Matt Millen did Monday what he should have done Friday, after the dismal Thanksgiving Day loss to Atlanta dropped the Lions' record to 4-7. He dismissed Mariucci, addressing part of the problem, while stirring one of our least-favorite questions:
Do you have any faith he can solve the whole problem?
Millen, who fired Mariucci and installed defensive coordinator Dick Jauron as the interim, is still in charge, which should make Lions fans very nervous.
Of course Millen also should have been fired by owner William Clay Ford Sr. Of course he's just as culpable as Mariucci, who was 15-28 overall. Millen is 20-55 in his five-plus seasons, proving adept at precisely one thing -- hunting down scapegoats.
"As we all know, this is a brutal business, and at times, good people suffer a cruel fate," Millen said. "This is one of them."
It shouldn't be the only one. Playoff expectations weren't met, but oh, if fixing the problem were only as simple as dumping the coach.
Mariucci arrived with a decent reputation, a 57-39 record in San Francisco, and leaves defiled, as most Lions coaches inevitably do. Mariucci was a huge disappointment, stubbornly sticking with an inept offense. He ticked off one of his best players (runner Kevin Jones) by using him sporadically, and he never instilled discipline. Players began openly questioning the offense, and the immature ones gleefully took advantage of it.
It's too bad, it really is, because Mariucci was the big-name, big-money hire everyone craved three years ago. But scapegoats beget scapegoats, and by benching quarterback Joey Harrington for Jeff Garcia, Mariucci pointed the finger, and allowed players to do the same.
Millen points it now. You just wonder when -- if? -- he'll ever truly point it at himself.
Asked if he accepted responsibility, this is what he said: "Plenty. Ultimately, I'm at the top and that's where it stops."
And in the next breath, came this: "The talent is here. ⦠I believed this was a roster capable of making a playoff run, and I still believe that. We've underachieved as a football team, and we have not developed our younger players, and that's bothersome."
Millen racks up mistakes
Millen is in charge of acquiring the talent, so obviously he believes he has done his job there. He's also in charge of hiring coaches, and Jauron is his third hire, likely to be followed by his fourth.
Shortly after Millen jumped from the TV booth straight to the Lions' top job, talking tough and sounding smart, he made mistakes. The rookie executive's initial gaffe? Grabbing rookie coach Marty Mornhinweg, after dumping the experienced Gary Moeller.
Today, when he's done removing the plaque from the head coach's office, Millen again should thank his good fortune that he works for an owner who is either the most patient, most loyal, or most misguided in all of sports. If the talent really is here -- and that's debatable given the struggles of Harrington, Charles Rogers and that offensive line -- it will take another coaching staff to extract it, because there's no indication Jauron has a chance to survive beyond the final five games.
Maybe, hopefully, Millen has learned. He got a five-year contract extension from Ford earlier this season, so he has convinced at least one person. Sorry, but we're forced to remain skeptical. In the most important chore for any NFL executive -- hiring an on-field leader -- Millen has failed spectacularly, and he knows it.
"I tell you, it hurts, it really does, because we haven't won in a long, long time here," Millen said. "Maybe it took me a while to really understand that, but I understand it now. If anything, it makes me more resolute and more determined, and to be honest, just downright ticked off."
Jauron reluctant
Imagine how Lions fans must feel, clutching fading memories of one playoff victory in 48 years. Imagine how Jauron must feel, a former Lions star who was NFL Coach of the Year in 2001 with Chicago.
He came here to work for Mariucci, a good friend, and winds up replacing him, although he accepted the task reluctantly. As Millen spoke Monday, Jauron stood to the side, staring grimly, another decent man stepping forward, about to be grilled. He looked like someone in charge of mopping up a mess, with no promise of benefiting from the clean floor.
"I don't think anybody in our business wants to be standing here, in this situation," Jauron said.
"I've never felt in our business that it's anything personal."
As for the future, if the Lions somehow got hot and won a few games?
Jauron's placid expression never changed.
"I won't think beyond this game (Sunday at Ford Field against Minnesota)," he said. "I don't think it makes any sense for me to predict anything."
Unfortunately with the Lions, some things are very predictable. You can bet their plan will be fractured and ill-defined, patched when needed.
Mariucci, Millen didn't fit
In retrospect, Mariucci and Millen were a horrible fit, a finesse offensive coach paired with a feisty former linebacker. Millen defied his own nature, going soft, spending six straight first-round picks on offensive talent, including receivers Rogers, Roy Williams and Mike Williams, none of whom fit Mariucci's short-passing offense.
Here's a plea to the NFL world: If you're a hard-nosed football guy with experience (Jimmy Johnson? Tennessee's Jeff Fisher? New York's Herm Edwards), please, please, please give Millen a call.
The man needs help. The Lions need help. We need help sorting it all out.
Finally, I asked Millen if he could pinpoint a pattern of mistakes, why all his football knowledge hadn't dented the Lions' misery, and in fact, had made it worse.
He smiled uncomfortably.
"What do you want me to tell you?" he said. "I can stand up here and beat myself up all night. The way I am, everything's my fault. I'm charged with one thing, and that's to get this football team on the right track. That's what I intend to do."
The follow-up question went unasked, and forever unanswered.
How? And also, when?
ALLEN PARK-- As the losses mounted and the whispers grew and the players bailed, the nasty moment arrived, as it always does around here. Steve Mariucci had to go. He was a good guy in a tough spot, and he couldn't handle it. Then again, when it comes to coaching the Detroit Lions, apparently no one can handle it.
