I've long been right there with you for decades looking for the Lions to make a statement and say "We are going to do what it takes to win". Finally I see rays of light poking threw the clouds as the storm begins to pass.

Last year's draft gave us the first inclination that times were changing. Stafford, Delmas, Levy, Pettigrew, Hill, and even Follett, Brown, and Williams are good if not great players in the making. Now all we need is to get them some help. With all the attention on the draft, I felt on Friday morning that this was kind of the red headed step child of the off season schedule. I must say "Not anymore". Now let's look at what the Lions did and are setting themselves up for the draft.

#1 Kyle Vanden Bosch- Instantly improves our pass rush and the leadership and motor he brings is just what we need to keep building the Schwartz  philosophy on defense. He's not the youngest guy but can definetly hold down the spot for 2-3 years and be productive in doing so.

#2 Nate Burleson- I know he has robotic knees, and an inconsistant past. But he is finally healthy (I hope) and has never had the flags you see with top tier talent WR. Is he top tier? No, but Calvin Johnson is and Burleson knows how to utilize the mismatches that will happen with teams focusing so much on Megatron. He has something we havent had in a #2 WR. HANDS

#3 Corey Williams- It scares me a little to see the Lions get a penetration 1 gap DT on the 1st day of FA when we have Hill, and two DT prospects in the draft that are being touted as the second coming of Sapp and Seymour. But talent is talent and if he is the worst case for the Lions D line than Im good with that. I still want to see Suh in a Lions uniform more than I want to see a Hershel Walker type trade. However knowing our line has Avril/Williams/Hill/Bosch/Hunter rotating already does make the thought of losing out on 1 or both DT's in the draft a little more bearable.

We still have a lot of work to do (secondary, running back, offensive line) in the off season but at least we have addressed needs and for a change. I see the Lions going after the type of players they need to be a better team overall. Not just signing a guy because he will sign, or he had a good year.

Whats next? Well the one thing I know for sure, is that I know nothing about what the Lions front office will do at any moment. However, I know what I would like to see them do and that's what keeps me going. So until the Lions realize they need me in the war room this will have to suffice.

1st off I would go after Antrel Rolle, or Chris Hope in the rest of the time for Free Agency. We have to get Delmas some help and with the draft having so many young secondary guys, I feel we need a veteran prescence in the secondary to show our young guys the ropes. Picking up either of these guys and drafting a Patrick Robinson, Brandon Ghee, or Chad Jones type player would do for our secondary what Suh would do for our D line.

2nd off Draft Suh. Even if we get something over the moon for the pick I stay and take Suh. McCoy is a great player, and very polished. That said Suh's ceiling is limitless, his drive, motor, and love of the game set him in a class all by himself. He was born to play the nose for the Detroit Lions, a blue collar kid with a chance to anchor a young defense for a decade.

3rd off you can never have enough good RB or O linemen. It's the chicken and the egg arguement. Does a good line make a good back, or vice versa. I think you need both and we have neither. With Thomas Jones, Brian Westbrook, and LT all on the radar I think people forget that LenDale White would be a great pick up. He's on the right side of 30 and hasn't taken near the damage a back his age would have. Are the Lions willing to give what it would take to get him? I don't know, but I think he'd look good in Honolulu blue.

Obviously there is still a long way to go but I love the first day, and if they can keep the momentum and keep their focus on the big picture, I think we might finally be seeing the dawn of golden age in Lions football.

Being around the young men that just went through the combine has brought back so many memories. 

The combine has become a place where prospects try to highlight their strengths, but teams are more focused on their weaknesses unless they put up eye popping numbers.  For instance, Bruce Campbell running a 4.7 at 315 pounds is downright scary, as is the player who benched 225 a record 45 times.  I think the general public looks at these numbers and is mesmerized, but the reality is that the most important thing is how they play on the field. 

A prime example is Joe Haden. He might be a 4.5 guy, but he plays much faster than that.  His stock might drop a little bit, but I guarantee is won’t drop that far.  His play speaks for itself. 

The 40-yard dash is basically a standardized test to help differentiate players. Just as the Wonderlic test is supposedly the measure of intelligence.  Unless you are a wide receiver, I do not know of any other position that will run a distance of 40 yards straight ahead on a consistent basis.  The other tests are similar in the fact that they do not directly correlate to football skills.

