<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<articles type="array">
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-03-05T13:55:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>No</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">94</hits>
    <id type="integer">7819</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;I've long been right there with you for decades looking for the Lions to make a statement and say &amp;quot;We are going to do what it takes to win&amp;quot;. Finally I see rays of light poking threw the clouds as the storm begins to pass.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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 &amp;quot;Not anymore&amp;quot;. Now let's look at what the Lions did and are setting themselves up for the draft.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;#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&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;#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&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;#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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-03-05T13:55:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>lions-looking-good-on-1st-day-of-fa</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.68.210, 66.188.55.110, 123.125.66.57, 206.209.102.24, 67.195.113.247, 63.215.202.234, 174.37.205.85, 71.50.208.112, 174.37.205.87, 142.166.170.101, 67.195.115.214, 167.127.24.34, 66.249.67.165, 69.179.141.232, 66.172.194.105, 142.166.170.102, 198.108.18.12, 174.129.141.17, 75.101.176.194, 67.195.112.89, 70.106.53.15, 24.231.172.217, 24.236.206.146, 71.95.178.68, 72.44.33.94, 216.18.20.8, 69.214.159.73, 66.249.67.113, 76.97.188.228, 67.202.11.49, 64.13.147.187, 216.24.142.47, 204.236.198.91, 65.52.25.231, 67.202.63.158, 67.207.201.144, 174.129.107.161, 70.37.70.228, 174.129.89.199, 89.151.116.54, 208.74.66.42, 208.74.66.38, 83.149.199.55, 63.84.148.90, 66.249.67.238, 38.99.96.233, 174.129.90.99, 208.80.193.63, 139.139.112.70, 71.82.64.20, 193.47.80.50, 24.86.25.230, 71.104.7.22, 75.101.174.137, 76.0.167.180, 75.101.219.151, 64.233.172.6, 206.53.153.183, 213.255.229.97, 96.42.173.17, 207.244.177.247, 99.35.98.93, 64.233.173.2, 139.60.210.5, 142.167.2.65, 68.171.234.178, 67.86.190.102, 148.168.40.4, 99.181.121.36, 75.101.233.125, 123.125.66.62, 76.226.184.19, 85.17.226.119, 173.74.46.80, 123.92.198.212, 71.62.155.221, 67.187.91.158, 202.142.170.85, 173.74.157.207, 174.129.139.3, 174.129.155.116, 81.94.194.34, 81.94.206.226, 87.250.252.241, 174.36.60.29, 74.86.227.231, 184.73.226.116, 68.194.199.65, 216.255.122.106, 69.14.236.45, 69.168.144.135, 94.142.131.233, 158.80.0.30, 85.25.124.4, 209.124.42.146</readers>
    <seo-title>Lions looking good on 1st day of FA</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Lions, Free Agency, Draft, Signings, Detroit, </tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Lions looking good on 1st day of FA</title>
    <user-id type="integer">2548</user-id>
    <usertype>writer</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">-1</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-03-03T13:46:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">87</hits>
    <id type="integer">7783</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Being  around the young men that just went through the combine has brought back so many  memories.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; I think the general  public looks at these numbers and &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;is&lt;/span&gt; mesmerized, but  the reality is that the most important thing is how they play on the field.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;A  prime example is Joe Haden. He might be a 4.5 guy, but he plays much faster than  that.&amp;nbsp; His stock might drop a little bit, but I guarantee is won&amp;rsquo;t drop that  far.&amp;nbsp; His play speaks for itself.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The  40-yard dash is basically a standardized test to help differentiate players.  Just as the Wonderlic test is supposedly the measure of intelligence.&amp;nbsp; Unless  you are a wide receiver, I do &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;not&lt;/span&gt; know of any other  position that will run a distance of 40 yards straight ahead on a consistent  basis.&amp;nbsp; The other tests are similar in the fact that they do not directly  correlate to football skills.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Don't  even get me started on Tim Tebow jumping 38.5 inches in his vertical test, and  I'm not a Tebow hater.&amp;nbsp; He is a great kid and will do whatever he can to try and  make it in this league.&amp;nbsp; But why, when I turned on SportsCenter, did I have to  hear about Tim Tebow&amp;rsquo;s vertical?&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;So  now that you know I jumped 30 inches, I should also let you know I ran a 4.71  officially.&amp;nbsp;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.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; Again, falling back on my opinion, players do things  they know they can excel at.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; And unless you are the  consensus number one pick with nothing to prove, you are probably hiding a  weakness.&amp;nbsp; Sure, you have no timing with the receivers, but it is more about  doing the session.&amp;nbsp; The combine tries to see how you will respond to adverse  situations, giving teams a better idea of what to expect in the future.  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The  combine is more for meetings and doctor evaluations, again, teams trying to get  you out of your comfort zone.&amp;nbsp; All of your testing takes place on your final day  of four in &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Indianapolis&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;, so it&amp;rsquo;s almost an  afterthought.&amp;nbsp;The meetings are extremely important, as NFL teams have the chance  to get you in a room one-on-one.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Anyway,  that is my two cents on the Combine.&amp;nbsp; Next week I head back to &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Michigan&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; with my family,  I'm hopeful the weather will start to get warmer upon my  arrival.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-03-03T13:46:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>combine-memories</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>123.125.66.96, 174.129.155.45, 64.13.147.187, 66.249.68.233, 89.151.116.53, 75.101.170.136, 72.13.91.40, 67.202.5.6, 70.37.70.228, 67.195.115.214, 208.74.66.62, 208.74.66.39, 174.133.61.66, 67.207.201.167, 65.52.25.231, 212.92.18.15, 206.53.147.9, 174.36.241.155, 142.166.170.102, 174.37.205.87, 67.195.113.247, 67.202.19.179, 69.14.58.10, 76.97.188.228, 128.242.241.134, 89.151.84.35, 204.236.198.91, 216.24.142.46, 75.101.205.207, 216.24.142.47, 70.37.70.230, 75.101.176.194, 97.102.195.227, 83.149.199.55, 174.129.90.99, 64.53.198.184, 66.249.67.186, 75.101.232.109, 207.161.143.60, 174.129.139.3, 72.44.33.181, 66.172.194.105, 142.166.170.103, 128.241.112.231, 216.18.20.8, 204.236.203.128, 199.91.37.33, 67.195.112.89, 38.99.96.233, 95.24.251.28, 184.73.36.220, 74.86.229.193, 71.75.184.48, 66.249.68.155, 119.63.198.31, 66.249.68.66, 75.101.195.195, 97.200.78.220, 38.98.19.67, 66.249.68.166, 66.249.67.78, 112.203.36.215, 66.249.68.210, 66.188.55.110, 87.250.252.241, 71.95.178.68, 209.249.53.190, 174.129.85.40, 66.235.124.58, 75.80.174.56, 63.215.202.234, 123.125.66.57, 85.17.226.119, 83.147.179.82, 67.183.139.198, 69.58.178.29, 94.23.15.84, 64.13.222.190, 142.166.170.100, 81.94.194.34, 76.112.222.17, 66.249.68.236, 66.249.68.49, 184.73.226.116, 174.129.152.208, 85.25.124.4, 67.218.116.131</readers>
    <seo-title>Combine Memories</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Combine Memories</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>wire</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-02-17T10:59:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>No</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">83</hits>
    <id type="integer">7532</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div&gt;The Detroit Lions&amp;rsquo; organization announced today that they are cutting prices on 19,000 of their season tickets.&amp;nbsp;The discounted tickets include 16,000 in the upper levels and 3,000 club seats.&amp;nbsp;The 2009 NFL season began with 12 teams failing to have their home games sold out before the start in September.&amp;nbsp;That failure led to additional television blackouts in several markets.&amp;nbsp;Given that trend, several organizations would do well to follow the Lions&amp;rsquo; lead and cut prices.&lt;/div&gt;</intro>
    <ip>96.246.112.236</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-02-17T10:59:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>7532-the-detroit-lions-set-a-possible-winning-trend</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>38.99.96.233, 96.246.112.236, 66.249.68.187, 211.43.152.54, 211.43.152.57, 216.24.142.47, 208.74.66.39, 208.74.66.42, 72.13.91.40, 204.236.198.91, 65.52.22.215, 64.246.135.98, 123.125.66.63, 174.129.104.29, 85.131.223.21, 67.202.53.178, 70.37.70.228, 71.194.242.253, 89.151.116.59, 216.129.119.81, 75.101.147.15, 75.101.246.69, 72.44.48.172, 123.125.66.96, 64.62.134.170, 67.195.112.114, 174.37.205.87, 83.149.199.55, 174.21.243.205, 74.130.194.117, 67.195.37.188, 98.196.7.120, 75.101.232.231, 85.114.136.243, 142.166.170.21, 142.166.170.60, 166.137.132.49, 83.149.199.54, 76.97.188.228, 174.129.95.55, 216.24.142.46, 70.37.70.230, 89.151.116.56, 75.101.170.136, 65.52.22.222, 72.44.38.12, 89.151.116.54, 174.133.61.66, 174.129.48.204, 67.202.10.201, 66.249.67.206, 68.4.73.37, 75.101.235.76, 67.184.208.223, 67.202.7.134, 75.101.197.164, 71.205.137.175, 38.100.8.50, 72.44.54.68, 67.195.115.224, 142.166.170.103, 87.250.252.241, 79.99.6.106, 67.195.112.88, 70.181.84.49, 66.249.67.107, 67.218.116.131, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.67.52, 67.195.37.180, 67.195.115.214, 66.249.68.236, 65.200.199.106, 67.195.114.230, 66.249.68.81, 66.249.68.43, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.68.233, 67.195.112.89, 67.195.113.247, 66.249.68.227, 69.168.144.135, 66.249.67.113, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>The Detroit Lions set a possible winning trend</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Detroit Lions, NFL, Blackouts, Season Tickets</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>The Detroit Lions Set a Possible Winning Trend</title>
    <user-id type="integer">1</user-id>
    <usertype>writer</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-02-16T16:24:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">149</hits>
    <id type="integer">7514</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Greetings  from &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;South Florida&lt;/st1:place&gt;, our home away from home for  the past month or so.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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 &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;tremendously,&lt;/span&gt; it&amp;rsquo;s been a very nice change of pace  from the frigged weather up North. Yes, we know we are &amp;ldquo;snowbirds,&amp;rdquo; but we  figured we better come down while we have the opportunity. On the way down we  stopped in &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Greenville&lt;/st1:city&gt;,  &lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;SC&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;, to see my wife's sister and  brother in law, plus introduce ourselves to their newborn daughter, Anna Leigh  Arends. I&amp;rsquo;m soooo excited to be an uncle and spoil her to death.  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&amp;nbsp; A good friend of mine, who trained with me  for the combine, &lt;a href="http://www.golsen82.com/"&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Greg Olsen&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;, lives right down the street and we have been &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;working&lt;/span&gt; out together.&amp;nbsp;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. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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 &lt;st1:time minute="0" hour="12" w:st="on"&gt;noon&lt;/st1:time&gt;,  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.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Sorry  it has taken so long for an update, but as you can see there is not much to talk  about right now.&amp;nbsp;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.&amp;nbsp;Thanks for  reading....&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-02-16T16:24:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>greetings-from-south-florida</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>76.97.188.228, 38.99.96.233, 123.125.66.94, 174.37.205.67, 66.249.68.184, 123.125.66.130, 67.195.112.114, 96.246.112.236, 204.236.232.79, 216.24.142.46, 75.101.232.27, 65.52.22.222, 89.151.116.52, 208.74.66.36, 75.101.232.231, 65.52.26.149, 67.202.5.6, 208.74.66.62, 74.6.27.222, 72.13.91.40, 64.13.147.187, 174.143.213.49, 67.202.56.119, 67.207.201.151, 67.202.7.134, 67.202.10.201, 64.246.135.98, 71.75.184.48, 64.62.134.170, 174.133.61.66, 142.166.170.104, 142.166.170.100, 70.37.70.228, 38.105.109.12, 67.220.192.215, 85.114.136.243, 75.101.147.15, 216.129.119.81, 67.195.37.188, 174.129.48.204, 207.126.22.254, 216.24.142.47, 204.236.198.91, 174.129.95.55, 72.44.43.230, 75.101.170.136, 89.151.116.59, 174.129.89.199, 67.59.40.218, 89.151.84.35, 65.52.22.215, 72.44.49.134, 75.101.139.240, 89.151.116.54, 216.39.58.18, 64.191.203.34, 72.44.48.172, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 69.36.233.15, 67.202.57.190, 71.180.89.75, 140.192.15.74, 66.249.67.206, 174.21.243.205, 174.129.129.160, 142.166.170.21, 169.227.254.125, 38.99.97.45, 192.131.85.210, 83.149.199.55, 71.68.114.2, 83.149.199.54, 76.172.18.72, 186.137.25.72, 75.101.187.3, 75.101.176.194, 75.250.152.31, 69.2.104.99, 67.202.11.246, 174.129.67.212, 174.129.58.57, 174.129.90.99, 72.44.54.68, 173.184.44.185, 75.101.195.195, 64.13.222.190, 67.195.115.224, 66.249.68.187, 67.149.7.6, 66.249.68.214, 174.129.139.3, 69.248.176.108, 67.83.175.188, 216.129.119.11, 87.250.252.241, 67.184.208.223, 24.127.203.251, 142.166.170.103, 38.100.8.50, 77.88.51.11, 173.95.154.179, 79.99.6.106, 166.214.228.217, 67.218.116.131, 67.195.112.88, 69.58.178.30, 69.231.117.101, 97.95.32.27, 66.249.67.107, 216.104.15.138, 86.153.184.32, 65.183.225.19, 66.249.67.133, 97.102.195.227, 109.41.38.61, 66.249.68.98, 71.23.243.102, 66.249.68.175, 67.195.115.232, 66.249.68.251, 67.195.115.214, 173.65.25.14, 66.249.68.236, 24.182.45.28, 12.130.106.6, 174.129.237.157, 94.23.15.84, 67.195.114.230, 76.78.14.245, 209.191.123.35, 13.2.20.42, 66.249.68.81, 24.175.32.139, 66.249.67.250, 66.172.194.105, 206.83.86.2, 67.195.112.89, 85.17.171.225, 66.249.68.233, 216.129.119.42, 95.24.251.28, 66.249.68.155, 161.154.235.101, 69.58.178.29, 67.195.113.247, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>Greetings from South Florida</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL, Greg Olsen</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Greetings from South Florida</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-01-05T16:03:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">156</hits>
