As a Lions fan, I have fostered and cultivated a sublime loathing of Brett Favre...the Devil who wears #4....but the devil is gone now...retired (I've heard that before...)

And as of yet, he has not returned. 

And as anyone who is an avid fan of horror and just generally scary movies, the vanquishing of an evil that great leaves a nasty void....and something will come forward to fill it.

Logically, one would assume that that would probably be Aaron Rodgers...and whereas I don't think he's necessarily a good guy in most Lions' eyes...he's no devil-esque Farve-type...more like a Snidely Whiplash--and who can take anybody with handlebar mustaches seriously anymore?

Maybe someday, Rodgers will be able to ascend to such dastardly heights...but not yet. 

So then, who fills the void...Tom frickin' Brady fills the void.  That's who.

This guy is so worthy of hate.  He has everything!  He's married to a super model.  He's got a kid with another super model.  He's in movies.  He's won three super bowls.  Everything he touches turns to gold.  He's really good looking too...not that I've noticed...He's all smiley and funny and enormously rich...

I'm pretty sure that Tom Brady is either the devil himself...or he's made a pretty one sided deal with him.

And the new devil is on his way to Detroit for the third preseason game...the one all of the starters are supposed to play the whole first half of...

What can the Lions expect from the devil?  What should you watch for?  Let me tell you.

1. Again, does Matthew Stafford stay healthy?  Really, that's all that matters in this game.  He is the whole kit and kaboodle.  One day, hopefully, Stafford will be some other teams' devil---like hopefully, Green Bay's or Chicago's. 

2.   Does the D-line play well?  Hopefully well enough that the Kong will break through the line, rip off Brady's right arm and bury it under a goal post.  That'd be sweet...of course, the NFL would have to fine him again....

3.  Does Louis Delmas even show up....I know they'll announce his name as a starting safety...but does he really play.  More than two tackles worth?

4. Who's running the ball for the Leo's?  Are they worth a damn?

5. Can Willie Young continue to mangle and devestate the grocery baggers that'll he be playing against in the fourth quarter?

6.  How does Jeff Backus look good in his first action this season?  How does the line look in general?  If the Lions can run the ball and Stafford isn't on a stretcher...they're probably doing pretty good.

7. Rookie WR Titus Young is getting his first action.  I think the kid ways 12 pounds, but I may be overstating it.  Let me just say that he's....skinny.  Hopefully, he's fast enough to avoid getting smashed into a thousand piece jig-saw puzzle.

Oh, and I don't say all that stuff about Brady because I'm jealous of Mr. Perfect...really....I'm not....I swear....

Forgive me if I can't even be the least bit excited that the Lions fourth stringers were able to come back and beat the Browns' fourth stringers for a 30-28 victory.  Ninety five percent of all the participants that made the outcome of this game possible will not be on an NFL roster in two more weeks.

And the whole 2-0 thing?  Come back in a month and let me know what their record is, because four years ago I watched the Leo's rack up a most impressive 4-0 preseason record...only to follow that up with the NFL's first 0-16 season.

So...I will not be attending any parades over the Lions ability to keep the Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial trophy with their second straight victory in the Great Lakes Classic.

Here's what I took away from the game.

1. Matthew Stafford has learned to throw the ball into the stands when being flushed out of the pocket...he did it a lot, with style even on Friday night.  This typically saved him a sack and a yard or two of field position...but did kind of deflate his completion percentage.

2.  Nate Burleson may have a future as a balarina.  That's two weeks in a row he's caught touchdowns while barely tapping his toes in bounds.  Most impressive.

3.  S. Amari Spievey still looks awesome.  He's everywhere, making tackles all over the field and it got me to wondering...where the heck has his partner in crime been for the last two weeks?  I can't recall ever hearing an announcer mention that S Louis Delmas has done anything yet.  He's supposed to be the potential all pro safety...

4.Somebody needs to see if "Mad" Willie Young can play against the real players, you know the ones that'll still be playing in a month...because he is eating up this camp fodder he's been playing against.

5.  The vaunted Lions defensive front four looked pretty...well "not vaunted."  The Browns, who I frankly don't think are an all world team, were able to put up 21 points in the first half on them.  This all led by Colt McCoy, who a lot of people were figuring wouldn't be around for the Browns again this year...due to a less than stellar freshman year in the NFL.

Maybe the Browns do have a QB of the future in McCoy, or maybe the Lions are back to their age old tradition of making every quarterback they face Hall of Fame worthy.

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.

It doesn't mean squat.  

Seriously, anyone who tells you preseason games matters is probably trying to sell you a ticket he got stuck with.

There are some things to watch for of course, but nothing to really get all that excited about.

Here are 5 things to keep an eye on during the first quarter...

1. At the end of the first quarter...is Matthew Stafford still able to stand?  Is his arm in any kind of protective sleeve?  If not, the Lions have already won the game.

2.  How does the new secondary play together.  I've heard lots of rumors that Amari Spievey may beat out the free agent S Eric Coleman the Lions signed this offseason...if he does, that's really good.  How are Chris Houston and Erik Wright playing together, because that's going to be the starting tandem for most of the season.

But, if they are playing awesome....remember they're only playing against rookie QB Andy Dalton in his first ever game action...don't get too excited (see top of this article).

3. Has Suh gotten suspended for unnecessary roughness yet?  I'm sorry, but I have a really firm belief this is going to happen this year.  I love the intensity that he plays with...but at the end of last season, the refs were looking for him. 

4.  How are the running backs doing?  And not Jahvid Best (although make sure he's not hurt either).  But the other guys, Mike Bell, Jerome Harrison and Ian Johnson...do any of them run hard enough to be a goal line back?  Don't look at how they run through open holes...how do they run when there is no hole, because that's what it's going to be like in short yardage and goal line.

5. Who's playing offensive tackle for the Lions?  Seriously, who?  I want to know.  Backus is out.  Cherilus is out.  Jason Fox is out....who's playing tackle on either side?  Which brings me back to the number one thing to watch...Is Stafford still able to stand?

Enjoy the games guys...but don't get too excited.