Don't even get me started on Tim Tebow jumping 38.5 inches in his vertical test, and I'm not a Tebow hater.  He is a great kid and will do whatever he can to try and make it in this league.  But why, when I turned on SportsCenter, did I have to hear about Tim Tebow’s vertical?  I know he invented the fake QB dive jump pass, and maybe that is why, because his vertical is 8.5 inches higher than mine and has little to do with quarterback play.

So now that you know I jumped 30 inches, I should also let you know I ran a 4.71 officially. Unless a QB runs a 4.6 or lower there is really no difference between a 4.7 and 4.9 in the grand scheme of things.  Bench pressing is also a worthless test for QBs to do at the combine, but my year Brady Quinn did it something like 22 times.  Again, falling back on my opinion, players do things they know they can excel at.  By looking at Brady, you can tell weight lifting is definitely one of his strengths. The most important thing for a quarterback to do is to throw, that is what we get paid to do.  And unless you are the consensus number one pick with nothing to prove, you are probably hiding a weakness.  Sure, you have no timing with the receivers, but it is more about doing the session.  The combine tries to see how you will respond to adverse situations, giving teams a better idea of what to expect in the future.

The combine is more for meetings and doctor evaluations, again, teams trying to get you out of your comfort zone.  All of your testing takes place on your final day of four in Indianapolis, so it’s almost an afterthought. The meetings are extremely important, as NFL teams have the chance to get you in a room one-on-one. 

Anyway, that is my two cents on the Combine.  Next week I head back to Michigan with my family, I'm hopeful the weather will start to get warmer upon my arrival.

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

Greetings from South Florida, our home away from home for the past month or so.

My family and I are scheduled to come back in the beginning of March when off-season training starts. My wife, two dogs and I have enjoyed our time down here tremendously, it’s been a very nice change of pace from the frigged weather up North. Yes, we know we are “snowbirds,” but we figured we better come down while we have the opportunity. On the way down we stopped in Greenville, SC, to see my wife's sister and brother in law, plus introduce ourselves to their newborn daughter, Anna Leigh Arends. I’m soooo excited to be an uncle and spoil her to death.

So anyway, the stop helped break up a long 22 hour drive. As soon as we got down here I began working out with Pete Bomorrito (of Bomorritto Performance Systems), he is the guy who trained me for the combine. I have been the utility arm that throws to the running backs, wide receivers and tight ends, so it has helped keep my arm in shape as well.  A good friend of mine, who trained with me for the combine, Greg Olsen, lives right down the street and we have been working out together. After workouts we try to squeeze in video games before our wives start to get annoyed of us playing, and sometimes we play for hours.

It is definitely one of the perks of playing in the NFL. The off-season consists of whatever you want it to in January and February. The four of us hang out a lot and our dogs loving playing together as well. So my day usually consists of workouts from 8 until noon, then I get home and relax for a while. We have been walking our two boxers almost every day, which is great exercise for everyone involved. We usually then go out to eat at some restaurant around us, there are plenty of great ones, and follow it up with a bottle of wine every so often. 

Sorry it has taken so long for an update, but as you can see there is not much to talk about right now. My next blog will consist of what I have been doing at workouts and what I have planned to get better in the off-season. Thanks for reading....

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

It was an up and down season for me. I think I started out real slow. I was thinking way too much out there early on, I got away from just having fun and playing the game. Toward the end I was just playing ball and enjoying myself and making plays.

I learned a lot this season. It was only my second year in the league, and in a lot of ways I’m still learning to play the game. I think I finished a little better than I did last year, but it’s still not where I wanted to be this season. Any pass rusher wants to get double digits in sacks, but my main goal was to avoid a sophomore slump and get more sacks than I did as a rookie. I did that with an extra half sack even though I played two less games.

So I’m not happy with how I finished but I’m not mad either. This is something to build on. I want to go into next season playing as hard as I finished this season.

As a team there’s still lots of improvements to be made. I think the front office will make moves to make us better. We won two more games this year than we did the previous year, but you can’t be content with winning two games.

My goal in the off-season is to get back healthy. I just have some normal wear and tear. Last year I didn’t start playing regularly until mid-season, so playing in 12-13 full games, 50 snaps per game this season put a toll on my body and I’m definitely starting to feel it. Now it’s time to rest and let my body heal up a little bit.

