I watched this past weekend's football fully expecting to have Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Tim Tebow shoved down my throat as a combined story lines of divergent ways that the future of NFL offenses may be going....Tom Brady and the Patriots embarrassing mutilation of the Broncos fully pushed into view exactly what the NFL thinks about the "Running Game/Sound Defense" theory of football teams...The NFL wants none of it.  In fact, after the Broncos-Patriots contest, I was fully of the opinion that what the NFL truly wants is 100-98 basketball-type scores. 

But then something funny happened...the Forty-Niners and Giants dethroned Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers, respectively in what had to have the people back in the New York offices mighty upset.  Where has the long anticipated opening day rematch of the Packers and Saints gone? 

The old adage has always been "Offense puts people in the seats, defense wins championships."  The NFL, via rule changes, questionable officiating, and broadcast television, have been trying for years to debunk this theory.

And for the most part they have.  The five yard chuck rule, the overzealous flagging of hits to the quarterback, the horse collar tackle, the protecting of receivers going over the middle...all of this has led to defenses being almost completely hand tied in their attempts to slow down offensive juggernauts...just as the NFL has foreseen...

But this past weekend...SF and NY seemingly made stands for the way football used to be played.  They won with enough defense to slow down these passing juggernauts...although in the SF-NO game, one could make the argument that the 49er defense simply managed to keep them in the game until the last five minute onslaught of offensive fireworks...but still...there was defense and there was a lot of rushing from Frank Gore and even Alex Smith scored on a 28 year QB keeper...

The old ways can still stand...but will they be allowed to next year?

So what did we learn?

1.  Defense can still win, but I fear that the Lions are not built with the kind of defense that does.  The Lions defense is built upon the defensive line, from the tackles out.  Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairly are cornerstones for the future...but the ends?  I'm worried about the defensive ends.

Kyle VandenBosch is an incredible motor guy and an unquestioned leader...but I don't think it's too far fetched to say that he gets by on his work ethic and non-stop motor than he does with his baseline talent.  If you look at the ends of SF and NY, you see lean long speedsters in the mold of a Julius Peppers (Justin Tuck, Osi Umeniyora, etc)...you might be able to say that KVB is a bit like SF's DE Justin Smith...but Smith is a much more powerful, younger, and faster version....this brings up the question of what to do about Cliff Avril, who will be negotiating for a new contract this offseason. 

Avril is a somewhat known commodity as he has increasingly gotten better every season, this year he had a career high 11 sacks...but he is not in the mold of a Tuck or a Peppers or Umeniyora...he is a shorter, fast end...he is not in the top 5 in the league...11 sacks is respectable...but that's supposed to be what he averages every year...if he's truly great, that'd be a down year for a pro bowl defensive end...Is that worth top 3-4 DE money in the league? 

On the other hand, this is the second new year under the new CBA--and most importantly, a rookie salary structure--and the prospect of trying to draft one or two of those long, lean speedsters and bargain basement prices might be best for the organization...especially when you consider the possibility of Calvin Johnson needing a new contract....

2. Great linebackers can make all the difference.  In SF, Patrick Willis and Navarro Bowman are studs.  They are fast, mean, glass-chewing tackling machines.  They are players with misguided, evil, malevolent hearts when they are on the football field and they can stop the run and cover tight ends out of the backfield.  I don't think the Lions have a single linebacker that can do that.

Willis and Bowman rarely ever miss assignments, and they almost never miss a tackle.  In the Lions loss to the Saints, Tulloch was out of place several times and Justin Durant missed several tackles.

The Lions were one of the worst teams this season in rush defense and while a lot of the blame tends to get heaped upon the D-Line, I'm sure a lot of it should also get shoveled in the direction of the Detroit linebackers who were unable to fill the proper holes and even when they did properly fill missed too many tackles.

3. Teams are going to start loading up on cornerbacks...probably taller cornerbacks if possible.  Last offseason, I set my hopes on two cornerbacks...free agent Carlos Rogers...who was signed up by SF and is going to the pro bowl and Nebraska's Prince Amukamara...who was drafted by the Giants, had an off and on year, but was a big part of eliminating the Packers WR Jordy Nelson this past weekend and is now heading to the NFC Championship game...

Chris Houston had some awful games...Eric Wright didn't exactly light the league...

So, while the Lions are completely stacked at DT...there are still ALOT of positions that the need to be addressed this off season, both prudently and financially intelligently.