Cue the circus music and spin the turnstile, out goes another coach, befuddled and besmirched, then finally fired. Lions president and CEO Matt Millen did Monday what he should have done Friday, after the dismal Thanksgiving Day loss to Atlanta dropped the Lions' record to 4-7. He dismissed Mariucci, addressing part of the problem, while stirring one of our least-favorite questions:
Do you have any faith he can solve the whole problem?
Millen, who fired Mariucci and installed defensive coordinator Dick Jauron as the interim, is still in charge, which should make Lions fans very nervous.
Of course Millen also should have been fired by owner William Clay Ford Sr. Of course he's just as culpable as Mariucci, who was 15-28 overall. Millen is 20-55 in his five-plus seasons, proving adept at precisely one thing -- hunting down scapegoats.
"As we all know, this is a brutal business, and at times, good people suffer a cruel fate," Millen said. "This is one of them."
It shouldn't be the only one. Playoff expectations weren't met, but oh, if fixing the problem were only as simple as dumping the coach.
Mariucci arrived with a decent reputation, a 57-39 record in San Francisco, and leaves defiled, as most Lions coaches inevitably do. Mariucci was a huge disappointment, stubbornly sticking with an inept offense. He ticked off one of his best players (runner Kevin Jones) by using him sporadically, and he never instilled discipline. Players began openly questioning the offense, and the immature ones gleefully took advantage of it.
It's too bad, it really is, because Mariucci was the big-name, big-money hire everyone craved three years ago. But scapegoats beget scapegoats, and by benching quarterback Joey Harrington for Jeff Garcia, Mariucci pointed the finger, and allowed players to do the same.
Millen points it now. You just wonder when -- if? -- he'll ever truly point it at himself.
Asked if he accepted responsibility, this is what he said: "Plenty. Ultimately, I'm at the top and that's where it stops."
And in the next breath, came this: "The talent is here. ⦠I believed this was a roster capable of making a playoff run, and I still believe that. We've underachieved as a football team, and we have not developed our younger players, and that's bothersome."
Millen racks up mistakes
Millen is in charge of acquiring the talent, so obviously he believes he has done his job there. He's also in charge of hiring coaches, and Jauron is his third hire, likely to be followed by his fourth.
Shortly after Millen jumped from the TV booth straight to the Lions' top job, talking tough and sounding smart, he made mistakes. The rookie executive's initial gaffe? Grabbing rookie coach Marty Mornhinweg, after dumping the experienced Gary Moeller.
Today, when he's done removing the plaque from the head coach's office, Millen again should thank his good fortune that he works for an owner who is either the most patient, most loyal, or most misguided in all of sports. If the talent really is here -- and that's debatable given the struggles of Harrington, Charles Rogers and that offensive line -- it will take another coaching staff to extract it, because there's no indication Jauron has a chance to survive beyond the final five games.
Maybe, hopefully, Millen has learned. He got a five-year contract extension from Ford earlier this season, so he has convinced at least one person. Sorry, but we're forced to remain skeptical. In the most important chore for any NFL executive -- hiring an on-field leader -- Millen has failed spectacularly, and he knows it.
"I tell you, it hurts, it really does, because we haven't won in a long, long time here," Millen said. "Maybe it took me a while to really understand that, but I understand it now. If anything, it makes me more resolute and more determined, and to be honest, just downright ticked off."
Jauron reluctant
Imagine how Lions fans must feel, clutching fading memories of one playoff victory in 48 years. Imagine how Jauron must feel, a former Lions star who was NFL Coach of the Year in 2001 with Chicago.
He came here to work for Mariucci, a good friend, and winds up replacing him, although he accepted the task reluctantly. As Millen spoke Monday, Jauron stood to the side, staring grimly, another decent man stepping forward, about to be grilled. He looked like someone in charge of mopping up a mess, with no promise of benefiting from the clean floor.
"I don't think anybody in our business wants to be standing here, in this situation," Jauron said.
"I've never felt in our business that it's anything personal."
As for the future, if the Lions somehow got hot and won a few games?
Jauron's placid expression never changed.
"I won't think beyond this game (Sunday at Ford Field against Minnesota)," he said. "I don't think it makes any sense for me to predict anything."
Unfortunately with the Lions, some things are very predictable. You can bet their plan will be fractured and ill-defined, patched when needed.
Mariucci, Millen didn't fit
In retrospect, Mariucci and Millen were a horrible fit, a finesse offensive coach paired with a feisty former linebacker. Millen defied his own nature, going soft, spending six straight first-round picks on offensive talent, including receivers Rogers, Roy Williams and Mike Williams, none of whom fit Mariucci's short-passing offense.
Here's a plea to the NFL world: If you're a hard-nosed football guy with experience (Jimmy Johnson? Tennessee's Jeff Fisher? New York's Herm Edwards), please, please, please give Millen a call.
The man needs help. The Lions need help. We need help sorting it all out.
Finally, I asked Millen if he could pinpoint a pattern of mistakes, why all his football knowledge hadn't dented the Lions' misery, and in fact, had made it worse.
He smiled uncomfortably.
"What do you want me to tell you?" he said. "I can stand up here and beat myself up all night. The way I am, everything's my fault. I'm charged with one thing, and that's to get this football team on the right track. That's what I intend to do."
The follow-up question went unasked, and forever unanswered.
How? And also, when?