I’m going to take the whole month of January off, maybe play a little basketball but nothing that will put a strain on my body. In February I’ll start lifting and running to work back into shape.

I want to thank all the fans who have come to my website and offered their support. Check back in during the off-season, I’ll be here now and then.

Cliff Avril is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com

runs at www.avril92.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cliffavril.

You can usually tell when you are being set up or pigeonholed into saying something that the media is looking for.  I got that feeling today and should have followed my instincts. Let me clarify something once and for all, I WANT TO BE IN DETROIT in whatever capacity I can be!!! 

I never said that I did not want to be in Detroit if I was to be the third string quarterback, I merely stated that third-string quarterbacks do not have long careers. I for one, would love to have a long career.  I recognize the importance of showing this franchise that my worth can exist as a backup.  I know what my role has the potential to be as the Detroit Lions move forward and that is what I am focused on. 

The other issue that was misrepresented was my health last week.  I had a high ankle sprain and was not moving around well in the beginning of the week and that is when I was told that Daunte would be starting.  I only took a few reps Wednesday, but by the end of the week I was feeling better and was listed as the number two QB for the game.  I was not looking to start anything in the media with my quotes.  I have always been and always will be a team guy. I understand the importance of it.  Coach Schwartz made a decision that he thought was in the best interest of the team, end of story.  I would never undermine him. 

I'm ready to put this behind me and I look forward to next year.  Thank you for reading this fall, check back for regular updates in the off-season. 

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

I tore my ACL in the fourth quarter of the Ravens game. I had 80 yards at halftime and for the most part thought I was having a pretty good game. It’s crazy that in a blink of a second, you’re down and it’s over for you.

When it happened it was the worst thing I ever felt. The pain was literally breathtaking. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. No one touched me, it was a non-contact injury, but I knew when I fell that I messed something up in my knee. I didn’t know what I did exactly but I knew it was something serious, because I’ve played through a lot of injuries and I had never felt anything like that.

It was heartbreaking. It took me about 24 hours to get my mind back together, and now I’m in good spirits and just anxious to get through my rehab and come back stronger than ever. In my third year I want to get back into the race in my running back draft class, with Chris Johnson, Rashard Mendenhall, Matt Forte, Tim Hightower, Ray Rice, Jonathan Stewart, Darren McFadden, Steve Slaton and Felix Jones. Down the road they’re going to be talking about this draft class of running backs as one of the best, and I want to be part of that conversation.

But right now I just have to focus on myself, getting back together, and I have all off-season to do it. I recover pretty quickly. Sometimes I’m like a medical miracle. I keep my faith in God and I know he’s going to see me through if I keep up my spirit and my faith.

As far as my rehab goes, I’m tuning everybody out when they tell me how long it’s going to take before I can come back full strength. I’m going to talk to some players who have had torn ACLs and take their advice, like Daunte Culpepper, my old college roommate Mike Sims-Walker, and Frank Gore. As far as recovery time, I don’t want to hear it from anyone. I won’t put a timetable on myself. When I’m ready, I’ll be back.

I walk with crutches now, and I get in trouble with my trainers for trying to walk without them. During rehab I take off the brace and I can walk with a limp. I think I’m doing pretty good for where I’m at right now. I think I’m a little ahead of schedule.

This season did not go as well as we had hoped. I didn’t come in and play as well as I had anticipated, and as a team we definitely did not make the strides I thought we would make. But football is a year-to-year thing. You have to roll with the punches. The season was what it was. Right now I’m just focused on myself and getting back to football as soon as I can.

Kevin Smith is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.smith34.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34.

To say that was not the way I imagined my first start going isn't worth wasting my time to elaborate on.  I’m trying to focus and build on the positives of last week from here on and correct the mistakes that occurred.  It was great getting a full week of preparation to get comfortable and familiar with the game plan, a luxury I had yet to experience at this level. 

I felt confident in what we were trying to do on offense and it showed in our first drive. We were able to mix run and pass well, but would have loved to come away with a touchdown instead of a field goal. After that, as an offense we never really got back into a rhythm.  Anytime you turn the ball over four times at my position, you’re not going to win. Our defense was playing extremely well and we did not respond on offense, and that falls completely on my shoulders. That it was sat the worst with me on Sunday’s flight home. I felt as if I had let my teammates down. And that is about as bad of a feeling as you can have.  But I have had a rule about anything that happens in the game and will stick to it for as long as I play. Once I walk out of the film room and make corrections, right, wrong or indifferent, I leave my emotions in that room and move on to next week.