This week, Martin Mayhew locked up offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham, and special teams coordinator Danny Crossman for at least the next year.  He is supposedly currently working on extending the contract of Head Coach Jim Schwartz.

This move ensures a consistent leadership in the organization and the kind of continuity in philosophies that perennial football powers like Pittsburgh and New England have used to maintain dominance in the league.  Pittsburgh's Dick Lebeau has been running the Steelers 3-4 defense for...what seems like forever.  He probably coached against Lombardi...Monte Kiffin was the DC for Tampa Bay for something on the order of ten years...and for those ten years Tampa had one of the best defenses every year.  Tom Moore was the offensive coordinator for most of Peyton Manning's tenure in Indianapolis.

Familiarity breeds high amounts of skill when applied to a football team.  An organization knows exactly what it needs to fill the requirements for their scheme.

As Linehan and Cunningham head into the fourth year of their schemes, they know exactly where their deficiencies are.  Also, just as importantly, they know exactly the most important pieces of their teams that need to be kept. 

Namely, Calvin Johnson and Cliff Avril respectively.  The offense, and the Lions organization as a whole, absolutely must, if they want to continue annual trips to the playoffs, extend Calvin Johnson to a long, long term deal.  This will probably take up an unhealthy part of the team's salary cap, but that's unavoidable.  Megatron showed how incredibly vital he is to the continued progression of Stafford and the legitimizing of the team's offense.  Megatron is a unique and very special talent.  He is this decade's Barry Sanders to the Lions.  The organization could never have justified losing Sanders, just as much as the Lions cannot afford to lose Johnson.

Avril managed 11 sacks this past season and was already on a one year contract.  In the NFL, a defensive end that can average 10+ sacks a season and apply consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks has been placed on a pedestal right next to the franchise quarterback and the offensive cornerstone of a left tackle. 

Even though Avril, who has steadily improved year after year, managed double digits sacks for only the first time in his career, if he is allowed to test the free agent waters, he will be highly sought after around the league.  He will demand a large contract too.

Furthermore, the Lions must also attend to MLB Stephen Tulloch and CB Eric Wright, both of who were signed to one year contracts before the season.  Both Tulloch and Wright proved very valuable, especially early in the season, but as the season went on and the Lions defense seemed to fall apart, especially in the last two weeks of the season, one might have to wonder how much of that faltering falls on Wright or Tulloch or even Avril?

The Lions have a ton of decisions to make and only a limited supply of cash.  It'll be a very interesting offseason.

After experiencing the Lions playoff loss to the Saints, a 45-28 lopsided inevitability, I was overly emotional, irrationally enraged by the absurdity of how it all transpired.

As the scored again and again and again, a progression of thoughts occurred to me.

1. The NFL loves the passing game so much that pretty soon holding penalties will be abolished.  Pretty much like it was in New Orleans.

2. Perhaps the NFL just refused to be denied their inevitable Saints-Packers NFC Championship game...as I watched Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairly get held on play after play after play.  Three Saints held Suh back as Brees completed another deep pass.  A Saint held a fist full of the back of Fairly's jersey holding him back just enough that Brees could launch another deep pass.

3. The NBC announcers, the ESPN announcers, the NFL Network team and the Fox crew want nothing to do with the Detroit Lions.  Chris Collinsworth, while doing color for the game would routinely exalt the greatness of Brees while openly ignoring the blatantly obvious holding penalties happening all around him.  On the play where Brees was sacked and fumbled the ball...only to have fumble picked up and by Justin Durant with a clear path to the endzone...instead of being appalled by the incredibly ignorant officiating, he complained that the refs hadn't screwed up enough to allow the Saints to somehow keep the ball...The NFL Network's Deion Sanders refuses to acknowledge the progression of the young Lions...

4. I'm not saying the Lions would have won the game if it had been called correctly.  I merely say that this game would have been a LOT closer.

5. The Lions could not rebound from three dropped interceptions.

6. They could not find any way to get Brees and his horde of offensive weapons off the field...the Saints never had to punt.  The only times their drives didn't end in touchdowns, they ended with a field goal (at the end of the first half) or in two turnovers the Lions simply were unable to capitalize on.

7. The Saints are an offensive juggernaut.  And their complete dismantling of the Lions defense, they were generous to show Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz the team's most glaring need.  Defensive backs.  Look for the Lions to address the back 7 with as much fervor and single-minded abandon as they  have their front four this offseason.