    <id type="integer">6862</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I learned a  lot this season. It was only my second year in the league, and in a lot of ways  I&amp;rsquo;m still learning to play the game. I think I finished a little better than I  did last year, but it&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;So I&amp;rsquo;m not  happy with how I finished but I&amp;rsquo;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.  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;As a team  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;there&amp;rsquo;s still lots&lt;/span&gt; of improvements to be made. I think  the front office will make moves to &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;make&lt;/span&gt; us better. We  won two more games this year than we did the previous year, but you can&amp;rsquo;t be  content with winning two games.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;My goal in  the off-season is to get back healthy. I just have some normal wear and tear.  Last year I didn&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;m  definitely starting to feel it. Now it&amp;rsquo;s time to rest and let my body heal up a  little bit.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;ll start lifting and  running to work back into shape.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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&amp;rsquo;ll be here now and then.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Cliff &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Avril&lt;/span&gt; is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;blog&lt;/span&gt; for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;runs&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.avril92.com/"&gt;www.avril92.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/cliffavril"&gt;www.twitter.com/cliffavril&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-01-05T16:03:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>up-and-down-season</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.68.219, 123.125.66.55, 142.166.3.122, 174.36.241.148, 67.195.111.172, 65.91.117.73, 174.129.155.45, 75.101.205.169, 77.68.54.12, 93.32.48.79, 216.24.142.45, 65.52.19.122, 67.207.201.150, 216.24.142.46, 67.220.192.215, 38.113.234.180, 174.129.141.109, 75.101.139.240, 72.13.91.40, 67.202.63.158, 75.101.197.164, 79.99.6.106, 208.74.66.62, 70.37.66.169, 74.208.125.5, 64.13.147.189, 174.133.61.66, 38.105.109.12, 166.216.162.71, 166.137.8.222, 174.129.58.57, 67.195.112.159, 64.233.172.6, 66.249.67.229, 76.97.188.228, 216.39.58.78, 89.151.116.54, 70.37.66.245, 74.201.117.226, 69.36.233.15, 38.104.134.114, 64.191.203.34, 208.74.66.36, 72.44.49.134, 76.16.232.179, 67.202.57.190, 66.249.67.81, 96.42.94.133, 38.99.98.18, 83.149.199.55, 89.151.116.56, 96.246.109.177, 69.63.178.246, 63.215.202.234, 67.195.37.178, 74.73.189.98, 173.26.50.133, 70.181.84.49, 66.249.67.84, 67.202.38.107, 123.125.66.102, 67.194.157.224, 98.194.205.250, 66.249.68.143, 72.30.142.161, 87.250.252.241, 218.28.29.236, 142.166.170.104, 70.118.236.150, 174.133.177.66, 142.166.170.103, 208.118.60.156, 174.127.132.157, 67.218.116.131, 94.23.15.84, 142.166.170.102, 24.183.45.219, 74.53.3.132, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.67.17, 24.23.23.60, 66.249.65.106, 142.166.170.100, 38.100.41.113, 216.24.142.47, 75.101.232.231, 66.249.65.109, 202.131.30.149, 202.131.30.148, 66.249.67.208, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.67.58, 62.206.212.197, 78.33.237.147, 65.55.207.120, 67.195.114.42, 75.51.101.152, 66.249.68.137, 66.150.224.245, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.68.86, 66.249.68.248, 66.249.67.40, 65.55.207.118, 174.127.132.136, 66.249.68.201, 75.134.170.228, 66.249.68.245, 123.125.66.133, 65.55.207.29, 98.199.100.107, 97.95.36.22, 66.249.67.107, 216.104.15.142, 69.169.156.78, 61.247.222.83, 217.77.222.128, 89.248.172.58, 69.115.241.123, 65.55.218.160, 66.235.124.8, 67.195.37.188, 67.195.112.114, 66.249.68.204, 65.55.207.54, 69.59.162.116, 66.249.67.174, 65.55.106.158, 98.169.137.241, 65.55.106.115, 67.195.115.224, 38.99.97.10, 61.247.222.82, 123.125.66.128, 208.115.111.245, 61.247.222.46, 65.55.207.126, 38.99.97.45, 67.195.112.88, 66.249.67.51, 67.195.37.180, 67.195.115.214, 76.78.14.245, 66.249.68.81, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.114.230, 67.195.113.247, 66.249.68.233, 66.249.68.37, 66.249.68.66, 66.249.67.43, 66.89.163.178, 207.46.195.236, 204.236.226.210, 207.46.195.240, 66.249.68.236, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>Up and Down Season</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Cliff Avril, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Up and Down Season</title>
    <user-id type="integer">33</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-01-05T13:32:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">165</hits>
    <id type="integer">6858</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;You  can usually tell when you are being set up or pigeonholed into saying something  that the media is looking for.&amp;nbsp; 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!!!&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I  never said that I did not want to be in &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Detroit&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; if I was to be the third string  quarterback, I merely stated that third-string quarterbacks do not have long  careers. I for &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;one,&lt;/span&gt; would love to have a long career.&amp;nbsp;  I recognize the importance of showing this franchise that my worth can exist as  a backup.&amp;nbsp; I know what my role has the potential to be as the Detroit Lions move  forward and that is what I am focused on.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The  other issue that was misrepresented was my health last week.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; I was not looking to start anything in &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;the&lt;/span&gt; media with my quotes.&amp;nbsp; I have always been and always will  be a team guy. I understand the importance of it.&amp;nbsp; Coach Schwartz made a  decision that he thought was in the best interest of the team, end of story.&amp;nbsp; I  would never undermine him.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I'm  ready to put this behind me and I look forward to next year.&amp;nbsp; Thank you for  reading this fall, check back for regular updates in the  off-season.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-01-05T13:32:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>i-want-to-stay-in-detroit</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>142.166.170.100, 123.125.66.116, 174.36.241.157, 66.249.68.219, 67.195.111.172, 174.129.171.1, 76.168.184.16, 66.249.67.229, 199.46.220.18, 174.129.157.195, 216.24.142.45, 65.52.19.122, 70.37.66.169, 89.151.84.34, 67.202.63.158, 38.113.234.181, 174.129.141.109, 75.101.170.136, 174.143.213.49, 216.24.142.47, 72.44.43.230, 67.23.32.124, 208.74.66.42, 174.133.61.66, 75.101.205.207, 67.195.112.159, 216.24.142.46, 166.216.162.32, 89.151.116.52, 76.97.188.228, 174.129.27.223, 64.13.147.189, 174.129.193.87, 67.207.201.152, 75.101.232.231, 174.129.58.57, 67.220.192.215, 75.101.197.164, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 216.39.58.17, 67.202.56.119, 72.13.91.40, 64.191.203.34, 67.202.57.190, 4.78.248.3, 211.115.109.14, 89.151.116.59, 65.82.136.2, 63.215.202.234, 83.149.199.55, 74.108.107.201, 38.99.98.18, 209.82.37.18, 66.249.67.81, 86.151.224.182, 67.18.5.147, 24.247.253.44, 80.203.70.172, 123.125.66.42, 67.195.37.178, 72.148.64.249, 72.183.76.74, 71.35.10.244, 201.254.111.39, 72.30.142.161, 66.249.68.143, 77.68.56.220, 87.250.252.241, 174.7.13.134, 218.28.29.236, 71.214.51.9, 70.118.236.150, 174.133.177.66, 174.127.132.160, 74.173.71.168, 94.23.15.84, 99.183.192.248, 67.218.116.131, 74.53.3.132, 38.100.8.50, 119.63.198.41, 24.23.23.60, 66.249.65.106, 38.100.41.113, 72.44.49.134, 61.247.222.82, 66.249.67.17, 66.249.68.137, 67.202.15.176, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.67.208, 69.58.178.29, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.67.58, 67.195.114.42, 62.206.212.197, 67.149.19.10, 66.249.67.66, 66.249.67.162, 75.51.101.152, 66.150.224.245, 222.231.42.194, 216.129.119.42, 65.55.216.53, 76.166.224.132, 71.227.79.232, 66.249.68.201, 65.55.106.210, 123.125.66.131, 202.131.30.147, 97.95.36.22, 66.249.67.107, 216.104.15.130, 65.55.207.75, 205.209.170.18, 65.55.106.161, 69.115.241.123, 67.195.112.85, 67.195.112.114, 38.99.97.10, 65.55.106.138, 38.99.97.45, 66.249.67.174, 66.249.68.204, 65.55.207.122, 67.195.37.188, 67.82.231.57, 67.195.115.224, 62.75.218.97, 66.249.67.248, 61.247.222.45, 71.87.112.182, 66.249.68.155, 71.75.184.48, 123.125.66.121, 64.233.226.237, 65.55.106.163, 208.115.111.245, 122.58.178.211, 69.58.178.30, 67.195.112.88, 65.55.218.158, 66.249.68.72, 116.125.140.4, 66.249.67.51, 67.195.37.180, 67.195.115.214, 97.102.195.227, 66.249.67.250, 208.115.111.248, 66.249.68.81, 67.195.114.230, 65.55.110.220, 66.249.68.233, 65.55.109.193, 207.46.204.211, 95.24.251.28, 67.195.112.89, 69.120.82.247, 66.249.68.236, 207.46.199.55, 207.46.204.178, 67.195.113.247, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>I Want to Stay in Detroit</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>I Want to Stay in Detroit</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2010-01-02T13:43:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">193</hits>
    <id type="integer">6813</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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&amp;rsquo;s crazy that in a  blink of a second, you&amp;rsquo;re down and it&amp;rsquo;s over for you.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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&amp;rsquo;t know what I did exactly but I knew it was something  serious, because I&amp;rsquo;ve played through a lot of injuries and I had never felt  anything like that.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;It was  heartbreaking. It took me about 24 hours to get my mind back together, and now  I&amp;rsquo;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, &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Rashard&lt;/span&gt;  Mendenhall, Matt Forte, Tim Hightower, Ray Rice, Jonathan Stewart, Darren  McFadden, &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Steve Slaton and Felix Jones.&lt;/span&gt; Down the road  they&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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&amp;rsquo;m like a medical  miracle. I keep my faith in God and I know he&amp;rsquo;s going to see me through if I  keep up my spirit and my faith.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;As far as  my rehab goes, I&amp;rsquo;m tuning everybody out when they tell me how long it&amp;rsquo;s going to  take before I can come back full strength. I&amp;rsquo;m going to talk to some players who  have had torn &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;ACLs&lt;/span&gt; and take their advice, like &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Daunte&lt;/span&gt; Culpepper, my old college roommate Mike Sims-Walker,  and Frank Gore. As far as recovery time, I don&amp;rsquo;t want to hear it from anyone. I  won&amp;rsquo;t put a timetable on myself. When I&amp;rsquo;m ready, I&amp;rsquo;ll be  back.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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&amp;rsquo;m  doing pretty &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;good&lt;/span&gt; for where I&amp;rsquo;m at right now. I think  I&amp;rsquo;m a little ahead of schedule.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;This season  did not go as well as we had hoped. I didn&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;m just focused on myself and  getting back to football as soon as I can. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Kevin Smith  is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;blog&lt;/span&gt; for  &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.kevinsmith27.com/"&gt;www.smith34.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter  at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34"&gt;www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2010-01-02T13:43:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>blink-of-a-second</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>72.44.61.86, 75.101.232.27, 66.249.68.233, 89.151.84.34, 65.52.18.116, 70.37.66.169, 174.129.89.199, 72.13.91.40, 38.113.234.180, 72.44.43.230, 79.99.6.106, 208.74.66.39, 75.101.197.164, 208.74.66.61, 174.143.213.49, 216.24.142.46, 216.24.142.47, 142.166.3.122, 94.23.51.159, 89.151.116.54, 174.133.61.66, 67.218.99.195, 174.37.205.86, 67.220.192.215, 166.205.11.9, 76.97.188.228, 75.94.55.191, 64.191.203.34, 75.71.32.13, 216.24.131.119, 216.24.142.45, 89.151.116.59, 70.37.66.245, 38.113.234.181, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 174.129.193.81, 174.129.141.109, 216.39.58.17, 174.129.70.181, 89.151.116.56, 64.233.172.6, 67.202.57.190, 76.114.172.35, 66.227.170.27, 66.249.67.87, 123.125.66.46, 64.233.173.2, 38.99.98.18, 67.195.111.172, 208.54.85.69, 174.129.58.57, 89.151.116.52, 123.125.66.34, 166.205.8.106, 71.205.128.167, 170.200.168.16, 67.18.5.134, 71.205.120.134, 71.205.153.174, 75.101.169.122, 67.195.112.159, 66.249.67.229, 142.166.170.101, 216.7.123.200, 76.103.215.194, 128.241.112.231, 174.129.141.17, 166.216.162.35, 91.121.157.149, 75.3.83.111, 87.250.252.241, 142.166.170.103, 174.36.241.157, 67.195.37.178, 209.249.53.198, 173.206.156.153, 75.139.73.245, 173.63.245.123, 207.241.228.152, 75.101.233.125, 129.247.31.224, 68.43.76.88, 206.51.231.26, 68.30.26.209, 142.166.170.100, 66.249.67.17, 66.137.226.83, 173.57.22.244, 63.215.202.234, 71.233.86.13, 74.53.3.132, 66.249.68.214, 63.119.9.135, 76.112.188.84, 70.181.84.49, 139.139.51.70, 67.194.157.224, 66.249.68.166, 216.40.66.224, 66.61.21.2, 208.31.142.32, 66.249.68.143, 75.66.163.164, 74.86.227.238, 174.36.117.104, 142.166.170.104, 218.28.29.236, 75.171.148.85, 71.110.13.148, 74.6.17.168, 67.218.116.131, 66.249.67.46, 99.252.191.128, 201.212.236.99, 66.249.67.134, 66.235.124.55, 66.249.68.251, 66.249.67.58, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.65.109, 66.249.65.119, 38.100.41.113, 202.131.30.150, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.68.137, 67.195.114.243, 66.249.67.162, 86.210.25.86, 62.206.212.197, 78.33.237.147, 65.55.106.185, 66.150.224.245, 98.129.144.114, 65.55.216.11, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.68.248, 119.63.198.51, 209.191.123.35, 67.195.114.42, 66.249.68.245, 65.55.207.101, 123.125.66.90, 66.249.67.218, 66.249.68.149, 66.249.67.142, 61.247.222.45, 66.249.67.174, 65.55.207.117, 66.249.68.204, 76.112.185.192, 69.115.241.123, 67.195.112.114, 65.55.215.76, 67.195.37.188, 119.63.198.56, 65.55.106.132, 173.162.73.9, 67.195.115.224, 38.99.97.10, 66.249.68.155, 74.56.135.68, 66.249.68.184, 123.125.66.79, 61.247.222.83, 65.55.207.121, 208.115.111.245, 38.99.97.45, 38.99.96.214, 66.249.67.133, 67.195.112.88, 65.55.207.45, 67.202.0.31, 66.249.68.187, 65.55.106.203, 67.195.115.232, 67.195.114.230, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.112.89, 66.249.68.37, 207.46.12.108, 65.55.232.28, 65.55.110.189, 207.46.12.69, 61.247.222.46, 66.249.68.66, 66.249.68.8, 67.195.113.247, 119.63.198.4, 85.25.124.4, 207.46.195.225</readers>