That’s was I have done at this point. The film is a teaching tape for me now. This really is a game of inches, because if I get that throw down to Mo or the ball more out in front of Calvin then we are looking at two more scores. The last throw was just all together bad, but I know what I was thinking and saw on film.  It's those split-second decisions that make the difference in games, and the teams that make them are the teams that are victorious. 

I'm looking forward to the last game of the season being at home and will hopefully get an opportunity to end the season on a high note for the Detroit Lions. Happy New Year! 

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

Drew Stanton was named the starting quarterback for the Lions on Wednesday by coach Jim Schwartz.

Stanton, a third-year pro out of Michigan State, will start against the San Francisco 49ers on the road on Sunday for the Lions (2-12).

"It's a nice early Christmas present, the best one I've had," said Stanton, a 2007 second-round draft pick who has had to wait nearly three full seasons before getting his first opportunity.

After starter Matthew Stafford was injured, Stanton earned the start with a solid job in relief of Daunte Culpepper on Sunday. In just his second action of the 2009 season, Stanton scored his first career touchdown and played almost an entire half in a 31-24 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

Stanton’s 1-yard TD run was a key play, as it knotted the score at 24-24 with 3:48 left in the fourth quarter. The Cards came right back to score less than two minutes later to win it.

Stanton completed 10 of 19 passes for 72 yards and one interception. He rushed three times for 10 yards, including the 1-yard TD run.

After Daunte Culpepper was ineffective through the first half in place of injured starter Matthew Stafford, Detroit fans started chanting, “We want Stan-ton! We want Stan-ton!” in the hopes of getting the 2007 second-round pick from Michigan State into the game.

It was Stanton’s second game action of the season. He also played in a 26-0 loss to Green Bay on Oct. 18, when he went 5-for-11 for 57 yards and two interceptions. He was sacked twice in that game but was not sacked against Arizona.

In 2008 Stanton played in three games and threw one touchdown pass.
 

Getting a sack is always a challenge. Those offensive linemen are huge, so basically you have to make them move their feet. Being that big a lot of them aren’t that good on their feet. The two biggest things are to get them to move their feet and to keep them off-balance. But those aren’t easy things to do.

You can’t run into them because they can just grab and hold you. You have to try to contact them before they make contact with you but that’s hard because their arms are longer than yours.

I try to get off the ball as fast as possible and use my speed to my advantage. Make my move, maybe a spin move or a counter, it varies depending on what the offensive lineman gives you. If he doesn’t get off the ball fast I’ll just blow by him. If he does, then I’ll counter inside or something. But those guys are crafty, too. They know what to look for.

Against Arizona I had a sack fumble on Kurt Warner. I used a lot of different moves during the game and the lineman was setting up for an inside move. So I used my speed to get by him on the outside. You have to get to Warner quick because he gets rid of the ball so fast, but he doesn’t like to move out of the pocket.

We fought back against Arizona but couldn’t pull out the win. It always comes back to the small things and putting a full game together. We’re not always where we need to be at times. Once we get the mental aspect together I think we’ll be alright.

I think we showed we can compete with any team in the league, especially on the defensive side of the ball. This team has the players and the potential.

Cliff Avril is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com
runs at www.avril92.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cliffavril.

I've never lost a game and felt satisfied. I'm not a believer in, "if you tried your best it's good enough." That might be all right in high school, but I've yet to accept that. I hate losing.  In looking back there are always plays that could have gone a different way that would have altered the outcome. Those are the plays that stick with you and eat away at you until the next week arrives.

Those plays are the ones you learn from and make later on. Just as you remember the bad, the good plays are indescribable. When I got into that end zone to tie the game I had an emotion run through my body I cannot explain.  Unfortunately, I followed it up with a horrible attempt to jump into the stands.  I can explain why it looked so bad, though. It was because the person I was jumping toward was looking and I stopped for a second. Not to mention my "ups" are limited as is. 

Anyway, I had a lot of fun playing in a meaningful game and it was great to hear the fans chanting my name. It's always nice to know you're appreciated.

So as always it will be another interesting week in Detroit at the quarterback position.  Matthew’s shoulder has had two weeks to rest, so we will see how much he can do. After all, he is the starter. 

