November 2nd, 2009 
Anthony Kuehn 
Posted in 
UGH.
Every Lions fan knows the Lions had the opportunity to take a big step forward yesterday. A win shows progress and puts 0-16 one step further into the rearview mirror. A win keeps the attention on how bad the Rams are and the Lions move into the relative obscurity of 2-5. No more punch lines, no more 1st pick in the draft talk, no more references to last season, just progress. Instead, it’s all back.
The foundation of a winning team was being laid this year, with hopes of a .500 season next year. The 2009 Lions were supposed to be good enough to beat teams like the Rams and give a contender a scare or two, maybe even score an upset. We were supposed to be competitive and start to see signs of life. That foundation is crumbling and the construction site may be sitting on a sinkhole.
On the surface yesterday’s game was just another loss in a season expected to be full of them. On the surface, it was one bad team vs. another bad team. It was a desperate team vs. a not-so-desperate team. However, below the surface it was much more. Yesterday was a game that held hope for a well-played and decisive win over an inferior team. The Lions were supposed to be headed in the right direction working their way back up from rock bottom. The Rams are in a rebuilding mode too but they were still sinking towards rock bottom. The Lions were supposed to take advantage of a break in the schedule that saw them face teams with a combined 26-13 record until yesterday.
The Lions may still turn it around and win some games that they weren’t supposed to. Truth be told, any win they get this year will be one they weren’t supposed to win since they won’t be favored the rest of the year. All the talk of progress and moving forward was stopped yesterday, and it’s as if we were thrust back to 2008. Almost every Lions fan is thinking, “If we can’t beat the Rams, who can we beat?” Hope was supposed to be this year’s theme, not frustration and doubt. We’ve had heaping spoonfuls of that for eight and a half years.
It even seemed like the Lions were destined to win. Interception thrown in the end zone, resulted in a safety instead of an actual turnover. Dewayne White makes a huge play when it seemed like the game was about to get out of hand. The momentum shifts as Stafford marches down the field and scores to tie it up. Zack Follett blows Danny Amendola up on the ensuing kickoff and the whole stadium gets back into it. Louis Delmas breaks up a pass on 3rd and 3 and the Lions will get the ball back to drive for the win…then the little yellow flag appears on the screen and I knew the game was over.
I woke up yesterday morning expecting the Lions to play like a winner in a game they should have won. It was like the cartoons, a little angel on one shoulder and a little devil on the other. One saying, “It’s ok to get your hopes up, today is the first step towards having a real team again.” The other one saying, “This team has burned you every time you get your hopes up, don’t be a fool they will lose.”
The only difference was the angel was the one telling me not to believe, and the devil was selling hope. I listened to the little devil and got a pitchfork in the backside for it. I’m not giving up on this team, I will wake up next Sunday with high hopes for a win, but with each loss it sure is getting harder and harder to wake up on Sundays…
I wont go to far into this as I also am starting to be filled with the diapointment bug myself!
However I am beggining to see the same old trend start up again with much of the media.
The majority of the media is atarting to sum all of the problems of the LIONS as the fault of coach Schwartz which I believe is WAY,WAY off base!
Yes, he has some splaining to do,however there is no way that I am going to turn this mess over in his lap and give him the old well it must be the coaching thing onto him.
Stan Kwan on the other hand? yea there is a problem there.
I see a lot of the problem comming from The recieving core allmost completely!
There has been several games now in which this recieving group just can’t catch the ball or just cant get that extra yard etc.
There has been, all year, allthough noone is willing to just come out and say it a QB contraversy here on this TEAM the whole year!
These players for whatever reason feel as if Dante has been misteated or treated unfairly ): !
This is of coarse ridiculus! Because everyone from the pope to the little children playing in the streets of Argentina know full well that the better QB on this TEAM is Mathew Stafford and he is ready to do the job!
However, if you can’t get your recievers to catch the ball then there is nothing that the coach or a potential probowl QB can do about it!
It is a shame that this had to happen right when it did!
But, it did and until they put this issue to bed then this is going to be another failed season! And really over nothing at all.
Schwartz said that he was going to put in the guy in which he believed was the best QB and he did that.
However when the NFL network and everyone is yelling that the LIONS should put Dante Culpepper in and let Mathew set on the bench for a year? Is that what had to happen?
TO appease the few that saw it that way?
I do not now or then think that it was the wrong decision.
Mathew was ready and he has advanced for being put in when he was.
And Dante even though he did prove himself as a more physicaly fit player has done nothing so spectaculer to prove that he should have the job OVER Mathew.
If there has been anyone mistreated in this whole mess it has been coach Schwartz for trully making what he believed to be the best decision for the TEAM and for the QB that is to lead this TEAM in the near future!
Mathew Stafford for all he wants is to lead this TEAM and take it to the Superbowl someday!
THE FANS most of all because we trully at this time in our lives dont give a rats tahootie who is the QB as long as we WIN!
And to all the young rookies that came here trying and wanting to do the same thing that Mathew wanted to do! HELP THE LIONS WIN!
I do not believe that any of the rookies are part of this contraversy!
I know that Brandon Pettigrew is working his tail off and also Derrick Williams, and Calvin Johnson would never let something like that enterfear with the game like that.
So it seems to me that there are some and just some veterans that should wake up and teach the other youngin’s what’s right and what’s wrong.
And if this is the case and what is going on then they know or should know by now that whatever thoughts that they had on this matter was wrong thinking on thier part and it is TIME TO PLAY FOOTBALL!
This is a great city and we have the greatest fans and LIKE I said we don’t care if it is Mathew or Dante we just want to win!
SO for the WRs it just doesn’t matter who the QB is! CATCH THAT BALL!