    <seo-title>Blink of a Second</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions. NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Blink of a Second</title>
    <user-id type="integer">705</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-12-30T13:55:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">184</hits>
    <id type="integer">6777</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;To  say that was not the way I imagined my first start going isn't worth wasting my  time to elaborate on.&amp;nbsp; I&amp;rsquo;m trying to focus and build on the positives of last  week from here on and correct the mistakes that occurred.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&amp;nbsp; Anytime you turn the ball over four times  at my position, you&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;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.&amp;nbsp;  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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
That&amp;rsquo;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.&amp;nbsp; It's those split-second decisions that make the difference in games, and  the teams that make them are the teams that are victorious.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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!&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-12-30T13:55:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>building-on-the-positives</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>76.97.188.228, 38.113.234.181, 66.249.68.233, 89.151.116.52, 70.37.66.245, 67.207.201.140, 67.220.192.215, 174.129.141.109, 38.113.234.180, 72.44.43.230, 216.24.131.119, 75.101.139.240, 72.13.91.40, 216.24.142.46, 67.202.63.158, 208.74.66.36, 75.101.197.164, 208.74.66.39, 174.133.61.66, 89.151.84.34, 67.218.99.195, 200.126.226.16, 174.129.89.199, 24.57.189.42, 67.195.112.159, 174.37.205.76, 96.246.109.177, 69.63.178.251, 69.63.179.34, 66.227.200.64, 142.166.3.122, 99.21.34.79, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 98.243.198.60, 98.243.222.161, 75.134.118.12, 67.195.111.172, 166.205.9.198, 65.91.116.33, 70.217.64.232, 76.172.18.72, 64.191.203.34, 216.24.142.45, 70.37.66.169, 65.52.19.122, 89.151.116.61, 216.39.58.17, 208.74.66.38, 66.130.26.240, 216.24.142.47, 72.44.49.134, 67.202.57.190, 72.44.54.68, 166.205.8.137, 72.185.60.163, 211.115.109.14, 71.238.177.109, 83.149.199.55, 166.137.139.212, 24.11.120.232, 64.12.117.10, 142.166.170.21, 4.78.248.3, 174.129.48.204, 67.18.5.134, 66.249.67.229, 38.99.98.18, 194.8.75.155, 123.125.66.110, 69.14.58.10, 128.241.112.231, 123.125.66.107, 24.208.231.86, 67.195.37.178, 75.101.174.137, 72.44.33.94, 66.249.68.150, 67.149.228.53, 64.184.179.74, 75.101.219.151, 85.25.124.4, 66.249.67.84, 87.250.252.241, 72.34.42.241, 85.25.124.167, 92.241.182.24, 119.63.198.119, 69.168.144.136, 66.249.67.218, 99.61.251.230, 77.68.56.220, 99.13.189.71, 99.186.113.158, 76.235.171.37, 207.241.228.152, 67.189.136.98, 206.51.231.26, 69.143.61.199, 74.53.3.132, 174.129.159.185, 75.126.140.18, 70.181.84.49, 174.129.126.14, 98.214.128.4, 222.231.42.194, 218.28.29.236, 66.249.68.143, 66.249.67.58, 75.126.140.19, 99.20.62.217, 66.249.67.129, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.65.109, 66.249.65.119, 38.100.41.113, 174.129.104.29, 61.247.222.45, 67.195.114.243, 65.55.207.70, 66.249.68.137, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.67.162, 69.58.178.29, 62.206.212.197, 67.195.114.42, 66.150.224.245, 216.129.119.42, 70.140.30.115, 66.249.67.40, 67.218.116.131, 66.249.68.245, 66.188.60.113, 69.63.179.33, 66.249.67.165, 63.215.202.234, 123.125.66.63, 69.63.179.35, 65.55.207.50, 116.125.140.2, 97.95.36.22, 66.249.67.107, 150.70.84.45, 61.247.222.46, 65.55.106.134, 67.195.112.85, 69.115.241.123, 67.195.115.224, 67.195.112.114, 65.55.107.181, 65.55.207.118, 66.249.68.204, 67.195.37.188, 174.21.104.53, 38.99.97.10, 202.131.30.147, 66.249.68.155, 123.125.66.69, 65.55.106.110, 66.249.67.206, 65.55.106.179, 65.55.106.163, 38.99.97.45, 208.115.111.245, 222.231.42.185, 69.58.178.30, 66.249.68.187, 67.195.115.232, 66.249.68.72, 67.195.115.214, 66.249.68.236, 74.44.190.83, 65.55.110.216, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.37.180, 95.24.251.28, 202.131.30.150, 98.248.68.154, 66.249.68.210, 67.195.113.247, 207.46.204.186, 207.46.199.44, 66.249.67.113, 67.195.112.89</readers>
    <seo-title>Building on the Positives</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Building on the Positives</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>wire</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-12-24T13:58:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>No</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">179</hits>
    <id type="integer">6716</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;Drew Stanton was named the starting quarterback for the Lions on Wednesday by coach Jim Schwartz.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;It's a nice early Christmas present, the best one I've had,&amp;quot; said Stanton, a 2007 second-round draft pick who has had to wait nearly three full seasons before getting his first opportunity.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Stanton&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;After Daunte Culpepper was ineffective through the first half in place of injured starter Matthew Stafford, Detroit fans started chanting, &amp;ldquo;We want Stan-ton! We want Stan-ton!&amp;rdquo; in the hopes of getting the 2007 second-round pick from Michigan State into the game.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;It was Stanton&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In 2008 Stanton played in three games and threw one touchdown pass.&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>71.167.239.102</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-12-24T13:58:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>6716-drew-stanton-to-have-first-start-for-lions</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>67.195.111.172, 66.249.68.233, 174.36.241.148, 71.214.238.233, 174.36.228.154, 174.129.155.45, 82.241.206.221, 24.11.204.49, 66.227.200.64, 209.255.35.45, 208.74.66.42, 89.151.116.59, 65.52.18.116, 69.63.179.33, 70.37.66.245, 208.74.66.39, 67.202.63.158, 72.13.91.40, 174.129.141.109, 216.24.142.47, 174.129.70.181, 67.218.99.195, 142.166.170.21, 71.206.101.93, 70.61.199.67, 98.243.92.245, 216.129.119.81, 89.151.116.52, 75.101.232.231, 206.16.32.135, 97.83.157.185, 24.11.89.64, 142.217.221.137, 12.170.205.146, 64.233.172.6, 174.129.157.222, 68.41.8.91, 89.151.116.61, 70.238.111.107, 99.191.201.40, 142.166.3.122, 166.183.8.192, 67.195.112.159, 76.162.253.45, 66.249.67.229, 72.87.174.58, 97.74.144.147, 174.120.150.66, 68.62.3.2, 212.227.136.205, 38.99.98.21, 174.120.119.130, 75.101.174.137, 74.199.90.136, 75.101.219.151, 142.166.170.100, 70.15.139.88, 71.115.180.112, 69.63.178.249, 69.63.179.34, 72.69.190.211, 68.171.233.113, 66.249.67.84, 174.133.61.66, 123.125.66.24, 72.150.35.176, 97.118.251.170, 75.101.233.125, 99.62.134.172, 91.184.88.73, 67.195.37.178, 72.3.223.27, 24.182.45.21, 211.43.148.217, 195.39.35.118, 72.44.33.94, 173.16.132.234, 74.86.227.232, 74.208.16.139, 63.215.202.234, 128.83.120.100, 69.89.4.63, 142.166.170.102, 70.185.212.104, 209.249.53.133, 74.53.103.34, 173.87.50.92, 76.26.194.119, 71.224.140.51, 24.180.205.35, 74.199.82.148, 68.20.101.201, 68.171.234.45, 209.249.53.99, 24.98.197.181, 75.44.6.165, 67.202.15.176, 69.59.162.116, 218.28.29.236, 70.109.29.162, 62.216.241.131, 205.188.116.66, 69.36.55.149, 69.14.20.167, 63.88.13.250, 66.176.0.143, 98.237.153.206, 77.68.56.220, 66.249.67.58, 87.250.252.241, 66.100.26.80, 142.166.170.103, 72.30.142.161, 119.63.198.34, 66.249.68.251, 85.25.124.4, 142.166.170.104, 85.25.124.167, 207.241.228.152, 209.249.53.215, 74.53.3.132, 66.249.68.166, 142.166.170.101, 66.249.68.143, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.65.119, 66.249.65.109, 38.100.41.113, 66.235.124.54, 65.55.207.72, 66.249.68.137, 61.247.222.46, 66.249.67.162, 67.195.114.42, 62.206.212.197, 78.33.237.147, 65.55.207.135, 123.125.66.133, 66.150.224.245, 66.249.68.248, 66.249.68.202, 98.129.144.115, 216.129.119.42, 205.209.170.11, 69.115.241.123, 75.101.206.178, 66.249.68.245, 65.55.107.181, 66.249.67.218, 66.235.124.8, 65.55.106.234, 67.218.116.131, 67.195.115.224, 67.195.112.114, 66.249.68.204, 193.47.80.50, 66.249.67.107, 67.195.37.188, 24.23.181.148, 65.55.106.156, 66.249.68.149, 66.249.68.155, 202.131.30.146, 65.55.104.14, 123.125.66.60, 65.55.232.25, 65.55.207.52, 66.249.68.187, 77.88.50.58, 67.195.112.88, 208.115.111.245, 109.41.38.61, 66.249.68.175, 207.46.204.182, 67.195.114.230, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.112.89, 67.195.113.247</readers>
    <seo-title>Drew Stanton to have First Start for Lions</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Drew Stanton to have First Start for Lions</title>
    <user-id type="integer">1</user-id>
    <usertype>administrator</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">1</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-12-23T11:05:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">183</hits>
    <id type="integer">6693</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;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&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;t easy things to do.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;s hard because their arms are longer than yours.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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&amp;rsquo;t get off the ball fast I&amp;rsquo;ll just blow by him. If he does, then I&amp;rsquo;ll counter inside or something. But those guys are crafty, too. They know what to look for.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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&amp;rsquo;t like to move out of the pocket.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We fought back against Arizona but couldn&amp;rsquo;t pull out the win. It always comes back to the small things and putting a full game together. We&amp;rsquo;re not always where we need to be at times. Once we get the mental aspect together I think we&amp;rsquo;ll be alright.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Cliff Avril is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
runs at &lt;a href="http://www.avril92.com"&gt;www.avril92.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/cliffavril"&gt;www.twitter.com/cliffavril&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>71.167.239.102</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-12-23T11:05:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>this-team-has-potential</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.68.233, 71.167.239.102, 69.63.178.247, 69.63.179.34, 174.36.241.148, 142.166.170.21, 142.166.3.122, 67.195.111.172, 99.147.174.209, 74.229.208.192, 174.129.157.195, 216.24.142.45, 65.52.19.122, 89.151.116.59, 70.37.66.169, 208.74.66.61, 208.74.66.39, 216.24.142.46, 72.13.91.42, 174.129.141.109, 67.202.63.158, 174.129.70.181, 89.151.84.34, 76.114.152.68, 166.216.162.29, 64.140.206.38, 66.249.67.229, 59.95.38.29, 69.14.58.10, 67.195.112.159, 89.151.116.54, 174.129.141.17, 67.18.5.151, 69.88.37.137, 168.93.95.18, 68.171.235.209, 38.99.98.168, 74.201.117.226, 69.36.233.15, 38.104.134.114, 76.173.55.116, 173.170.193.170, 174.133.61.66, 119.63.198.3, 69.59.162.116, 174.127.132.126, 204.116.85.103, 63.215.202.234, 38.99.98.21, 170.12.1.30, 142.166.170.100, 68.41.166.9, 66.249.67.84, 75.161.21.48, 212.227.136.205, 87.250.252.241, 142.166.170.103, 59.97.210.46, 24.205.45.34, 67.195.37.178, 72.30.142.161, 24.218.217.215, 76.16.56.233, 174.127.132.158, 174.127.132.155, 209.249.53.133, 68.187.246.76, 67.177.129.106, 69.250.189.177, 98.102.113.210, 123.125.66.35, 66.219.58.34, 67.202.15.176, 142.166.170.101, 209.249.53.99, 67.184.208.105, 68.50.250.75, 209.249.53.105, 123.125.66.28, 123.125.66.23, 67.163.1.164, 123.125.66.29, 67.149.6.220, 76.97.188.228, 216.39.58.18, 64.191.203.34, 216.24.142.47, 65.52.18.116, 70.37.66.245, 174.129.89.199, 174.129.104.29, 72.13.91.40, 67.202.57.190, 67.218.99.195, 83.149.199.55, 76.105.119.194, 91.121.157.149, 123.125.66.39, 166.137.137.138, 85.25.124.4, 85.25.124.167, 92.241.182.24, 69.168.144.136, 76.106.239.215, 67.149.6.141, 74.53.3.132, 218.28.29.236, 66.249.68.143, 99.252.191.128, 66.249.67.46, 66.249.68.38, 38.100.8.50, 65.55.106.210, 66.249.65.109, 72.12.219.188, 207.241.228.152, 38.100.41.113, 202.131.30.150, 65.55.207.136, 69.58.178.29, 65.55.106.231, 67.149.19.10, 62.206.212.197, 69.63.179.33, 67.195.114.42, 66.249.67.66, 123.125.66.132, 78.33.237.147, 174.129.161.213, 66.150.224.245, 65.55.106.204, 216.129.119.42, 67.218.116.131, 69.115.241.123, 66.249.68.202, 66.249.68.245, 138.47.102.198, 65.55.207.93, 65.55.106.161, 97.95.36.22, 66.249.67.107, 216.104.15.130, 61.247.222.45, 91.199.50.100, 74.66.230.25, 66.249.68.204, 65.55.207.47, 65.55.215.75, 67.195.115.224, 65.55.216.53, 65.55.110.120, 67.195.112.114, 38.99.97.126, 67.195.37.188, 66.249.68.149, 138.89.104.202, 69.250.87.253, 62.75.218.97, 66.249.68.155, 65.55.109.19, 71.15.31.154, 61.247.222.82, 123.125.66.119, 67.195.112.110, 208.115.111.245, 69.58.178.30, 66.249.67.69, 66.249.67.118, 66.249.68.251, 67.195.115.214, 66.249.68.236, 66.249.67.52, 207.46.204.194, 67.195.37.180, 67.195.114.230, 208.115.111.248, 206.83.86.2, 202.131.30.149, 95.24.251.28, 66.249.68.66, 67.195.113.247, 38.99.96.233, 67.195.112.89, 207.46.199.53</readers>
    <seo-title>This Team Has Potential</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Cliff Avril, Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>This Team Has Potential</title>
    <user-id type="integer">33</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-12-21T13:53:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">197</hits>