Stay tuned as I will try to update what's going on this week.

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

I really feel like I’m not having that good of a season, and I have no one to blame it on but myself. I’m not being as productive as I expected I would. I don’t have as many sacks as last year but I still have three games left and I want to go out with a bang this season.

I don’t feel like the team gave up against Baltimore but I haven’t seen the film yet. Coach was real mad at us and gave us the day off today and yesterday. I really doubt that anyone gave up, I think we just got beat bad.

It’s been a frustrating year, for me personally because it’s been an up and down season. I’ve had to deal with a lot of different things, injuries, a new coaching staff, getting used to how things are run and just expecting to win and not winning.

We play Arizona on Sunday so it’s not getting any easier, but when is it easy in this league? From an individual standpoint I just want to go out and have some fun, make the plays I’m supposed to make and get some sacks.

As a team, we definitely want to prove that we’re growing as a defense more than anything. We took a big step forward the week before, then a huge step back against the Ravens. We have to be more consistent, we have to get to the point where we can perform at a high level week in and week out.

Cliff Avril is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com

runs at www.avril92.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cliffavril.

Much like the process of arranging a mock draft, the science of scouting isn’t perfect. Every measurement of weight, length or time doesn’t accurately forecast production on the field.

Send any questions or comments to talktome@randolphc.com

Any time you travel cross-country you never can know how your body is going to react the next day. And there are different philosophies as a head coach as it pertains to the best method for adapting and preparing. I think Coach Schwartz did the logical process by leaving Saturday (as usual for us), but leaving with enough time to do our walk-through in Seattle allowed us to get acclimated.

I think that paid off for us and was evident with the way we came out to start on Sunday. We looked crisp and were firing on all cylinders in the first quarter, but the talent is too good in this league to feel comfortable with any lead and when you have a team down you must keep pressing onward. We unfortunately were not able to do that and the result speaks for itself.

I feel somewhat uncomfortable talking about the game, as I was not out there playing, but I will try my best. I thought as an offense we executed the gameplan how we wanted and knew what to expect.  Seattle relies on the “12th man" to gain an advantage, and it is as good as any crowd in the NFL.  We took them out quick, first goal achieved.  We knew they wanted to try and be physical, second goal achieved by us to go out and punch them in the mouth (figuratively, not literally). 

But the biggest determining factor in the NFL is turnover ratio, and that unfortunately got away from us in the end.  I will say this in Matt's defense and leave it at this, he was going to the right places on ALL of his interceptions.  And sure it’s easy to sit back and say he needs to make throws, but from personal experience I can say things are moving fast and the littlest of things can affect your timing.  Not being able to step into your throw or a receiver comes out of his break at a different angle and you become subject to a major error. 

So now we move on and look forward to Minnesota coming off their bye.

They should have Winfield back in the lineup this week, which changes the dynamics of that defense.  He is as good of a tackling corner as there is in the NFL so we must be aware of where he is on the field.  Not to mention their front 7 is arguably the best in football.  That being said, we have played them tough to the end every time the past three seasons I have been here. 

We know what we need to do to win, it’s a matter of going out and executing it on Sunday.

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

At first glance, the score of 32-20 looks like a pretty good victory for the Seattle Seahawks.  Every NFL fan would be happy with their team after a home win of 32-20 and everything in the box score suggests that Seattle was the dominant team…except for the 17-0 first quarter Detroit lead.

Something like this jumps off the page to Detroit Lions fans trying to figure out what in the hell went wrong on Sunday.  How can you give up a 17-0 lead against an inferior offense that has had trouble finding the end zone all season long?

Look no further than Matthew Stafford’s stat line: 22-42, 209 yds, 2 TD 5 INT.

Now before you start pointing fingers at Matthew Stafford, let’s try to figure out why the Lions would even consider throwing the ball 42 times in a game where that held a 17-0 lead after one quarter of play.  My initial thought was that Seattle had fought their way back into the game and Detroit needed to throw the ball in order to keep up.  Wrong.  My next guess was that the Lions had too many penalties on first and second down.  Wrong. 