8. The "Wide 9" may not be designed to forsake rush defense in or to generate more pass rush...but that's exactly what it does and that needs to change.  If that requires the dismissal of Gunther Cunningham, so be it.

9. Matthew Stafford, if he can stay healthy, is going to have the Lions in the playoffs in most years.  He's that good.

10. The Lions simply HAVE TO sign Calvin Johnson to a career length contract as soon as possible.

11. The secondary must be addressed and do not be surprised if the Lions don't make a serious run at Titans CB Courtland Finnegan.  Finnegan has experience with Jim Schwartz...just like Kyle VandenBosch and Stephen Tulloch...

12. I cannot remember, in my whole lifetime, the Detroit Lions having a probowl-worthy ball hawking corner back.  Dre Bly was probably the closest...but he was really just a bit better than adequate.  The Lions haven't had that kind of presence since Dick "Night Train" Lane. 

13.  Just like it was time for the Lions to find a replacement for Bobby Layne (which we've done with the play of Stafford), it is now time to find a replacement for the Night Train...

In the NFL you can only play who the next team that gets put on your schedule.  It's always a great argument whenever somebody puts a team down by saying, "Well, look at who they played!  Of course they're..."  If you take apart the Lions schedule this season and look at their 6 losses (2 losses to Green Bay, 15-1, 1 to New Orleans, 13-3, 1 to San Francisco, 13-3, 1 to Chicago 8-8, and 1 to Atlanta, 10-6), you might feel justified in keeping up with that argument.  Five of those six teams are going to the playoffs and Chicago was a real contender until they lost their starting quarterback for the year.  You might say that the Lions just can't beat the big boys...can't hang with the real contenders...

And you may be right...

But let's look at the Lions 31-17 loss a few weeks ago to this weeks wild card opponent, the New Orleans Saints.

1. 31-17 is only two scores...For the Lions, the way they've consistently come back in games this year, it's practically tied.

2. The first game was the first game Matthew Stafford played without his protective glove...and his hand was still sore...of course he still for over 400 yards in that game...

3. This was the first game of Ndamukong Suh's suspension.  Nick Fairly played extremely well for the first quarter and then was taken out after re-aggravating his previously broken foot. So the pass rush was severely hampered.

4. Kevin Smith, playing for the already IR'd Jahvid Best, went down in the second quarter with a high ankle sprain.

5. S Louis Delmas didn't play.  CB Chris Houston was held out with an injury too.  CB Eric Wright went out with an ankle or knee injury during the game...The secondary was decimated.

6. The Lions were called for FOUR personal foul calls which greatly helped the Saints sustain drives and score.  They were also called for an incredibly ridiculous face mask call on Nate Burleson when he tried to stiff arm a defender as he was going out of bounds. 

Now let's look at what will be different this game...

1. Stafford is completely healed and on fire after throwing for 520 yards and 5 TD's against the Packers (5,038 yards this season, only the fourth QB in the history of the NFL to accomplish this feat.)

2. Ndamukong Suh will play.  It appears that Nick Fairly will play.

3. The entire starting secondary of the Lions is set to play...and they have a lot to prove after they gave up 480 yards and 6 TD's to Aaron Rodgers' backup.

4. Kevin Smith is healthy.

5. New Orleans RB Mark Ingram, who scored in the first game, will be out this time around.

Now all that stuff is nice and all...but in the end, I really, really think that this game comes down two things...maybe three.

1. How good of a coach is Jim Schwartz...and his assistants?  The Lions have already played the Saints.  They know what they're all about.  What did they learn?  Will the Lions' adjustments prove to be better than New Orleans' coach Sean Payton's?

2. Penalties.  Will the Lions continue their assault on the NFL rulebook?  Will the whistles continue to blow against the Honolulu
Blue?  I'm sorry, but if you've noticed anything over this season...other than everybody and their brother calls the Lions "undisciplined and dirty"...is that they are not ever getting any calls, they are the victims of facemasks and holdings and offsides and pass interferences...and they do not get calls.  The Lions are getting mugged every Sunday and they are the ones being called dirty.

If you watched the Packers game, which was the first time anyone has said anything about the huge discrepancy in calls, you saw a blatant shot to the Kevin Smith's head as he scored a touchdown, no call.  A touchdown not called.  A muffed punt by Jordy Nelson.  A non-muffed bad call on Stefan Logan...

