Jim Caldwell, This Is Why The Lions Hired You

Jim Caldwell, This Is Why The Lions Hired You

Can Jim Caldwell get the Detroit Lions over the hump and into the playoffs?

          Last season, the Detroit Lions started the the year off with a 6-3 record under head coach Jim Schwartz.  The team had finally seemed to get over the hump after missing the 2012 playoffs the previous year. The defense had finally started to play up to it's expectations, and Matthew Stafford provided several highlight reel throws to Calvin Johnson. The Green Bay Packers had just lost Aaron Rodgers to a broken collarbone, Detroit was finally 1st in the NFC North, and Reggie Bush looked like the Heisman winner from 2005. But when things look too good to be true, they usually are. Especially when it comes to the Detroit Lions. The next 7 contest would result in 6 losses with only 2 of them coming from playoff teams. And to make matters worse, one of those playoff teams managed to beat Detroit with Matt Flynn. Not Aaron Rodgers, but Matt Flynn. Not only did things return to normalcy in the Motor City, but General Manager Martin Mayhew had seen enough of Jim Schwartz as his a head coach. There was plenty of blame to go around for the Lions' disastrous meltdown but it should always come back to the head coach. With the belief that Detroit was in a Mike Singletary/49ers situation, it was time to make a change. The talent is clearly there but the leadership style isn't working in favor of the franchise. In, step...Jim Caldwell.

Golden Tate is looking like the NFL's best off-season free agent signing

          There isn't anything wrong with having a defensive mined coach in the NFL, but the Lions upper management know their team's strengths.  Calvin Johnson is quite possibly the best wide receiver to play in the NFL since Jerry Rice, and Matthew Stafford is one of the league's most talented passers. In addition to those facts, one could even argue that Detroit has the NFL's top defense because they have allowed the least amount of points through 10 weeks. But if the Lions are going to win a super bowl, it's going to be on the strength of Matthew Stafford making accurate throws in the clutch and not turning the ball over. It makes too much sense. In the off-season Detroit drafted Eric Ebron with the #10 overall pick, and this was after signing Golden Tate to a 5 year/$31 million contract. Speaking of Tate, he looks like the best off-season free agent signing not named Steve Smith. He has 800 yard receiving and has proven to be a solid #2 slash good #1 when you need him to be. Translation - money well spent. The Lions won 3 straight games without Calvin Johnson and added another victory when Megatron returned on Sunday. Has this made a statement to the rest of the NFL I think that Barry Sanders is very jealous of the Lions consistency. I don't know about you, but it sounds nothing short of great coaching to me.

          Ndamokung Suh is in the best shape of his life and still dominating at the line of scrimmage. But unlike the Suh of past, we haven't seen the constant bonehead mistakes such as unnecessary roughness and late hits on the quarterback. Suh credits changing his mentality to watching a Tony Gonzalez interview and his play is definitely showing it. Should any of that credit go to his head coach through 8 games of the season? Absolutely. Jim Caldwell deserves a lot of credit for not just the maturation of Matthew Stafford but the overall make up of the Detroit Lions. It was only 2 years ago that Caldwell replaced Cam Cameron mid-season as offensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens. The only affect that had was Joe Flacco turning into a Super Bowl MVP and earning a $100 million contract. Hhhmmm. Think the Ravens made the right move? You tell me. Now...Caldwell has yet to prove that he can avoid the slide that Jim Schwartz experienced last season but this Lions team is completely different than previous years. The talent has always been there, it's just the coaching that hasn't put it all together. This year Detroit looks poised to make the playoffs and compete for the NFC North crown. Fortunately for Lions fans, this is no fluke. The defense is top notch and Megatron's healthy return is music to everyone's ears. Look for the Lions to finish with 4-5 losses at the most and make a return to the post-season this year.