When I went back over the play-by-play breakdown, I primarily focused on the first down play calling of Lions Offensive Coordinator, Scott Linehan.  I must admit that I was thinking to myself “surely this guy would run the ball at least 70% of the time on first down with a lead…and a ROOKIE playing quarterback.”  Wrong again.  The breakdown went like this:

First Down Plays

Penalties – 2 false start penalties

Run  –  12 att, 84 yds, 7.0 yds/att

Pass  –  6 -11, 45 yds, 1 TD, 1 sack (-8), 3.8 yds/play  (This doesn’t include spiking to stop the clock)

The Lions offense appeared to have everything going it’s way in the first quarter.  Coach Linehan scripted the first 15 plays strategically enough to mix up the run and the pass that translated into four straight possessions with an opportunity to score.  They cashed in on three of these four possessions, which led to a 17-0 lead.

What happened after that?  To some it may not come as a surprise, but the Seahawks proceeded to outscore the Lions 32-3 over the final three quarters.  Failure to make adjustments at halftime and not taking advantage of Seattle’s shoddy run defense proved to be the difference in the game.

As I mentioned earlier, many people would like to pin this loss on Stafford and his five costly interceptions.  Let’s not be hasty, we should instead attempt to understand the game situations in which his mistakes were made.  All but one of his interceptions came on third and long situations.  One interception was essentially a punt with 4:34 left in the fourth quarter.  On 3^rd and 9 from the DET 24 yard line, Stafford went deep down the right side to Calvin Johnson and was picked off by Marcus Trufant at the SEA 40.  Stafford’s other three 3^rd down interceptions came on distances of 16, 10, and 9 yards.

I understand that there’s a learning process for rookie quarterbacks in the NFL and at times it can be a lengthy one (just ask Washington and San Francisco).  Quarterbacks are such easy scapegoats in this league and in most cases it’s validated.  However, Stafford wasn’t the main reason the Lions lost on Sunday.

The coaching staff of Detroit needs to put Stafford in situations where he doesn’t have to be the reason they win or lose.  Never underestimate the importance of not going backwards on first down.  Balance the playbook to a 70-30 run/pass ratio on first down to give Stafford a chance to get to 3^rd down and manageable.  Also, consider the fact that your playbook opens up quite a bit more on 2^nd and 6 than it does on 2^nd and 10. 

Stafford should never attempt more than 30 passes per game this season.  At this point in his young six game career, he’s averaging over 35 attempts per game.  That’s absurd.  When the Dallas Cowboys started Troy Aikman as a rookie and finished 1-15, he averaged only 26 attempts per game.  You know you’re team is going to struggle, so why, as a coaching staff, make it harder than it has to be.  Go back to the basics and run between the tackles, make a few first downs, and play a little field position.  You never know what kind of bounces that funny shaped pigskin can take sometimes.

The bye week came at a good time for the team, but selfishly a poor time for me.  I mean that somewhat jokingly, and I must write that because sarcasm does not travel clearly in "blog" language.  If we had a game that week, I would have had my first career start due to the injuries to Daunte and Matt.  Well as we know that was not the case, so I will continue to wait for that day to come. 

Honestly, it was the best thing for our team to have a bye.  It is at that point in the season where guys have little knick-knack injuries, and with the bye they can heal up for the long haul.  Not to mention we have a couple days to relax and take our mind off of football, at least for a little while.

For most of us, it is in our blood so we cannot go without it for too long.  I was lucky enough to get out of Michigan for the weekend, but found myself in the hotel room constantly watching games on Saturday and Sunday.  When I wasn't in the room, I had to stop and look at the TV for updates of my teams. 

Unfortunately, Saturday was not a good day for me.  All the teams I was rooting for LOST.  Which brings me to the topic that I will finish with... my beloved Spartans.  Who, for the past two weeks, have been screwed by the officials.  They have had two crucial calls go against them at pivotal points in the game, only to lead to their demise.  First, the game against Iowa was not a helmet-to-helmet collision.  Those calls are not supposed to go against you at home with the game on the line.  Secondly, the Minnesota call was an absolute joke.  It goes back to my belief that referees rely too heavily on instant replay to do their job.  It is a security blanket for them, so they do not to blow the whistle and risk making the wrong call. 

The Spartans future is bright though, throw the out their record and look to see what has actually happened.  There are one or two plays in some of their losses that had they gone the Spartans way would have changed the outcome.  I know that is not the case and that is how you are measured ultimately, by your record, but it needs to start somewhere.  They have a lot of good pieces to the puzzle in order to win a Big Ten championship, and as long as recruiting continues the way it has they will be just fine. 