    <id type="integer">6664</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I've  never lost a game and felt satisfied. I'm not a believer in, &amp;quot;if you tried your  best it's good enough.&amp;quot; That might be all right in high school, but I've yet to  accept that. I hate losing.&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&amp;nbsp; Unfortunately, I  followed it up with a horrible attempt to jump into the stands.&amp;nbsp; 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 &amp;quot;ups&amp;quot; are limited as is.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;So  as always it will be another interesting week in &lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;Detroit&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:city&gt; at the quarterback position.&amp;nbsp; Matthew&amp;rsquo;s  shoulder has had two weeks to rest, so we will see how much he can do. After  all, he is the starter.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Stay  tuned as I will try to update what's going on this week.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-12-21T13:53:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>i-hate-losing</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>190.176.227.138, 66.249.68.233, 174.129.157.195, 216.24.142.45, 174.129.193.87, 65.52.19.122, 70.37.66.169, 89.151.116.52, 75.101.232.27, 208.74.66.42, 216.24.142.46, 174.129.141.109, 174.129.70.181, 67.220.192.215, 89.151.84.34, 66.130.26.240, 67.202.63.158, 174.36.241.148, 123.125.66.42, 174.37.205.87, 76.97.188.228, 216.39.58.78, 65.52.18.116, 38.113.234.181, 208.74.66.61, 72.13.91.42, 38.113.234.180, 74.201.117.226, 69.36.233.15, 38.104.134.114, 64.191.203.34, 75.101.197.164, 174.133.61.66, 89.151.116.61, 72.44.49.134, 208.54.85.63, 67.202.57.190, 67.218.99.195, 83.149.199.55, 12.37.155.14, 142.166.3.122, 174.129.89.199, 12.170.205.146, 211.115.109.14, 67.195.112.159, 69.14.6.93, 216.129.119.81, 64.233.172.6, 74.86.227.227, 38.99.98.117, 67.195.111.172, 12.179.116.62, 67.18.5.147, 63.215.202.234, 68.41.13.207, 6.3.55.1, 75.101.242.214, 66.249.67.229, 123.125.66.38, 218.28.29.236, 67.173.172.229, 70.181.84.49, 66.249.67.84, 74.15.234.56, 190.176.209.85, 200.24.250.188, 142.166.170.102, 98.124.132.98, 198.135.241.18, 204.17.17.249, 155.70.23.45, 174.129.49.105, 64.134.178.52, 66.98.224.72, 71.167.239.102, 69.63.178.247, 69.63.179.33, 66.227.195.105, 173.46.247.16, 99.147.174.209, 68.143.52.158, 75.134.118.12, 71.238.177.109, 174.124.174.107, 68.28.155.112, 206.53.147.106, 69.14.58.10, 216.186.186.122, 98.243.198.60, 166.205.11.3, 162.84.243.233, 75.184.101.167, 119.63.198.31, 38.99.98.168, 66.231.40.184, 74.6.8.89, 69.253.110.87, 76.116.3.233, 174.127.132.128, 71.206.109.92, 212.227.136.205, 72.30.142.161, 66.84.108.126, 76.242.111.195, 67.195.37.178, 174.127.132.161, 71.224.140.51, 38.99.98.21, 142.166.170.100, 68.41.134.222, 87.250.252.241, 76.212.68.95, 216.157.213.90, 142.166.170.104, 98.247.153.89, 98.224.242.182, 211.233.79.171, 99.61.251.230, 85.25.124.4, 72.74.92.212, 98.249.116.246, 85.25.124.167, 92.241.182.24, 69.168.144.136, 66.249.67.218, 24.243.48.54, 142.166.170.103, 220.97.229.132, 66.249.68.166, 66.249.68.143, 71.214.51.9, 66.249.67.136, 91.199.50.100, 38.100.8.50, 123.125.66.60, 65.55.106.181, 66.249.65.109, 66.249.65.119, 61.247.222.83, 66.249.68.137, 66.249.67.162, 62.206.212.197, 78.33.237.147, 65.55.216.10, 67.195.114.42, 66.150.224.245, 94.23.238.27, 66.249.68.248, 216.129.119.42, 69.61.152.176, 205.209.170.11, 69.115.241.123, 222.231.42.199, 209.191.123.35, 65.55.106.138, 66.249.68.196, 65.55.215.75, 202.131.30.148, 66.249.68.204, 66.249.65.114, 66.249.65.77, 123.125.66.121, 67.195.112.85, 173.73.118.211, 99.38.163.121, 67.195.115.224, 24.99.232.94, 67.195.112.114, 66.249.68.149, 67.195.37.188, 65.55.207.28, 66.249.67.107, 65.55.110.91, 66.249.68.155, 38.100.41.113, 65.55.207.101, 202.131.30.150, 88.131.106.32, 38.99.97.45, 222.231.42.190, 67.195.112.88, 208.115.111.245, 109.41.38.61, 67.195.115.232, 66.249.68.98, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.114.230, 208.115.111.248, 123.125.66.58, 207.46.204.228, 207.46.12.65, 67.195.112.89, 65.55.110.73, 61.247.222.45, 128.232.248.232, 66.249.67.66, 66.249.67.36, 67.195.113.247</readers>
    <seo-title>I Hate Losing</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>I Hate Losing</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-12-18T14:13:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">146</hits>
    <id type="integer">6631</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I really  feel like I&amp;rsquo;m not having that good of a season, and I have no one to blame it on  but myself. I&amp;rsquo;m not being as productive as I expected I would. I don&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I don&amp;rsquo;t  feel like the team gave up against &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Baltimore&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; but I haven&amp;rsquo;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 &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;up,&lt;/span&gt; I think we just got beat  bad.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;It&amp;rsquo;s been a  frustrating year, for me personally because it&amp;rsquo;s been an up and down season.  I&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;We play  &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Arizona&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; on  Sunday so it&amp;rsquo;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&amp;rsquo;m supposed to &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;make&lt;/span&gt; and get some sacks.  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;As a team,  we definitely want to prove that we&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Cliff &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Avril&lt;/span&gt; is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;blog&lt;/span&gt; for &lt;a href="../../../"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;runs&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.avril92.com/"&gt;www.avril92.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/cliffavril"&gt;www.twitter.com/cliffavril&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-12-18T14:13:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>huge-step-back</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>76.30.97.44, 66.249.67.229, 123.125.66.23, 71.167.239.102, 66.249.68.233, 69.63.178.250, 69.63.179.35, 67.195.111.172, 65.91.117.73, 142.166.3.122, 74.86.82.170, 174.129.95.55, 75.101.232.27, 70.37.66.245, 216.24.142.45, 208.74.66.42, 208.74.66.61, 89.151.84.34, 38.113.234.180, 72.13.91.40, 79.99.6.106, 72.44.43.230, 75.101.197.164, 67.220.192.215, 174.133.61.66, 89.151.116.52, 174.37.205.76, 67.218.99.195, 67.202.63.158, 174.37.205.87, 166.205.137.161, 216.129.119.81, 65.52.18.116, 174.129.141.17, 149.101.1.116, 76.97.188.228, 216.39.58.18, 64.191.203.34, 174.129.89.199, 216.24.131.119, 216.24.142.46, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 64.233.172.6, 166.90.142.9, 89.151.116.54, 216.24.142.47, 174.129.70.181, 174.143.213.49, 67.202.57.190, 216.114.253.61, 38.99.98.117, 166.137.136.187, 96.42.94.133, 67.18.5.150, 67.195.112.159, 76.214.119.164, 66.249.67.84, 173.65.168.13, 200.126.226.16, 71.10.136.48, 38.100.41.113, 119.63.198.22, 99.20.91.194, 208.31.142.32, 75.101.169.122, 64.112.212.6, 98.102.113.210, 99.28.146.214, 72.148.81.190, 142.166.170.101, 123.125.66.111, 66.51.150.195, 218.28.29.236, 87.250.252.241, 66.98.224.72, 66.249.67.134, 74.6.8.89, 212.227.136.205, 72.30.142.161, 67.195.37.178, 142.166.170.104, 85.25.124.4, 85.25.124.167, 92.241.182.24, 74.6.17.168, 66.249.68.219, 66.249.68.143, 65.55.207.70, 123.125.66.30, 123.125.66.24, 65.55.106.134, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.65.109, 207.241.228.152, 65.55.207.25, 66.249.65.119, 202.131.30.146, 66.249.68.137, 66.249.67.162, 78.33.237.147, 69.63.179.33, 62.206.212.197, 67.195.114.42, 66.150.224.245, 65.55.207.28, 94.23.238.27, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.68.248, 205.209.170.11, 71.96.152.200, 76.126.3.40, 61.247.222.82, 123.125.66.71, 66.249.68.204, 66.249.67.107, 65.55.216.53, 67.195.115.224, 76.106.245.83, 66.249.68.225, 38.99.97.45, 67.169.7.133, 76.28.185.141, 66.249.68.149, 67.195.37.188, 69.250.87.253, 62.75.218.97, 67.195.112.114, 202.131.30.150, 208.115.111.245, 65.55.218.159, 66.249.67.118, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.114.230, 67.195.37.180, 65.55.232.22, 208.115.111.248, 123.125.66.120, 207.46.199.29, 66.249.68.37, 95.24.251.28, 66.249.68.66, 66.249.68.8, 66.249.68.236, 207.46.199.45, 67.195.113.247, 67.195.112.89</readers>
    <seo-title>Huge Step Back</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Cliff Avril, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Huge Step Back</title>
    <user-id type="integer">33</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-11-25T09:15:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">167</hits>
    <id type="integer">6226</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;Much like the process of arranging a mock draft, the science of scouting isn&amp;rsquo;t perfect. Every measurement of weight, length or time doesn&amp;rsquo;t accurately forecast production on the field.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;There isn&amp;rsquo;t a tool that measures effort. Desire isn&amp;rsquo;t quantifiable. Leadership isn&amp;rsquo;t secreted from a gland in the body. A player could score high on the Wonderlic test, but sports agencies prepare athletes with practice exams, throwing those results into question. Besides, being the smartest person doesn&amp;rsquo;t guarantee he will be a great football player.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;And of course there&amp;rsquo;s the classic &amp;ldquo;it.&amp;rdquo; We don&amp;rsquo;t know what &amp;ldquo;it&amp;rdquo; is, but we know &amp;ldquo;it&amp;rdquo; when we see &amp;ldquo;it,&amp;rdquo; right?&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;As I prepared my 2009 mock draft, I was reluctant to put quarterback Matthew Stafford as the first pick overall to Detroit. The long list of needs, particular a porous offensive line, didn&amp;rsquo;t make the Lions look like the ideal place to bring along a rookie at the most important position.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;But after viewing mock draft after mock draft, as well as the rumors saying Stafford&amp;rsquo;s selection by Detroit was a lock, I gave in and pushed Stafford to the top.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;It took a lot of convincing. Some scouts didn&amp;rsquo;t rank Stafford as the best player in the draft. Some rumors claimed USC quarterback Mark Sanchez was preferred by certain teams. Other scouts said if certain underclassmen quarterbacks declared for the draft, they would had been rated higher than Stafford.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;As a pro, the former University of Georgia Bulldog has gone through typical growing pains with the Lions in his rookie season. Stafford even suffered through physical pain after twisting his right knee against Chicago.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;But Sunday against Cleveland, Stafford showed me something. On the penultimate play, He escaped the pass rush just long enough for a final heave to the endzone. On the play, defensive tackle C.J. Mosley got a clean hit on Matthew and he landed on his left shoulder.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;Cleveland was flagged for pass interference in the endzone, but Stafford was hurt. Stafford held his left arm close to his body as he signaled to the sideline to get his replacement, Daunte Culpepper, into the game. With no time left and the game on the line, Stafford was out.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;Fortunately Stafford got the chance he was hoping for. Before the snap, the Browns called timeout to settle on a defensive play. With the extra time to get over the initial pain, Stafford sucked it up and went back into the huddle. And with one healthy arm, Stafford completed a pass to tight end Brandon Pettigrew for the game-tying score. Jason Hanson kicked the game-winning extra point.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;The bad news for Stafford is he has a separated shoulder and could miss the next game on Thanksgiving. But his 422-yard five touchdown performance earned respect and confidence from his teammates. Coming back into the game to play the final offensive snap showed toughness I didn&amp;rsquo;t know he had. And having the composure to make the play through the pain and under a lot of pressure displayed that Stafford has what it takes to become a winner in this league.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;It&amp;rsquo;s no guarantee that his talent and intangibles will help Stafford develop into a top passer in the league. An almost unlimited number of factors could affect Stafford&amp;rsquo;s growth. But that performance could be the sign of a breakthrough for the young quarterback. If the Lions organization builds the right offense around Stafford, it looks like he has what it takes to use his tools right and be successful.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"&gt;Don&amp;rsquo;t ask me exactly what Stafford has. Maybe Matthew has that indescribable &amp;ldquo;it.&amp;rdquo; Maybe it&amp;rsquo;s something entirely different. Whatever Stafford has, Detroit should be very happy to have Stafford as their quarterback.&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Send any questions or comments to &lt;/em&gt;&lt;a href="mailto:talktome@randolphc.com"&gt;&lt;em&gt;talktome@randolphc.com&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-11-25T09:15:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>stafford-has-something</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.68.242, 66.213.125.69, 142.166.3.122, 123.125.66.100, 174.36.241.149, 24.34.223.53, 69.63.178.251, 200.126.226.16, 174.36.228.154, 128.30.52.70, 66.249.67.174, 67.195.37.172, 76.97.188.228, 66.249.68.227, 89.151.116.54, 174.129.95.55, 208.74.66.36, 208.74.66.62, 174.129.141.109, 91.121.89.155, 209.176.111.101, 174.129.58.57, 70.37.66.245, 64.233.172.6, 91.121.53.183, 89.151.116.52, 174.129.107.161, 216.129.119.81, 70.37.92.166, 174.129.89.199, 89.151.116.61, 72.44.61.86, 174.129.193.75, 208.74.66.39, 193.39.112.207, 75.101.170.136, 174.143.213.49, 208.74.66.42, 74.125.46.82, 174.133.61.66, 89.151.84.35, 75.101.232.231, 174.36.241.157, 123.125.66.34, 201.254.115.148, 66.249.67.206, 67.18.5.151, 67.195.114.233, 71.205.70.60, 63.215.202.234, 216.24.142.47, 70.181.84.49, 66.249.67.55, 209.59.96.122, 65.208.151.115, 72.224.78.169, 64.139.246.253, 68.41.134.222, 174.127.132.10, 208.118.60.154, 67.218.116.131, 216.129.119.11, 207.67.117.178, 38.108.180.131, 119.63.198.30, 67.195.112.159, 67.218.116.130, 85.25.149.85, 67.228.189.217, 63.223.124.237, 66.208.26.98, 74.62.154.166, 206.83.86.2, 66.249.65.199, 64.15.129.143, 67.195.115.223, 66.249.65.200, 75.51.109.45, 92.241.182.23, 119.63.198.52, 67.202.15.176, 74.98.232.8, 75.55.51.194, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.116, 92.241.182.24, 216.129.119.12, 66.249.67.167, 66.249.68.36, 66.150.224.245, 67.195.37.178, 95.108.157.251, 66.249.68.172, 163.1.5.153, 75.101.221.99, 66.249.67.229, 66.249.68.178, 216.129.119.42, 69.58.178.27, 66.249.67.98, 67.195.111.172, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.68.195, 87.250.252.241, 38.100.41.113, 66.249.68.233, 218.28.29.236, 66.98.224.72, 79.199.125.108, 204.12.248.194, 88.159.73.53, 212.227.136.205, 216.129.119.40, 123.125.66.47, 123.125.66.42, 123.125.66.38, 85.25.124.4, 75.51.121.109, 85.25.124.167, 207.241.228.152, 65.55.207.27, 66.249.68.143, 65.55.216.32, 74.6.17.168, 66.249.67.46, 65.55.207.72, 38.100.8.50, 65.55.207.138, 61.247.222.83, 69.58.178.29, 65.55.207.26, 62.206.212.197, 67.149.19.10, 66.249.67.66, 123.125.66.72, 67.195.114.42, 174.129.161.213, 66.249.68.248, 65.55.106.207, 97.95.36.22, 66.249.67.107, 216.104.15.142, 202.131.30.147, 65.55.207.69, 65.55.109.242, 66.249.68.204, 67.195.115.224, 67.195.112.114, 65.55.106.135, 71.238.20.249, 67.195.37.188, 62.75.218.97, 66.249.68.225, 130.209.239.6, 67.149.60.219, 66.249.68.155, 123.125.66.58, 202.131.30.150, 67.195.112.88, 66.249.67.118, 208.115.111.245, 65.55.207.131, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.37.180, 208.115.111.248, 67.202.2.164, 66.249.68.66</readers>
    <seo-title>Stafford Has...Something</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns,C.J. Mosley, Mark Sanchez, New York Jets, NFL Draft, Jason Hanson, Brandon Pettigrew</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Stafford Has...Something</title>
    <user-id type="integer">95</user-id>
    <usertype>writer</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-11-11T17:35:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">214</hits>
    <id type="integer">6029</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Any  time you travel cross-country you never can know how your body is going to react  the next day. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;And&lt;/span&gt; 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 &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Seattle&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; allowed us to &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;get&lt;/span&gt; acclimated. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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 &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;have&lt;/span&gt; a team down you must keep pressing  onward. We unfortunately were not able to do that and the result speaks for  itself.&lt;br style="" /&gt;