The Lions DO seriously need to stop with all of the dumb penalties and all of the regular penalties too.  They had 11 penalties against the Packers...but the games need to start getting called both ways too.

I'm not saying that's why the Lions lost to the Packers on Sunday...or all of their other losses, but the evidence of unbalanced officiating just keeps piling up.  The Lions lost to the Packers because they wouldn't have been able to cover a tree...but all those penalties and non-called Packer/Saint/etc calls.

3. Ndamukong Suh needs to have a Big 12 Championship type game...and if Nick Fairly and Corey Williams could chip in too that'd be awful nice.  The more pressure on Brees, the better.

With 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter at Lambeau, it occurred to me that Matthew Stafford had never lost at Lambeau...never...ever...in his whole career...of course, he'd never played there before either.  He'd been hurt in both of the Lions previous games at Lambeau Field.

And for a moment, despite the fact that the Lions defense may have played better if they didn't even show up at the game, may have played better if they'd played blindfolded, may have played better if they'd played with all of their shoelaces tied together... I thought that maybe the Lions could start a new streak...a new tradition...maybe the Packers would have to deal with Stafford slapping them silly every year for the next fifteen years...

I thought that this was a special year.  The streaks WOULD end!  The Lions would win....how could they not?  The Packers were playing with second and third stringers.  The Lions were playing against the same Matt Flynn that could only manage a field goal in the game he was forced into last season when the Lions were able to knock Rodgers from the game with a concussion.

Aaron Rodgers sat this game out.  Clay Matthews sat this game out.  Charles Woodson sat this game out. 

And still...the Lions...frankly...simply....just blew it.

The Lions started the game off with a touchdown and a safety....they were spotted a 9-0 lead...and they still managed to lose 45-41.  That means, from the middle of the first quarter on....the Lions were outscored 45-32...

If the Lions couldn't manage to beat the Packers second string...maybe they don't really even belong in the playoffs. 

So now, instead of probably facing the Giants next weekend..the Lions will travel to play the New Orleans Saints--where they have not lost all season.  Where Drew Brees can pretty much walk on water this season.  The word "Doomed" comes to mind...  Only a crazy person would expect the Lions be able to get their second playoff win in 55 years next week...

Now, the game wasn't all bad...just all bad defensively...Stafford managed to throw for 520 yards and 5 TD's...of course he also threw two very costly interceptions, but still 500+ yards is pretty damned impressive.  244 of those yards went to Calvin Johnson. 

Of course that means that Stafford threw for a Lions record 5,038 yards this season (the previous all time record before the aforementioned Brees shattered it this year) was 5,085 yards by Dan Marina.  He also threw for a Lions record 41 TD's this season...

And Stafford still didn't even make the probowl.

Matthew Stafford gave the Detroit Metro area and the entire state of Michigan a great early Christmas present on Christmas eve: A guaranteed trip to the playoffs.

Stafford was on fire from the time he set foot in the stadium on Saturday: 29 of 36 for 373 yards and 3 TDs...and most importantly 0 INTs.  And it wasn't all the Stafford to Johnson show either.  More than six different Lions players had two receptions or more.

And the defense were able to stop the run and also keep Philip Rivers, who came into the game as hot as any quarterback in the league, in check too...intercepting him twice.

For the first time since 1978, the Lions were able to beat the Chargers...one more nasty streak cut down by these young upstart Leos.

Next week, the Lions will once again have another monster streak to cut down...Lambeau Field.  Sure the Chargers streak was longer, but because the Lions play the Packers every year...and largely because of the Devil named "Favre"...this twenty year losing streak at Lambeau will get all the play this week.

But for a moment...let's enjoy their first trip to the post season....whew...I can't believe it.  It's shocking really.   Matthew Stafford has stayed healthy all year....silencing the boat loads of critics who claimed he was "injury prone."  I'm sorry to say I was leaning toward getting on that boat myself...

1. Stafford now holds the single season passing records for yards, touchdowns and completions.

2. Stafford is still only 23 and there is still one game left this season.

3. Calvin Johnson now has the most receiving touchdowns for a Lion in a season, 15.

4. Stafford to Johnson, hopefully, knock on wood, will own all the Lions records in a few years...or at least all the ones that don't have "Sanders" or "Hanson" on them.

5.  Merry Christmas everybody!  And thanks to the Lions.