GO STATE!!!!

Drew Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.drewstanton.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/drewstanton.

It was cool to get away and kind of clear my mind during the bye week, get ready for the last 10 games. It was refreshing, but obviously, we didn’t come off the bye week like we wanted with a win. But we still have 9 games left to prove ourselves and so we just have to keep working.

The Rams wanted to come out and get their first win and they accomplished their objective. They were hungry for that win.

We have to get back to practice, correct our mistakes and get on a roll.

It’s going to be a long trip to Seattle, hopefully we can come out fast and get something established. Hopefully we’ll get Calvin back, that will be a big boost for our offense. We want to put a complete game together, offense, defense and special teams. We have to get on the ball.

The bye week is a good time to evaluate yourself and I’m not too happy about my performance. But all I can do is get better. I’m definitely not where I want to be right now so I will strive to get better during the later part of the season, get a good push and get some things going on offense.

Our offense really hasn’t gotten into that rhythm yet. Usually when you start rolling, you get 1-2 games into it and you just keep rolling. But we have been inconsistent and I’ve been inconsistent. Things don’t get rolling so well when you’re not playing consistent football.

I’ve been catching a lot of passes lately, there have been a lot more screen passes and a lot of checkdowns. But I want to get a lot more rushing yards to balance that out. I’m a runner first. I don’t play wide receiver.

Kevin Smith is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.smith34.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34.

WOW, week 8 is already upon us, after Monday night approx half of the leagues team will have played half of their 2009 schedule.  At this point we have a good idea of the haves and have nots, although there are a number of teams that are still a bit of an enigma.

WOW, week 8 is already upon us, after Monday night approx half of the leagues team will have played half of their 2009 schedule.  At this point we have a good idea of the haves and have nots, although there are a number of teams that are still a bit of an enigma.

1.  Colts 6-0, what can you say Manning is the best QB in the NFL and keeps on putting up monster #'s regardless of whos catching the ball.  The D will improve as the season goes on and the return of Bob Sanders

2.  Sanits 6-0, these guys are for real, finally they have a power running game.  Greg Williams & Darren Sharper have made a HUGE difference on the defensive side of the ball.  If they get home field advantage they will win the NFC (barring major injuries).

3.  Broncos 6-0, 2nd biggest surprise to this point in the season, I still need to see more consistancy in the running game, but the D is for real.

4.  Vikings 6-1, I actually like the Vikes better than the Broncos but cant rank a 6-0 team behind a 6-1 team.  In the Vikes only loss they still looked good @ Pittsburgh. 

5.  Steelers 5-2, complete shift in offensive philosophy, its worked so far but I'm a little skeptical of it come January.  Great Defense as usual from Pittsburgh.  The O-line is a huge concern.

6.  Giants 5-2, dont panic after 2 straight losses, although the Sunday night loss to Zona was real ugly.  Still good D, but they have to get Brandon Jacobs back on track.

7.  Patriots 5-2, every week they look better and better.  The Defense is my main concern with the 2009 Pats.

8.  Bengals 5-2, one of the leagues biggest surprises, Marvin Lewis has the D playing good.  Cedric Benson is finally living up to his potential & Carson Palmer is healthy, look out.

9.  Ravens 3-3, 3 straight losses, all to really good teams Pats, Bengals & Vikes and all 3 were really close games.  I still think Ray Lewis will finally get the D to play good as a unit which will help supplement the already good offense.

10.  Eagles 4-2, McNabb & the offense are yet to look in rythm, its only a matter of time before they put it together.  The D is ball hawking like always despite losing Dawkins and Jim Johnson.

11.  Cowboys 4-2, I actually think the main problem with Cowboys has been their Defense, not their offense.  Feels like they are about to get on a roll....

12.  Packers 4-2, 2 losses are to the Bengals & Vikes.  Huge game this weekend @ home against the Vikes.

13.  Falcons 4-2, under the radar to this point, I get the feeling their best football is to come...

14.  Texans 4-3, they got off to a slow start but now the D is starting to hold teams and we already knew about the explosive offense

15.  Zona 4-2, cant get a good read on this team, we all expected a bit of a let down from the Super Bowl hang over.

16.  Jets 4-3, big win on the West coast this past weekend, really good D and as long as Sanchez doesnt have multiple turnovers in a game they will only get better and rise in the rankingsl

17.  Jags 3-3, David Garrard continues to impress me, if only they had good WR's.

18.  Chargers 3-3, HUGE underacheivers, should have a much better record.   What has happned to their Defense?

19.  49ers 3-3, they need Frank Gore to run the ball well, in the NFC west a lot is possible

20.  Bears 3-3, Urlacher was a huge loss in week 1, the offense has done a good job for the most part.  Johnny Knox has been a great contributor.