&lt;br style="" /&gt;
&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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 &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;expect&lt;/span&gt;.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Seattle&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; relies  on the &amp;ldquo;12th man&amp;quot; to gain an advantage, and it is as good as any crowd in the  NFL.&amp;nbsp; We took them out quick, first goal achieved.&amp;nbsp; We knew they wanted to try  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;and&lt;/span&gt; be physical, second goal achieved by us to go out  and punch them in the mouth (figuratively, not literally).&amp;nbsp; &lt;br style="" /&gt;
&lt;br style="" /&gt;
&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;  the biggest determining factor in the NFL is turnover ratio, and that  unfortunately got away from us in the end.&amp;nbsp; I will say this in Matt's defense  and leave it at &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;this,&lt;/span&gt; he was going to the right places  on ALL of his interceptions.&amp;nbsp; &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;And sure&lt;/span&gt; it&amp;rsquo;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.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;So  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;now&lt;/span&gt; we move on and look forward to &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Minnesota&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; coming off  their bye.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;They  should have Winfield back in the lineup this week, which changes the dynamics of  that defense.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; Not to mention their front &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;7&lt;/span&gt; is arguably the best in football.&amp;nbsp; That &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;being said&lt;/span&gt;, we have played them tough to the end every time  the past three seasons I have been here.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;We  know what we need to do to &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;win,&lt;/span&gt; it&amp;rsquo;s a matter of going  out and executing it on Sunday.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com/"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-11-11T17:35:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>time-to-execute</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>72.89.112.249, 66.249.68.242, 174.36.241.149, 69.63.178.249, 70.37.82.98, 24.177.171.112, 75.158.194.49, 208.74.66.36, 70.37.65.66, 72.13.91.40, 75.101.139.76, 38.113.234.181, 216.24.142.47, 174.129.141.109, 74.3.208.148, 216.24.142.46, 75.101.197.164, 174.36.228.155, 72.44.43.230, 67.202.5.6, 216.24.142.45, 70.37.92.166, 142.166.3.122, 64.233.172.6, 174.123.159.36, 75.184.101.167, 24.247.235.47, 98.211.98.137, 174.129.81.149, 67.195.112.109, 123.125.66.51, 70.226.48.161, 216.129.119.81, 99.52.156.181, 207.211.82.105, 97.107.83.214, 98.243.198.60, 64.27.232.2, 66.249.67.174, 35.8.131.147, 99.23.115.167, 67.18.5.147, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 67.195.114.233, 173.26.50.133, 67.202.34.153, 76.84.112.164, 76.97.188.228, 64.191.203.34, 216.24.131.119, 216.39.58.17, 174.129.89.199, 174.129.107.161, 67.218.99.195, 83.149.199.54, 67.202.38.165, 67.225.141.70, 69.217.232.159, 99.54.59.211, 66.229.248.102, 68.41.178.25, 174.129.143.254, 24.236.220.231, 83.149.199.55, 74.6.8.89, 174.42.190.85, 83.149.198.96, 74.207.220.40, 174.129.114.74, 213.149.247.102, 76.226.152.57, 12.9.138.11, 76.226.59.65, 67.96.108.226, 200.126.226.16, 66.249.67.58, 216.129.119.42, 99.23.113.14, 209.59.96.124, 76.236.92.30, 209.20.76.237, 142.166.170.103, 67.218.116.130, 216.248.230.20, 115.238.66.244, 76.100.136.157, 142.166.170.101, 69.58.178.30, 38.100.41.112, 92.241.182.24, 98.167.252.157, 68.41.210.195, 67.202.15.176, 119.63.199.5, 92.241.182.25, 75.101.159.100, 58.93.143.134, 66.249.68.27, 67.218.116.131, 216.129.119.11, 68.28.138.225, 92.241.182.23, 85.25.124.132, 66.249.67.69, 97.92.54.178, 213.180.209.10, 67.195.115.24, 66.249.68.33, 66.249.67.205, 24.155.194.232, 63.215.202.4, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.67.206, 74.161.5.95, 174.127.132.10, 66.249.68.227, 67.218.116.164, 67.218.116.134, 67.195.112.159, 206.83.86.2, 66.249.65.199, 216.129.119.40, 66.249.65.200, 207.179.88.3, 63.215.202.234, 216.129.119.41, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.15, 99.35.98.153, 65.55.207.28, 95.108.157.251, 91.205.174.49, 146.57.34.138, 66.150.224.245, 72.183.202.249, 66.249.68.172, 71.53.219.8, 66.249.67.67, 91.205.173.243, 163.1.5.153, 75.101.221.99, 69.58.178.27, 76.28.228.40, 78.33.237.147, 67.195.111.172, 66.249.68.195, 64.112.212.6, 66.249.68.233, 38.100.41.113, 67.195.37.178, 70.64.118.73, 66.249.67.84, 218.28.29.236, 87.250.252.241, 66.98.224.72, 79.199.125.108, 65.55.106.231, 198.109.173.40, 212.227.136.205, 65.55.107.179, 69.181.116.173, 65.55.207.29, 66.249.68.91, 123.125.66.47, 123.125.66.43, 123.125.66.116, 85.25.124.4, 85.25.124.167, 66.249.68.143, 65.55.106.227, 65.55.106.187, 66.249.67.46, 65.55.106.115, 207.241.228.152, 66.249.65.109, 65.55.110.43, 202.131.30.148, 67.195.114.243, 66.249.68.137, 62.206.212.197, 66.249.67.162, 123.125.66.81, 75.126.140.19, 67.195.114.42, 65.55.215.76, 65.55.207.120, 69.63.179.35, 76.104.175.181, 98.229.56.177, 61.247.222.82, 67.195.115.224, 67.195.112.114, 67.195.37.188, 66.249.68.204, 98.169.26.170, 88.131.106.31, 65.55.106.184, 65.55.215.75, 202.131.30.146, 208.115.111.245, 66.249.68.187, 66.249.67.118, 66.249.68.72, 67.195.37.180, 65.55.110.114, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.115.214, 207.46.204.187, 67.195.114.230, 95.24.251.28, 67.195.112.89, 202.131.30.147, 67.195.113.247</readers>
    <seo-title>Time to Execute</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Time to Execute</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-11-11T10:46:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>No</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">131</hits>
    <id type="integer">6021</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;At first glance, the score of 32-20 looks like a pretty good victory for the Seattle Seahawks.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;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&amp;hellip;except for the 17-0 first quarter Detroit lead.&lt;span style=""&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;
&lt;meta content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="Content-Type"&gt;
&lt;meta content="Word.Document" name="ProgId"&gt;
&lt;meta content="Microsoft Word 12" name="Generator"&gt;
&lt;meta content="Microsoft Word 12" name="Originator"&gt;
&lt;link href="file:///C:\Users\Jason\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_filelist.xml" rel="File-List" /&gt;
&lt;link href="file:///C:\Users\Jason\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_themedata.thmx" rel="themeData" /&gt;
&lt;link href="file:///C:\Users\Jason\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_colorschememapping.xml" rel="colorSchemeMapping" /&gt;&lt;!--[if gte mso 9]&gt;&lt;xml&gt;
&lt;w:WordDocument&gt;
&lt;w:View&gt;Normal&lt;/w:View&gt;
&lt;w:Zoom&gt;0&lt;/w:Zoom&gt;
&lt;w:TrackMoves /&gt;
&lt;w:TrackFormatting /&gt;
&lt;w:PunctuationKerning /&gt;
&lt;w:ValidateAgainstSchemas /&gt;
&lt;w:SaveIfXMLInvalid&gt;false&lt;/w:SaveIfXMLInvalid&gt;
&lt;w:IgnoreMixedContent&gt;false&lt;/w:IgnoreMixedContent&gt;
&lt;w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText&gt;false&lt;/w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText&gt;
&lt;w:DoNotPromoteQF /&gt;
&lt;w:LidThemeOther&gt;EN-US&lt;/w:LidThemeOther&gt;
&lt;w:LidThemeAsian&gt;X-NONE&lt;/w:LidThemeAsian&gt;
&lt;w:LidThemeComplexScript&gt;X-NONE&lt;/w:LidThemeComplexScript&gt;
&lt;w:Compatibility&gt;
&lt;w:BreakWrappedTables /&gt;
&lt;w:SnapToGridInCell /&gt;
&lt;w:WrapTextWithPunct /&gt;
&lt;w:UseAsianBreakRules /&gt;
&lt;w:DontGrowAutofit /&gt;
&lt;w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark /&gt;
&lt;w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp /&gt;
&lt;w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables /&gt;
&lt;w:DontVertAlignInTxbx /&gt;
&lt;w:Word11KerningPairs /&gt;
&lt;w:CachedColBalance /&gt;
&lt;/w:Compatibility&gt;
&lt;w:BrowserLevel&gt;MicrosoftInternetExplorer4&lt;/w:BrowserLevel&gt;
&lt;m:mathPr&gt;
&lt;m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math" /&gt;
&lt;m:brkBin m:val="before" /&gt;
&lt;m:brkBinSub m:val="&amp;#45;-" /&gt;
&lt;m:smallFrac m:val="off" /&gt;
&lt;m:dispDef /&gt;
&lt;m:lMargin m:val="0" /&gt;
&lt;m:rMargin m:val="0" /&gt;
&lt;m:defJc m:val="centerGroup" /&gt;
&lt;m:wrapIndent m:val="1440" /&gt;
&lt;m:intLim m:val="subSup" /&gt;
&lt;m:naryLim m:val="undOvr" /&gt;
&lt;/m:mathPr&gt;&lt;/w:WordDocument&gt;
&lt;/xml&gt;&lt;![endif]--&gt;&lt;!--[if gte mso 9]&gt;&lt;xml&gt;
&lt;w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267"&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography" /&gt;
&lt;w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading" /&gt;
&lt;/w:LatentStyles&gt;
&lt;/xml&gt;&lt;![endif]--&gt;&lt;style type="text/css"&gt;
&lt;!--
 /* Font Definitions */
 @font-face
	{font-family:"Cambria Math";
	panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;
	mso-font-charset:0;
	mso-generic-font-family:roman;
	mso-font-pitch:variable;
	mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1107304683 0 0 159 0;}
@font-face
	{font-family:Calibri;
	panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;
	mso-font-charset:0;
	mso-generic-font-family:swiss;
	mso-font-pitch:variable;
	mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1073750139 0 0 159 0;}
 /* Style Definitions */
 p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
	{mso-style-unhide:no;
	mso-style-qformat:yes;
	mso-style-parent:"";
	margin-top:0in;
	margin-right:0in;
	margin-bottom:10.0pt;
	margin-left:0in;
	line-height:115%;
	mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
	font-size:11.0pt;
	font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
	mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
	mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
.MsoChpDefault
	{mso-style-type:export-only;
	mso-default-props:yes;
	mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
	mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
	mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
	mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
.MsoPapDefault
	{mso-style-type:export-only;
	margin-bottom:10.0pt;
	line-height:115%;}
@page Section1
	{size:8.5in 11.0in;
	margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;
	mso-header-margin:.5in;
	mso-footer-margin:.5in;
	mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
	{page:Section1;}
--&gt;
&lt;/style&gt;&lt;!--[if gte mso 10]&gt;
&lt;style&gt;
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
&lt;/style&gt;
&lt;![endif]--&gt;                     &lt;/meta&gt;
&lt;/meta&gt;
&lt;/meta&gt;
&lt;/meta&gt;
&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style=""&gt; &lt;/span&gt;Something like this jumps off the page to Detroit Lions fans trying to figure out what in the hell went wrong on Sunday.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;How can you give up a 17-0 lead against an inferior offense that has had trouble finding the end zone all season long?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Look no further than Matthew Stafford&amp;rsquo;s stat line: 22-42, 209 yds, 2 TD 5 INT.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;img width="300" height="379" alt="" src="/uploads/Image/ept_sports_rumors-276931847-1257947036.jpg" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Now before you start pointing fingers at Matthew Stafford, let&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;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.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Wrong.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;My next guess was that the Lions had too many penalties on first and second down.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Wrong.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;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.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;I must admit that I was thinking to myself &amp;ldquo;surely this guy would run the ball at least 70% of the time on first down with a lead&amp;hellip;and a ROOKIE playing quarterback.&amp;rdquo;&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Wrong again.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;The breakdown went like this:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;First Down Plays&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Penalties &amp;ndash; 2 false start penalties&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Run &lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;ndash; &lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;12 att, 84 yds, 7.0 yds/att&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Pass &lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;&amp;ndash; &lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;6 -11, 45 yds, 1 TD, 1 sack (-8), 3.8 yds/play&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;(This doesn&amp;rsquo;t include spiking to stop the clock)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;The Lions offense appeared to have everything going it&amp;rsquo;s way in the first quarter.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;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.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;They cashed in on three of these four possessions, which led to a 17-0 lead.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;What happened after that?&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;To some it may not come as a surprise, but the Seahawks proceeded to outscore the Lions 32-3 over the final three quarters.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Failure to make adjustments at halftime and not taking advantage of Seattle&amp;rsquo;s shoddy run defense proved to be the difference in the game.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;As I mentioned earlier, many people would like to pin this loss on Stafford and his five costly interceptions.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Let&amp;rsquo;s not be hasty, we should instead attempt to understand the game situations in which his mistakes were made.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;All but one of his interceptions came on third and long situations.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;One interception was essentially a punt with 4:34 left in the fourth quarter.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;On 3&lt;sup&gt;rd&lt;/sup&gt; 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.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Stafford&amp;rsquo;s other three 3&lt;sup&gt;rd&lt;/sup&gt; down interceptions came on distances of 16, 10, and 9 yards.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;I understand that there&amp;rsquo;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).