The year the Ford's gave Matt Millen an extension instead of the boot after another dismal, disgusting showing, I decided I was giving up on the Lions. 

No longer would they hold this nasty mystical possession of my soul.

Nope, I was going to throw my fanaticism and karmic flow behind another organization...preferably one with Cheerleaders.

So after a painstaking pairing down process I was left with two likely contenders for my fandom....The Tennessee Titans and the Cleveland Browns.

And I chose the Browns...why?  I abandoned the cheerleader rule for the Browns....because I really liked what they were doing at the time.  I loved Joe Thomas and thought Brady Quin would be decent.  I liked Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow Jr...and they were the Lions...with just more boring colors...

And it lasted all of maybe one game...those teams were awful...just like the Lions...and I crawled back to the pathetic I knew instead of the disgusting I couldn't stomach.

And so tonight the Lions play the Browns in the yearly Great Lakes Classic...winner gets the Edmund Fitzgerald Trophy (I'm not making this up.)

Five things to watch...

1.  Most important for every game ever for the Lions...keep Stafford standing.  Keep the Franchise alive and there's a chance for greatness.

2. Who's playing cornerback?  Both Eric Wright and Chris Houston are game time decisions.  Alphonso Smith is still out...who's going to be out there?  Pylons?

3. Do any of the running backs not named "Best" look like they can play...or more importantly pick up a tough yard.

4. Is Amari Spievey still looking like a world beater at safety?  Dude looked really good in week one.

5. Are the Lions stopping the run?  Peyton Hillis is the Browns only really effective weapon.  If Hillis is stopped, it'll most likely mean that the Lions linebackers are all getting on the same page.

Enjoy the game and write the Lions to try and get cheerleaders.

Seriously, please don't go all gaga over this game.  Yes, they looked good.  Yes, Stafford to Johnson looked unstoppable.  Yes, they picked off the first pass of Andy Dalton's career.  Yes, a 34-3 smack down on any professional football team should be impressive.

But in this case, it's not.

It was game one of the preseason against a rookie quarterback throwing to a rookie wide receiver in a meaningless game against a team that looks like it'll be downright awful.

Truthfully, the Lions were supposed to look this good.

Do you remember 0-16?  What was our preseason record that year?  That's right 4-0.  It is so meaningless that people should get fines for talking it up.

So what can we take away from this game?

Stafford stayed healthy.  Calvin Johnson got nicked up a bit, but would play if the games were real next week.  Gosder Cherilus played, which is really good since he's still recovering from microfracture surgery on his knee.

On the whole the Lions had no major injuries which is a big, big plus.

What else can we take away from this game?  The Lions do not have a short yardage back.  The Bengals are awful and the trifecta of Jerome Harrison, Mike Bell and Ian Johnson all looked subpar.

"Mad" Willie Young looks like a downright beast.  I hope the Lions can figure out a way to keep him.  They have a huge logjam of players on the DL and cuts will be very hard to make at the end of training camp, here's hoping they find a spot for this up and coming play maker.

 S Amari Spievey was all over the field and making a ton of tackles.  He could be a real player this season. 

What does all of this good news mean?  Still nothing.  Let's see what they do against Cleveland in the battle of Lake Erie.