21.  Dolphins 2-4, say what you want but its still hard to stop the Wild Cat or whatever it is they do...

22.  Bills 3-4, you got to give TO tons of credit for holding his tongue to this point, I wouldnt be able to, say what you want about him but he's explosive, maybe Dick Jauron should read Keyshon's book and get TO 'the damn ball'

23.  Seahawks 2-4, we dont know what we're going to get from the Seahawks week to week, complete Dr. Jeckyl & Mr. Hide routine.

24.  Panthers 2-4, if I were calling their plays I would never pass, run the wild cat with DeAngelo & Steve Smith, duh!!!

25.  Lions 1-5, much improved, Stafford looks good, but they have got to get him healthy or Culpepper wont win a game.

26.  Skins 2-5, tons of distractions for this team, how do they have 2 wins?

27.  Cheifs 1-6,  a few close games to this point, they really need to get rid of LJ.

28.  Raiders 2-5, the D is actually pretty good, they should have never let Jeff Garcia go, what the hell is Jamarcus Russell doing, who is in charge of this guys diet?

29.  Titans 0-6, with Fisher as the head coach I just cant rank them last, by far the biggest surprise of the season to this point.  Not many expected them to start out 10-0 again but nobody expected them to be winless at this point.

30.  Browns 1-6, pick your poison, Anderson or Quinn.  Can somebody get Quinn a jersey that does not resemble a cut-off belly shirt, please?

31.  Bucs 0-7, not a single exciting player on either side of the ball

32.  Rams 0-7, they are not even competetive, what else is there to say....

It’s our bye week, so I’m just going to try to totally relax. But my mind will still be on our next game, because honestly I’m anxious to get back on the field. We have 3 or 4 days off to rest the body, relax and get off our feet a little bit.

Friday I’m going to go to the Big Apple, New York City, to spend some time with friends and family. I haven’t been out there in a long time. I’ll probably do some shopping, eat, check things out. Nothing in particular.

We’ve got the Rams at home when we get back, and I’ll think about them, but not really until we start game planning. I’ll peek at them and watch some film but I’ll really get into it when we get back.

Yeah, we’re 1-5, but we’ve got 10 games left. That’s what it is in a nutshell, you don’t have to expect or say anything, just go out there and do it and know there are still 10 games left. I just hope that everybody is excited to play those 10 games left in the season and put it all out there on the field.

In those 10 games, you can show who you want to be when it’s all said and done.

Kevin Smith is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com runs at www.smith34.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34.

This is a good week for us to have a bye. This week we have our regular Tuesday off, but then we have to go in and practice on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Friday we’ll get out early, about 12 or 12:30, and then we don’t have to report until next Tuesday so a lot of us are getting out of town.

I’ll probably go to Chicago for a couple days to see my best friend and do some shopping, then go down to Charlotte to see my girlfriend. Chicago has a lot of exclusive stores, a lot of great shoes, shops for certain kinds of clothes. I’m into that.

I like jeans. For some reason I’ve always been fascinated by jeans and shoes. Even in college I always liked jeans and now I can afford some nice ones, so I’ll check that out while I’m in Chicago. For shoes, I’m a big fan of Nike Air Force 1. Plus I have a deal with Nike so they can hook me up. And in Chicago you can get custom-made ones at the Niketown there.

Like I said, this bye week is definitely coming at a good time for us. We’re a little thin on the defensive line, maybe by our next game we’ll get some guys healthy and get everyone back.

We still have to stay focused in, though. This week is also all about making corrections and focusing on ourselves. Fixing the small things can be huge for us, we have to get in there and make the corrections we need to make to get on track.

I thought I played well against Green Bay, any game I get a sack, I’m happy. But we couldn’t pull out the win, so that makes it kind of tough.

Cliff Avril is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for www.playerpress.com

runs at www.avril92.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cliffavril.