&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Quarterbacks are such easy scapegoats in this league and in most cases it&amp;rsquo;s validated.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;However, Stafford wasn&amp;rsquo;t the main reason the Lions lost on Sunday.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;The coaching staff of Detroit needs to put Stafford in situations where he doesn&amp;rsquo;t have to be the reason they win or lose.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Never underestimate the importance of not going backwards on first down. &lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/span&gt;Balance the playbook to a 70-30 run/pass ratio on first down to give Stafford a chance to get to 3&lt;sup&gt;rd&lt;/sup&gt; down and manageable.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Also, consider the fact that your playbook opens up quite a bit more on 2&lt;sup&gt;nd&lt;/sup&gt; and 6 than it does on 2&lt;sup&gt;nd&lt;/sup&gt; and 10.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;Stafford should never attempt more than 30 passes per game this season.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;At this point in his young six game career, he&amp;rsquo;s averaging over 35 attempts per game.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;That&amp;rsquo;s absurd.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;When the Dallas Cowboys started Troy Aikman as a rookie and finished 1-15, he averaged only 26 attempts per game.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;You know you&amp;rsquo;re team is going to struggle, so why, as a coaching staff, make it harder than it has to be.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;Go back to the basics and run between the tackles, make a few first downs, and play a little field position.&lt;span style=""&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;You never know what kind of bounces that funny shaped pigskin can take sometimes.&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-11-11T10:46:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>throw-this-lion-a-bone</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.68.242, 76.97.188.228, 99.168.101.235, 66.249.67.174, 174.129.87.184, 75.101.197.164, 174.37.205.67, 174.36.241.155, 142.166.3.122, 64.139.246.253, 174.129.101.63, 123.125.66.105, 38.108.180.140, 71.52.95.200, 24.247.235.47, 38.108.180.132, 76.6.88.104, 67.195.114.233, 69.55.75.215, 83.149.199.55, 67.195.112.109, 83.149.198.96, 213.149.247.102, 129.107.226.106, 67.202.8.198, 216.24.142.47, 129.107.223.72, 216.129.119.42, 208.180.87.58, 209.189.245.112, 200.126.226.16, 66.249.67.69, 67.202.38.165, 74.5.99.103, 209.20.76.237, 142.166.170.103, 76.1.64.222, 216.248.230.20, 142.166.170.100, 38.100.41.112, 67.218.116.131, 99.189.70.98, 67.218.116.130, 216.129.119.11, 119.63.198.34, 85.25.124.132, 142.166.170.101, 67.195.115.24, 65.98.224.6, 213.180.209.10, 67.200.164.82, 63.215.202.4, 129.115.251.68, 198.77.51.125, 142.166.170.104, 66.235.124.59, 66.249.67.206, 67.218.116.134, 174.127.132.10, 66.249.68.227, 66.249.67.116, 67.195.112.159, 206.83.86.2, 66.249.65.200, 216.129.119.40, 66.249.65.199, 67.195.115.223, 77.88.26.25, 92.241.182.23, 70.158.139.244, 64.12.116.5, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.15, 92.241.182.24, 95.108.157.251, 91.205.174.49, 66.249.68.230, 66.249.68.172, 66.150.224.245, 67.195.37.178, 91.205.173.243, 67.218.116.162, 205.188.117.70, 216.129.119.43, 163.1.5.153, 66.249.68.178, 66.249.67.229, 66.235.124.8, 66.249.68.152, 189.161.241.158, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.68.195, 67.195.111.172, 87.250.252.241, 66.249.68.233, 63.117.50.67, 38.100.41.113, 75.101.221.99, 65.55.106.183, 218.28.29.236, 66.98.224.72, 79.199.125.108, 65.55.106.158, 24.252.203.37, 212.227.136.205, 65.55.106.227, 123.125.66.115, 123.125.66.108, 123.125.66.100, 66.249.67.84, 85.25.124.4, 96.240.90.186, 85.25.124.167, 65.55.106.179, 38.100.8.50, 65.55.110.14, 67.195.114.243, 67.195.114.42, 66.249.67.66, 65.55.106.207, 65.55.106.234, 65.55.106.155, 65.55.207.93, 67.195.112.114, 66.249.68.149, 66.249.68.155, 67.195.37.188, 67.195.112.110, 65.55.216.9, 208.115.111.248, 66.249.68.81, 67.195.115.214, 67.195.112.89, 95.24.251.28, 65.55.109.48</readers>
    <seo-title>Throw this Lion a Bone</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions, Rookie, Quarterback</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Throw this Lion a Bone</title>
    <user-id type="integer">1590</user-id>
    <usertype>writer</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-11-05T18:40:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">297</hits>
    <id type="integer">5950</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The  bye week came at a good time for the team, but selfishly a poor time for me.&amp;nbsp; I  mean that somewhat jokingly, and I must write that because sarcasm does not  travel clearly in &amp;quot;blog&amp;quot; language.&amp;nbsp; If we had a game that week, I would have had  my first career start due to the injuries to Daunte and Matt.&amp;nbsp; Well as we know  that was not the case, so I will continue to wait for that day to come.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Honestly,  it was the best thing for our team to have a bye.&amp;nbsp; It is at that point in the  season where &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;guys&lt;/span&gt; have little knick-knack injuries, and  with the bye they can heal up for the long haul.&amp;nbsp; Not to mention we have a  couple days to relax and take our mind &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;off of&lt;/span&gt; football,  at least for a little while. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;For  most of us, it is in our blood so we cannot go without it for too long.&amp;nbsp; I was  lucky enough to get out of &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Michigan&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; for the weekend, but found myself in  the hotel room constantly watching games on Saturday and Sunday.&amp;nbsp; When I &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;wasn't&lt;/span&gt; in the room, I had to stop and look at the TV for  updates of my teams.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Unfortunately,  Saturday was not a good day for me.&amp;nbsp; All the teams I was rooting for LOST.&amp;nbsp;  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Which brings me to the topic that I will finish with... my  beloved Spartans.&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Who, for the past two weeks, have  been screwed by the officials&lt;/span&gt;.&amp;nbsp; They have had two crucial calls go  against them at pivotal points in the game, only to lead to their demise.&amp;nbsp;  First, the game against &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Iowa&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; was not a helmet-to-helmet collision.&amp;nbsp;  Those calls are not supposed to go against you at home with the game on the  line.&amp;nbsp; Secondly, the &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:state w:st="on"&gt;Minnesota&lt;/st1:state&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; call was an absolute joke.&amp;nbsp; It goes  back to my belief that referees rely too heavily on instant replay to do their  job.&amp;nbsp; It is a security blanket for them, so they do not to blow the whistle and  risk making the wrong call.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The  Spartans future is bright though, throw the out their record and look to see  what has actually happened.&amp;nbsp; There are one or two plays in some of their losses  that had they gone the Spartans way would have changed the outcome.&amp;nbsp; I know that  is not the case and that is how &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;you are measured ultimately,  by your record&lt;/span&gt;, but it needs to start somewhere.&amp;nbsp; They have &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;a lot of&lt;/span&gt; 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.&amp;nbsp; &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;GO  STATE&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;!!!!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Drew  Stanton is a quarterback with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com/"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.drewstanton.com/"&gt;www.drewstanton.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on  Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/drewstanton"&gt;www.twitter.com/drewstanton&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-11-05T18:40:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>football-in-our-blood</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>70.32.121.67, 89.151.116.54, 70.37.67.244, 216.24.142.46, 66.249.68.227, 72.13.91.40, 174.129.141.109, 174.129.107.161, 208.74.66.38, 208.74.66.36, 67.202.63.158, 89.151.84.35, 174.129.89.199, 142.166.3.122, 173.78.98.109, 67.202.11.49, 66.249.67.238, 200.126.226.16, 123.125.66.113, 64.233.172.6, 72.89.108.30, 67.202.46.241, 69.63.178.250, 96.231.161.145, 38.98.19.111, 24.180.162.227, 74.94.221.169, 99.35.98.153, 207.32.176.122, 89.151.116.61, 70.37.67.253, 91.121.89.155, 79.99.6.106, 67.202.21.82, 75.101.232.27, 75.45.190.128, 208.74.66.42, 75.101.205.207, 64.246.135.98, 75.101.186.211, 68.248.75.132, 91.121.53.183, 64.12.116.8, 74.204.25.20, 76.112.244.168, 98.243.97.235, 67.218.99.195, 24.208.254.86, 68.40.160.92, 209.254.24.178, 71.205.68.157, 216.129.119.81, 67.220.192.206, 76.226.176.245, 24.159.108.134, 99.23.115.167, 75.101.181.32, 64.62.134.170, 173.89.16.81, 83.149.199.54, 71.206.124.137, 174.57.59.134, 75.134.171.133, 98.243.194.169, 69.14.64.62, 24.11.149.154, 99.149.193.61, 166.205.5.6, 69.14.187.213, 208.44.122.22, 128.221.197.54, 71.238.114.125, 75.184.101.167, 98.209.59.48, 75.45.199.167, 24.183.188.86, 67.18.5.140, 173.46.247.16, 67.195.115.163, 99.59.41.229, 68.42.221.199, 216.24.142.47, 173.121.178.3, 76.112.190.237, 98.228.231.86, 206.53.157.209, 64.126.69.97, 83.149.199.55, 71.205.75.207, 70.37.92.166, 96.63.211.133, 75.30.76.223, 35.11.217.11, 76.97.188.228, 64.191.203.34, 216.24.131.119, 216.39.58.17, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 75.101.197.164, 67.202.38.165, 67.225.141.70, 99.36.122.44, 174.129.114.74, 99.54.59.211, 68.42.246.16, 173.46.232.208, 70.57.230.15, 67.36.58.71, 67.18.5.147, 76.236.92.30, 76.10.21.41, 99.161.186.190, 24.236.220.231, 174.36.241.155, 174.36.241.157, 216.24.131.118, 72.44.48.172, 69.14.1.55, 95.211.14.166, 84.185.233.192, 142.166.170.101, 206.53.147.119, 128.241.112.231, 68.40.172.126, 205.188.116.196, 98.211.98.137, 98.243.93.69, 76.112.192.53, 69.89.109.218, 209.104.144.130, 72.55.18.62, 216.161.30.198, 99.61.249.11, 198.231.23.240, 64.127.90.252, 76.21.142.175, 75.107.186.71, 71.238.219.208, 208.104.10.194, 68.99.32.223, 208.31.155.254, 174.129.78.58, 141.219.25.145, 148.61.142.97, 198.36.95.11, 97.101.39.191, 67.96.108.226, 66.235.124.8, 69.14.93.161, 67.202.8.198, 206.80.195.18, 75.45.229.174, 74.63.93.147, 67.195.113.245, 68.43.198.254, 142.166.170.102, 174.127.132.10, 99.182.89.123, 218.28.29.234, 216.129.119.42, 166.137.133.188, 174.131.19.179, 38.105.83.11, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.68.67, 209.59.96.122, 98.206.174.62, 72.30.142.161, 207.73.103.2, 71.205.33.85, 68.43.162.106, 89.253.70.223, 174.129.104.29, 67.195.112.109, 67.202.15.176, 67.195.114.233, 119.63.199.18, 98.194.205.250, 66.249.68.242, 213.180.209.10, 67.218.116.130, 75.101.159.100, 67.218.116.134, 66.249.67.49, 66.249.68.25, 209.254.56.114, 66.249.67.174, 66.235.124.54, 75.70.246.121, 71.206.98.181, 142.166.170.100, 115.238.66.244, 38.100.41.112, 69.58.178.30, 66.249.67.207, 216.129.119.12, 66.249.67.205, 66.249.67.208, 99.184.242.216, 92.241.182.24, 128.194.135.75, 92.241.182.23, 85.25.124.132, 208.100.203.140, 97.92.54.178, 92.241.182.25, 71.227.50.202, 63.215.202.4, 167.230.38.116, 67.218.116.131, 38.100.8.50, 65.98.224.6, 216.129.119.41, 66.249.67.206, 67.195.112.159, 96.42.44.58, 206.83.86.2, 66.249.65.199, 66.249.65.200, 67.195.111.172, 216.129.119.40, 208.43.229.68, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.111, 71.205.158.2, 63.215.202.234, 95.108.157.251, 66.150.224.245, 87.118.122.54, 163.1.5.150, 204.12.248.194, 163.1.5.153, 65.55.207.123, 66.249.68.152, 65.55.207.76, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.68.195, 87.250.252.241, 174.124.174.107, 66.249.68.233, 38.100.41.113, 66.249.68.138, 66.249.68.91, 75.101.221.99, 66.249.67.84, 218.28.29.236, 66.98.224.72, 79.199.125.108, 67.195.37.178, 212.227.136.205, 65.55.106.228, 174.127.132.155, 68.114.138.169, 74.203.58.114, 123.125.66.30, 123.125.66.115, 123.125.66.100, 85.25.124.4, 85.25.124.167, 65.55.106.158, 66.249.68.143, 99.20.62.217, 207.241.228.152, 66.249.65.109, 69.63.179.34, 67.195.114.243, 66.249.68.137, 65.55.207.93, 66.249.67.162, 67.195.114.42, 174.129.161.213, 209.191.123.35, 66.249.68.248, 209.249.53.187, 209.249.53.190, 67.195.112.85, 65.55.218.159, 65.55.216.53, 67.195.112.114, 66.249.68.204, 67.195.37.188, 66.249.67.107, 88.131.106.31, 129.234.193.111, 208.115.111.245, 65.55.207.133, 67.195.112.88, 66.249.68.72, 67.195.37.180, 208.115.111.248, 67.195.114.230, 66.249.68.184, 67.195.115.214, 95.24.251.28, 67.195.112.89, 67.195.113.247, 207.46.195.228</readers>
    <seo-title>Football in our Blood</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Drew Stanton, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Football in our Blood</title>
    <user-id type="integer">14</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-11-04T13:01:00-05:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">451</hits>
    <id type="integer">5932</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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 &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;didn&amp;rsquo;t&lt;/span&gt; come off the bye week like we wanted with a win. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; we still have 9 games left to prove ourselves and so we  just have to keep working.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The Rams  wanted to come out and get their first win and they accomplished their  objective. They were hungry for that win. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;We have to  get back to practice, correct our mistakes and get on a  roll.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;It&amp;rsquo;s&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; going to be a long trip to  &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Seattle&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;,  hopefully we can come out fast and get something established. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Hopefully&lt;/span&gt; we&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;The bye  week is a good time to evaluate &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;yourself&lt;/span&gt; and I&amp;rsquo;m not  too happy about my performance. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; all I can do is get  better. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt; 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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Our offense  really &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;hasn&amp;rsquo;t&lt;/span&gt; gotten into that rhythm yet. Usually when  you start rolling, you get 1-2 games into it and you just keep rolling. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; we have been inconsistent and I&amp;rsquo;ve been inconsistent.  Things &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;don&amp;rsquo;t&lt;/span&gt; get rolling so well when you&amp;rsquo;re not  playing consistent football.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;ve&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; been catching a lot of passes  lately, there have been a lot more screen passes and a lot of &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;checkdowns&lt;/span&gt;. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; I want to get a lot  more rushing yards to balance that out. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt; a runner  first. I &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;don&amp;rsquo;t&lt;/span&gt; play wide receiver.  &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Kevin Smith  is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com/"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.kevinsmith27.com/"&gt;www.smith34.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter  at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34"&gt;www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-11-04T13:01:00-05:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>weve-been-inconsistent</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>66.249.67.238, 123.125.66.22, 142.166.3.122, 66.249.68.227, 67.202.11.49, 67.202.63.158, 70.37.67.253, 216.24.142.47, 89.151.116.56, 174.129.141.109, 75.101.232.27, 71.167.250.208, 208.74.66.42, 174.129.87.184, 64.150.17.6, 208.74.66.39, 69.63.178.248, 89.151.116.52, 216.24.142.46, 209.183.51.10, 75.101.197.164, 76.8.89.6, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 98.209.134.200, 74.196.19.238, 129.89.177.143, 97.83.26.147, 68.97.193.93, 208.65.227.254, 155.68.69.65, 66.121.52.2, 142.162.193.65, 71.70.136.139, 24.107.57.146, 64.93.221.54, 99.137.203.98, 71.94.22.205, 98.195.222.245, 76.88.110.38, 140.182.167.112, 24.168.25.50, 67.174.130.214, 76.108.144.109, 67.171.21.113, 24.17.190.203, 98.190.41.3, 72.208.168.216, 147.4.120.140, 69.92.108.238, 75.52.189.15, 165.95.45.6, 72.131.30.205, 24.62.104.114, 97.81.114.67, 71.0.117.10, 66.227.147.232, 74.136.9.33, 76.106.137.157, 130.71.251.36, 97.103.133.116, 131.151.65.141, 96.18.135.153, 38.115.176.132, 76.122.35.76, 71.1.147.250, 86.136.253.128, 68.186.193.118, 86.153.149.161, 173.2.120.97, 76.208.68.193, 24.33.253.126, 72.200.110.156, 83.149.199.54, 88.111.60.90, 189.216.128.23, 74.72.231.60, 67.162.113.87, 208.120.122.78, 98.236.76.211, 75.117.167.0, 69.62.193.146, 76.166.108.193, 70.240.100.106, 173.30.228.139, 71.224.238.88, 67.18.5.151, 67.195.115.163, 166.137.4.23, 174.36.228.155, 174.36.228.156, 67.195.113.245, 200.126.226.16, 76.97.188.228, 64.191.203.34, 216.39.58.17, 67.218.99.195, 67.202.38.165, 216.129.119.81, 174.129.193.77, 174.129.89.199, 77.127.209.241, 83.149.199.55, 67.195.37.95, 99.248.235.23, 38.108.180.131, 97.104.251.247, 64.12.117.73, 38.98.19.111, 67.218.116.131, 194.36.10.7, 142.166.170.101, 84.185.223.222, 66.235.124.56, 67.96.108.226, 66.235.124.8, 216.24.131.118, 142.166.170.102, 216.129.119.42, 218.28.29.234, 211.115.109.14, 129.234.193.194, 209.59.96.122, 216.129.119.11, 67.218.116.134, 67.218.116.130, 66.219.58.34, 66.249.67.52, 89.253.70.223, 213.180.209.10, 66.249.68.242, 66.249.68.25, 76.246.61.20, 119.63.199.56, 67.195.114.233, 67.195.112.109, 142.166.170.100, 115.238.66.244, 38.100.41.112, 69.58.178.30, 66.249.67.174, 67.195.115.24, 92.241.182.24, 222.231.42.198, 92.241.182.23, 85.25.124.132, 66.249.67.207, 92.241.182.25, 71.179.3.90, 66.249.67.66, 38.100.8.50, 216.129.119.43, 216.129.119.44, 67.195.37.172, 67.195.37.161, 67.195.112.159, 116.125.140.9, 66.249.65.200, 67.195.111.172, 24.19.35.79, 99.30.15.10, 71.76.191.119, 99.93.166.46, 65.5.199.88, 71.192.158.44, 71.14.123.246, 71.200.120.102, 206.255.25.13, 66.206.141.95, 65.30.185.164, 69.29.77.168, 75.108.197.15, 67.80.230.178, 63.215.202.234, 24.245.50.28, 96.231.20.134, 74.131.88.37, 129.161.35.50, 75.135.205.187, 173.74.50.151, 68.115.75.21, 150.108.232.69, 98.220.191.235, 75.91.193.155, 149.169.140.28, 97.127.217.80, 75.10.36.245, 77.99.62.20, 70.178.45.206, 174.126.32.21, 65.33.49.32, 174.20.79.46, 74.240.138.151, 24.17.114.51, 98.229.29.59, 68.203.11.117, 97.83.144.191, 96.11.142.33, 98.223.52.108, 67.204.195.100, 71.197.10.213, 129.68.188.204, 72.213.54.84, 173.9.223.233, 66.220.96.213, 65.60.213.97, 64.25.240.6, 98.65.207.102, 98.245.90.211, 64.253.20.210, 151.213.96.47, 24.56.255.18, 99.68.214.33, 98.108.15.177, 24.255.62.38, 71.230.56.91, 74.5.157.107, 75.134.106.217, 67.173.220.224, 76.228.239.205, 24.255.34.205, 76.111.142.76, 138.88.5.236, 24.91.240.9, 173.87.117.203, 24.190.92.91, 98.105.145.226, 173.87.117.170, 74.97.208.40, 76.118.222.182, 207.6.242.54, 69.255.154.178, 71.97.86.30, 174.16.222.190, 64.148.173.97, 67.162.241.45, 24.153.133.170, 68.232.117.176, 69.33.244.194, 24.58.254.138, 24.167.229.66, 128.138.64.127, 192.12.88.9, 70.112.186.202, 98.18.81.213, 70.70.153.255, 75.33.53.165, 66.170.197.210, 74.68.147.166, 69.176.129.6, 66.228.221.9, 67.184.52.151, 24.3.86.116, 173.25.179.67, 24.124.70.4, 74.97.133.154, 216.165.28.93, 198.82.74.47, 161.253.121.53, 76.100.97.71, 173.170.199.55, 160.39.226.245, 74.195.244.17, 72.222.225.57, 24.30.67.6, 69.136.58.90, 97.83.177.40, 24.61.130.142, 98.21.145.40, 173.66.226.137, 75.74.81.113, 24.177.53.55, 76.122.99.84, 72.64.47.52, 71.200.136.109, 69.141.190.8, 24.180.19.114, 67.187.73.244, 72.208.224.5, 209.94.128.120, 96.63.206.32, 24.177.111.75, 72.88.131.144, 76.98.34.149, 69.180.26.206, 71.236.228.49, 24.127.119.88, 67.251.121.55, 75.156.152.202, 24.183.46.99, 32.97.110.61, 98.114.195.54, 152.23.193.167, 70.112.234.162, 68.55.12.71, 76.125.84.57, 67.49.102.231, 153.104.187.76, 24.60.180.81, 155.68.101.202, 67.174.56.181, 74.204.125.6, 66.237.109.194, 72.229.122.151, 155.33.141.56, 74.215.110.40, 67.160.46.171, 68.154.162.7, 72.221.72.79, 96.27.159.171, 74.103.30.143, 68.58.219.218, 24.91.77.205, 76.125.17.5, 24.118.53.254, 24.207.133.171, 147.126.46.146, 76.172.234.76, 205.170.14.11, 71.74.29.201, 98.244.106.27, 24.128.40.79, 204.155.172.22, 67.174.121.69, 76.120.241.98, 68.42.86.122, 71.34.176.123, 72.225.138.34, 173.171.234.153, 24.210.104.159, 71.170.224.92, 24.20.242.88, 24.155.155.171, 71.70.75.59, 75.177.20.251, 159.91.123.217, 75.106.224.75, 71.207.176.54, 81.98.88.123, 199.111.189.64, 71.56.238.247, 24.91.66.211, 98.101.80.128, 97.81.102.52, 12.102.148.92, 75.23.64.100, 128.62.40.25, 76.10.181.192, 72.152.175.194, 67.81.95.188, 24.189.175.175, 99.192.23.35, 173.26.234.77, 24.12.175.129, 71.206.197.153, 72.129.63.199, 24.61.52.97, 76.251.196.125, 75.187.55.140, 208.102.203.207, 24.21.204.237, 72.191.125.118, 134.126.218.146, 153.104.187.89, 24.127.52.226, 69.40.163.189, 79.73.107.95, 75.110.54.7, 174.52.158.252, 75.70.192.84, 24.16.89.80, 189.176.44.16, 96.252.49.35, 65.94.120.31, 117.108.33.111, 142.161.166.68, 189.176.169.13, 68.63.15.105, 72.197.84.123, 128.230.96.115, 76.19.196.183, 24.172.164.23, 216.164.128.39, 98.199.91.7, 71.194.49.64, 134.193.240.201, 24.126.70.169, 132.177.37.211, 74.212.42.2, 173.169.88.182, 67.142.161.18, 65.55.207.100, 208.43.229.68, 77.88.51.38, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.115, 91.205.174.49, 95.108.157.251, 66.249.68.230, 65.55.106.136, 66.150.224.245, 163.1.5.150, 91.205.173.243, 163.1.5.153, 71.10.68.167, 66.249.68.152, 66.249.68.195, 67.195.37.178, 38.100.41.113, 66.249.68.233, 116.125.140.8, 66.249.67.84, 75.101.221.99, 87.250.252.241, 218.28.29.236, 66.98.224.72, 65.55.207.131, 166.137.10.79, 212.227.136.205, 123.125.66.40, 123.125.66.31, 123.125.66.114, 85.25.124.4, 85.25.124.167, 66.249.68.143, 211.233.79.177, 65.55.106.131, 66.249.68.137, 65.55.110.173, 67.195.114.42, 65.55.106.139, 66.249.68.149, 116.125.140.17, 66.249.67.107, 67.195.112.114, 67.195.37.188, 66.249.68.204, 65.55.207.101, 66.249.68.155, 222.231.42.192, 67.195.115.232, 208.115.111.248, 208.115.111.245, 207.46.204.192, 95.24.251.28, 66.249.68.66, 67.195.112.89, 67.195.115.214</readers>
    <seo-title>We&#8217;ve Been Inconsistent</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>We&#8217;ve Been Inconsistent</title>
    <user-id type="integer">705</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">49</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-10-29T08:27:00-04:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>No</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">126</hits>
    <id type="integer">5846</id>
    <intro>&lt;p&gt;WOW, week 8 is already upon us, after Monday night approx half of the leagues team will have&amp;nbsp;played half of their 2009 schedule.&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;WOW, week 8 is already upon us, after Monday night approx half of the leagues team will have&amp;nbsp;played half of their 2009 schedule.&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;1.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; The D will improve as the season goes on and the return of Bob Sanders&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;2.&amp;nbsp; Sanits 6-0, these guys are for real, finally they have a power running game.&amp;nbsp; Greg Williams &amp;amp; Darren Sharper have made a HUGE difference on the defensive side of the ball.&amp;nbsp; If they get home field advantage they will win the NFC (barring major injuries).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;3.&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;4.&amp;nbsp; Vikings 6-1, I actually like the Vikes better than the Broncos but cant rank a 6-0 team behind a 6-1 team.&amp;nbsp; In the Vikes only loss they still looked good @ Pittsburgh.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;5.&amp;nbsp; Steelers 5-2, complete shift in offensive philosophy, its worked so far but I'm a little skeptical of it come January.&amp;nbsp; Great Defense as usual from Pittsburgh.&amp;nbsp; The O-line is a huge concern.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;6.&amp;nbsp; Giants 5-2, dont panic after 2 straight losses, although the Sunday night loss to Zona was real ugly.&amp;nbsp; Still good D, but they have to get Brandon Jacobs back on track.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;7.&amp;nbsp; Patriots 5-2, every week they look better and better.&amp;nbsp; The Defense is my main concern with the 2009 Pats.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;8.&amp;nbsp; Bengals 5-2, one of the leagues biggest surprises, Marvin Lewis has the D playing good.&amp;nbsp; Cedric Benson is finally living up to his potential &amp;amp; Carson Palmer is healthy, look out.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;9.&amp;nbsp; Ravens 3-3, 3 straight losses, all to really good teams Pats, Bengals &amp;amp; Vikes and all 3 were really close games.&amp;nbsp; I still think Ray Lewis will finally get the D to play good as a unit which will help supplement the already good offense.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;10.&amp;nbsp; Eagles&amp;nbsp;4-2, McNabb &amp;amp; the offense are yet to look in rythm, its only a matter of time before they put it together.&amp;nbsp; The D is ball hawking like always despite losing Dawkins and Jim Johnson.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;11.&amp;nbsp; Cowboys 4-2, I actually think the main problem with Cowboys has been their Defense, not their offense.&amp;nbsp; Feels like they are about to get on a roll....&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;12.&amp;nbsp; Packers 4-2, 2 losses are to the Bengals &amp;amp;&amp;nbsp;Vikes.&amp;nbsp; Huge game this weekend @ home against the Vikes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;13.&amp;nbsp; Falcons 4-2, under the radar to this point, I get the feeling their best football is to come...&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;14.&amp;nbsp; 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&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;15.&amp;nbsp; 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.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;16.&amp;nbsp; 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&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;17.&amp;nbsp; Jags 3-3, David Garrard continues to impress me, if only they had good WR's.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;18.&amp;nbsp; Chargers 3-3, HUGE underacheivers, should have a much better record.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; What has happned to their Defense?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;19.&amp;nbsp; 49ers 3-3, they need Frank Gore to run the ball well, in the NFC west a lot is possible&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;20.&amp;nbsp; Bears 3-3, Urlacher was a huge loss in week 1, the offense has done a good job for the most part.&amp;nbsp; Johnny Knox has been a great contributor.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;21.&amp;nbsp; Dolphins 2-4, say what you want but its still hard to stop the Wild Cat or whatever it is they do...&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;22.&amp;nbsp; 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'&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;23.&amp;nbsp; Seahawks 2-4, we dont know what we're going to get from the Seahawks week to week, complete Dr. Jeckyl &amp;amp;&amp;nbsp;Mr. Hide routine.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;24.&amp;nbsp; Panthers 2-4, if I were calling their plays I would never pass, run the wild cat with DeAngelo &amp;amp;&amp;nbsp;Steve Smith, duh!!!&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;25.&amp;nbsp; Lions 1-5, much improved, Stafford looks good, but they have got to get him healthy or Culpepper wont win a game.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;26.&amp;nbsp; Skins 2-5, tons of distractions for this team, how do they have 2 wins?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;27.&amp;nbsp; Cheifs 1-6,&amp;nbsp; a few close games to this point, they really need to get rid of LJ.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;28.&amp;nbsp; 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?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;29.&amp;nbsp; 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.&amp;nbsp; Not many expected them to start out 10-0 again but nobody expected them to be winless at this point.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;30.&amp;nbsp; Browns 1-6, pick your poison, Anderson or Quinn.&amp;nbsp; Can somebody get Quinn a jersey that does not resemble a cut-off belly shirt, please?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;31.&amp;nbsp; Bucs 0-7, not a single exciting player on either side of the ball&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;32.&amp;nbsp; Rams 0-7, they are not even competetive, what else is there to say....&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>71.50.181.218</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-10-29T08:27:00-04:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>week-8-nfl-power-rankings-</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>71.50.181.218, 66.249.68.248, 69.63.178.248, 173.50.79.224, 66.249.67.136, 132.38.190.22, 200.126.226.16, 142.166.3.122, 123.125.66.15, 174.36.228.155, 174.36.241.149, 76.97.188.228, 174.129.107.161, 63.243.43.74, 67.202.8.198, 64.12.117.13, 65.222.217.211, 166.205.5.186, 72.30.78.232, 83.149.199.55, 216.24.142.46, 216.24.142.47, 69.12.169.143, 66.249.67.52, 98.247.135.186, 98.165.140.125, 137.5.10.140, 67.195.115.163, 66.135.56.37, 68.227.245.126, 67.202.46.241, 67.195.113.245, 67.218.116.131, 67.218.116.130, 208.43.229.66, 67.195.115.235, 66.249.67.85, 194.110.162.92, 216.129.119.11, 66.249.67.202, 67.218.116.163, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.68.227, 216.129.119.13, 96.243.195.220, 67.195.112.109, 67.218.116.134, 67.195.114.233, 216.129.119.12, 66.249.68.242, 67.195.115.24, 216.129.119.44, 66.249.67.174, 216.129.119.43, 196.25.89.122, 85.25.124.132, 65.55.207.99, 216.129.119.40, 67.218.116.133, 67.218.116.164, 216.129.119.41, 66.249.67.206, 67.195.37.172, 67.195.112.159, 77.88.51.29, 190.141.142.131, 66.249.65.199, 66.249.65.200, 92.241.182.23, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.39, 92.241.182.24, 67.195.115.223, 91.205.174.49, 66.249.68.230, 67.195.111.172, 66.150.224.245, 95.108.157.251, 65.55.207.29, 91.205.173.243, 66.249.68.172, 163.1.5.153, 71.10.68.167, 78.33.237.147, 67.195.37.178, 66.249.67.78, 38.100.41.113, 66.249.67.84, 75.101.221.99, 87.250.252.241, 66.98.224.72, 212.227.136.205, 65.55.106.186, 123.125.66.51, 123.125.66.116, 123.125.66.111, 66.249.68.143, 65.55.106.227, 38.100.8.50, 74.53.3.132, 65.55.106.231, 207.241.228.152, 66.249.68.137, 67.195.114.42, 65.55.106.160, 209.191.123.35, 65.55.106.159, 67.195.112.85, 65.55.106.180, 67.195.112.114, 67.195.37.188, 65.55.207.70, 65.55.207.76, 208.115.111.245, 67.195.112.88, 67.195.115.232, 67.195.115.214, 208.115.111.248, 66.249.68.81, 67.195.114.230, 207.46.195.225, 67.195.112.89, 95.24.251.28, 207.46.204.229, 67.195.113.247, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>Week 8 NFL Power rankings...</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>NFL, Power Rankings, week 8</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Week 8 NFL Power rankings...</title>
    <user-id type="integer">1214</user-id>
    <usertype>writer</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-10-23T15:26:00-04:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">216</hits>
    <id type="integer">5771</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;It&amp;rsquo;s&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; our bye week, so I&amp;rsquo;m just going to  try to totally relax. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; my mind will still be on our  next game, because honestly I&amp;rsquo;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Friday  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt; going to go to the Big Apple, &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;New York City&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;, to spend  some time with friends and family. I &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;haven&amp;rsquo;t&lt;/span&gt; been out  there in a long time. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;ll&lt;/span&gt; probably do some shopping,  eat, check things out. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Nothing in  particular.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;We&amp;rsquo;ve got  the Rams at home when we get back, and I&amp;rsquo;ll think about them, but not really  until we start game planning. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;ll&lt;/span&gt; peek at them and  watch some film but I&amp;rsquo;ll really get into it when we get  back.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Yeah, &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;we&amp;rsquo;re&lt;/span&gt; 1-5, but we&amp;rsquo;ve got 10 games left. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;That&amp;rsquo;s&lt;/span&gt; what it is in a nutshell, you don&amp;rsquo;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. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;In those 10  games, you can show who you want to be when &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;it&amp;rsquo;s&lt;/span&gt; all  said and done.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Kevin Smith  is a running back with the Detroit Lions. His blog for &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com/"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt; runs at &lt;a href="http://www.kevinsmith27.com/"&gt;www.smith34.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter  at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34"&gt;www.twitter.com/kevinsmith34&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>221.192.132.193</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-10-23T15:26:00-04:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>ready-to-relax</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>76.167.41.79, 66.249.68.248, 66.249.67.136, 76.97.188.228, 72.44.61.86, 64.13.147.189, 75.101.146.81, 216.24.142.47, 70.37.66.241, 89.151.84.35, 64.191.203.34, 67.202.5.6, 67.220.192.206, 200.126.226.16, 208.74.66.60, 174.129.141.109, 75.101.232.27, 216.24.142.46, 216.39.58.18, 174.129.95.55, 89.151.116.54, 75.101.197.164, 174.129.111.78, 67.218.99.195, 74.201.117.226, 69.36.233.15, 38.104.134.114, 67.202.38.165, 67.225.141.70, 68.42.244.36, 74.46.18.184, 174.36.228.155, 173.171.115.171, 216.129.119.81, 75.101.239.76, 174.37.205.76, 68.110.12.206, 216.24.142.45, 142.166.3.122, 72.81.26.30, 174.129.101.63, 67.18.5.149, 68.73.192.147, 174.129.104.29, 99.54.59.211, 68.201.38.169, 76.235.185.98, 24.57.29.2, 97.84.192.24, 71.133.60.61, 76.235.222.253, 99.242.25.77, 97.101.39.191, 83.149.199.54, 83.149.199.55, 72.30.78.232, 76.236.92.30, 72.30.79.93, 123.125.66.28, 69.14.20.119, 95.211.14.166, 128.241.112.231, 76.201.51.0, 199.91.34.33, 67.202.34.153, 24.236.220.231, 99.10.250.149, 35.11.172.159, 74.53.3.132, 71.171.138.62, 74.52.45.250, 81.90.19.26, 66.249.67.52, 174.131.29.113, 174.42.250.135, 66.96.220.69, 71.207.9.90, 67.177.132.213, 99.41.198.138, 68.19.37.217, 99.185.43.190, 74.219.164.179, 169.252.4.21, 68.62.147.102, 98.225.184.12, 211.115.109.14, 216.129.119.11, 67.218.116.163, 67.218.116.130, 76.18.15.200, 174.129.143.254, 67.218.116.131, 85.10.209.56, 67.195.115.163, 198.246.32.99, 99.178.226.115, 69.12.169.143, 119.63.199.55, 208.43.229.66, 66.249.67.133, 66.249.68.245, 124.197.57.130, 67.195.115.235, 66.249.67.23, 67.218.116.164, 66.249.67.83, 194.110.162.87, 222.231.42.188, 66.249.68.227, 64.105.72.208, 216.129.119.42, 66.249.67.238, 66.235.124.54, 218.28.29.234, 216.129.119.43, 67.195.113.245, 89.253.70.223, 216.129.119.44, 66.249.67.174, 66.249.68.242, 216.129.119.41, 63.246.169.206, 66.249.67.58, 67.195.115.24, 67.195.112.109, 115.238.66.244, 70.111.190.122, 38.100.41.112, 69.58.178.30, 92.241.182.24, 92.241.182.23, 85.25.124.132, 85.23.32.40, 92.241.182.25, 67.195.114.233, 67.218.116.162, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.67.206, 65.55.106.186, 211.233.79.180, 88.72.51.132, 65.55.207.70, 65.55.207.98, 77.88.51.29, 85.113.244.201, 66.249.65.200, 66.249.65.199, 67.195.112.159, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.44, 66.249.67.55, 66.150.224.245, 24.218.4.169, 125.237.58.250, 95.108.157.251, 66.249.67.104, 163.1.5.153, 216.41.8.252, 67.195.111.172, 69.58.178.27, 65.55.106.208, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.68.195, 24.117.253.184, 116.125.141.5, 87.250.252.241, 38.100.41.113, 75.101.221.99, 67.195.37.178, 218.28.29.236, 66.98.224.72, 212.227.136.205, 64.12.116.195, 66.249.67.84, 123.125.66.27, 123.125.66.29, 123.125.66.114, 85.25.124.4, 65.55.207.102, 85.25.124.167, 66.249.68.233, 174.129.159.185, 174.129.126.14, 211.233.79.170, 98.243.242.68, 66.249.67.229, 66.249.68.143, 66.249.65.109, 67.195.114.243, 65.55.207.53, 66.249.68.137, 67.195.114.42, 65.55.110.65, 209.191.123.35, 65.55.207.123, 116.125.140.13, 66.249.67.107, 65.55.106.209, 67.195.112.114, 67.195.37.188, 67.195.115.224, 66.249.68.204, 65.55.110.187, 65.55.215.75, 116.125.140.4, 67.195.112.110, 66.249.68.175, 67.195.115.214, 208.115.111.248, 208.115.111.245, 67.195.37.180, 66.249.68.107, 95.24.251.28, 66.249.68.66, 66.249.68.155, 67.195.112.89</readers>
    <seo-title>Ready to Relax</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Kevin Smith, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>Ready to Relax</title>
    <user-id type="integer">705</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
  <article>
    <articletype>article</articletype>
    <blog-id type="integer">87</blog-id>
    <city-id type="integer">25</city-id>
    <comments-quantity type="integer">0</comments-quantity>
    <create-date type="datetime">2009-10-20T12:50:00-04:00</create-date>
    <created-by type="integer" nil="true"></created-by>
    <created-by-alias nil="true"></created-by-alias>
    <created-in>Playerpress</created-in>
    <front-page>Yes</front-page>
    <hits type="integer">191</hits>
    <id type="integer">5705</id>
    <intro>&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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  &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;we&amp;rsquo;ll&lt;/span&gt; get out early, about 12 or &lt;st1:time w:st="on" hour="12" minute="30"&gt;12:30&lt;/st1:time&gt;, and then we don&amp;rsquo;t have to report until  next Tuesday so a lot of us are getting out of town.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;ll&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; probably go to &lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Chicago&lt;/st1:city&gt; for a couple days to see my best friend and do some  shopping, then go down to &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Charlotte&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; to see my girlfriend. &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Chicago&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; has &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;a lot of&lt;/span&gt; exclusive stores, a lot of great shoes, shops for  certain kinds of clothes. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt; into  that.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I like  jeans. For some reason &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;ve&lt;/span&gt; always been fascinated by  jeans and shoes. Even in &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;college&lt;/span&gt; I always liked jeans  and now I can afford some nice ones, so I&amp;rsquo;ll check that out while I&amp;rsquo;m in  &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Chicago&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;. For  shoes, &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt; a big fan of Nike Air Force 1. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;Plus&lt;/span&gt; I have a deal with Nike so they can hook me up. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;And&lt;/span&gt; in &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Chicago&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt; you can get custom-made ones at the  &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Niketown&lt;/span&gt; there.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Like&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; I said, this bye week is definitely  coming at a good time for us. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;We&amp;rsquo;re&lt;/span&gt; a little thin on  the defensive line, maybe by our next game we&amp;rsquo;ll get some guys healthy and get  everyone back. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;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.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;I thought I  played well against &lt;st1:place w:st="on"&gt;&lt;st1:city w:st="on"&gt;Green  Bay&lt;/st1:city&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;, any game I get a sack, &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;I&amp;rsquo;m&lt;/span&gt;  happy. &lt;span class="GramE"&gt;But&lt;/span&gt; we couldn&amp;rsquo;t pull out the win, so that makes  it kind of tough.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;Cliff &lt;span class="SpellE"&gt;Avril&lt;/span&gt; is a defensive end for the Detroit Lions. His blog for  &lt;a href="http://www.playerpress.com/"&gt;www.playerpress.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span class="GramE"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;runs&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.avril92.com/"&gt;www.avril92.com&lt;/a&gt;. Follow him on Twitter at &lt;a href="http://www.twitter.com/cliffavril"&gt;www.twitter.com/cliffavril&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p class="MsoNormal"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</intro>
    <ip>76.97.188.228</ip>
    <modified-date type="datetime">2009-10-20T12:50:00-04:00</modified-date>
    <permalink>im-going-shopping</permalink>
    <pick-editor>No</pick-editor>
    <published>Yes</published>
    <readers>174.129.155.45, 70.32.121.67, 70.37.70.5, 89.151.116.51, 89.151.116.61, 216.24.142.46, 174.129.141.109, 166.205.5.14, 75.101.232.27, 208.74.66.60, 66.249.68.248, 166.137.7.190, 216.24.142.45, 67.202.63.158, 174.129.91.213, 216.24.142.47, 64.150.17.6, 212.227.97.200, 166.137.6.147, 209.183.51.15, 96.246.113.122, 69.63.178.251, 166.205.5.180, 195.217.141.65, 82.150.138.111, 206.53.153.85, 70.226.48.161, 174.129.104.29, 170.20.11.116, 69.14.58.10, 98.243.118.32, 69.14.6.93, 96.42.94.133, 173.22.75.4, 64.233.207.75, 68.41.133.224, 65.31.65.198, 123.125.66.15, 86.172.202.190, 67.228.11.210, 24.15.3.26, 67.18.5.150, 74.3.208.147, 74.221.54.247, 86.138.57.241, 76.97.188.228, 216.39.58.17, 67.202.38.165, 174.129.107.161, 74.201.117.226, 38.104.134.114, 67.225.141.70, 66.249.67.136, 99.54.59.211, 24.236.220.231, 68.222.161.34, 138.210.11.64, 72.30.78.232, 166.205.5.60, 35.11.172.159, 12.9.138.11, 83.149.199.54, 83.149.199.55, 174.129.111.78, 72.30.79.93, 200.126.226.16, 218.28.29.234, 174.133.61.66, 204.17.17.249, 164.76.108.183, 79.180.59.83, 85.164.8.39, 174.36.228.156, 216.129.119.11, 174.46.170.181, 142.166.170.100, 67.218.116.130, 68.41.210.195, 67.218.116.131, 68.201.38.169, 142.166.3.122, 66.249.67.52, 66.96.220.69, 67.177.132.213, 65.55.105.226, 142.166.170.103, 85.10.209.56, 74.6.22.108, 174.127.132.10, 69.12.169.143, 98.206.174.62, 67.218.116.132, 67.195.115.163, 66.235.124.54, 208.43.229.66, 67.218.116.133, 216.129.119.40, 216.129.119.41, 66.249.68.245, 66.249.67.238, 58.161.1.226, 66.249.68.227, 216.129.119.44, 194.110.162.230, 216.129.119.43, 216.129.119.42, 67.195.115.235, 89.253.70.223, 66.249.68.242, 66.177.35.169, 66.249.67.174, 38.100.41.112, 94.23.238.27, 76.106.255.35, 153.18.19.73, 66.249.67.69, 92.241.182.24, 67.195.112.109, 65.55.207.77, 92.241.182.23, 24.132.42.251, 85.25.124.132, 92.241.182.25, 92.113.41.27, 66.249.67.231, 133.13.30.28, 38.100.8.50, 66.249.67.206, 67.195.114.233, 65.55.207.29, 88.72.51.132, 65.55.207.93, 67.195.37.161, 66.249.65.200, 66.249.65.199, 65.55.106.185, 67.195.112.159, 67.90.21.101, 63.215.202.234, 174.133.177.66, 123.125.66.35, 66.150.224.245, 66.249.68.172, 138.163.106.72, 75.34.56.45, 163.1.5.153, 69.58.178.27, 68.36.130.237, 67.195.111.172, 65.55.207.119, 66.249.68.152, 78.33.237.147, 66.249.68.195, 67.195.37.178, 38.100.41.113, 75.101.221.99, 99.28.146.214, 66.249.68.233, 72.148.81.190, 218.28.29.236, 150.70.84.45, 66.98.224.72, 87.250.252.241, 166.137.139.29, 65.55.207.47, 66.249.68.143, 66.249.67.46, 66.249.68.137, 67.195.114.42, 209.191.123.35, 69.63.179.34, 66.249.68.204, 67.195.112.85, 76.106.245.83, 65.55.106.211, 67.195.37.188, 208.115.111.245, 67.195.115.214, 207.46.204.243, 67.195.37.180, 208.115.111.248, 66.249.68.37, 66.249.68.66, 95.24.251.28, 67.195.112.89, 66.249.68.8, 67.195.113.247, 66.249.67.58, 85.25.124.4</readers>
    <seo-title>I&#8217;m Going Shopping</seo-title>
    <sport-id type="integer">1</sport-id>
    <spotlight>No</spotlight>
    <tags>Cliff Avril, Detroit Lions, NFL</tags>
    <team-id type="integer">15</team-id>
    <title>I&#8217;m Going Shopping</title>
    <user-id type="integer">33</user-id>
    <usertype>athlete</usertype>
  </article>
</articles>
