So when will the campaigns to “Fire Schwartz” begin in and around Ford Field? If and when they do, will it be an organized venture comparable to the “Fire Millen” thousand member marches or just a few unforgiving Lions fans who have once again seen enough?

There is a vicious cycle that has revolved around Lions coaches and staff in Detroit over the past decade. The FireMillen.com  website became extremely popular around Detroit so you have to wonder how long it will be before a Fire Schwartz website is launched. A search on Go Daddy this morning revealed the domain FireSchwartz .com was taken. Can’t verify if the owner of this domain is setting up a site geared towards the Lions coach and staff or not but after the media riot Schwartz caused after Sunday’s loss, you have to wonder.

Lions’ coaches have a history of getting run out of town and sometimes those campaigns starts too early. In Schwartz’ case, the fans have remained more patient than I can ever remember, offering their new man a fair opportunity to rebuild the pile of trash that Millen left behind.

Although Schwartz’ record to date in Detroit is an embarrassing 4-20, the fans and media saw promise with parts of the puzzle falling into place but after Sunday the Detroit  media is reporting that hope has disintegrated.

During this year’s 2-6 run, there was Calvin Johnson’s “non catch” that should have been a dramatic come from behind win then the “sure win” Sunday against the Jets. Factoring those two games into wins like they would have ended for most other NFL teams, the Lions should be sitting at 4-4 but instead are 2-6. Throw in the fact their “franchise” Matthew Stafford is sidelined with what appears to be his 5^th significant injury in less than two seasons and the situation reeks misery.

After Sunday’s OT 23-20 loss against the Jets, Lions head coach Jim Schwartz took the blame for missing a few calls as he should have but when the calls are so blatantly obvious, you’re going to get severe backlash like in his case.

With the Lions up 20-10 with about four minutes left in the game, Stafford took a snap and scrambled to pass when it should have been an obvious running play (remember the clock was their opponent at the time). At this point every NFL coach potato across the country knew it was all about ticking that clock down to zero. Caught from behind, “china doll” Stafford hit the turf ending his day with yet another injury to set the stage for one of the biggest implosions in Lions history.

After a Lions’ punt, the Jets scored to make it 20-17 but if you did the math at this point, things still weighed heavily in your favor.

With Stafford wearing his ball cap on the bench, the Lions got the ball back and with the Jets out of timeouts, Schwartz and offensive coordinator Scott Linehan actually called another pass play, that’s not a typo, they called for a pass play inside the two-minute warning with the opposing team in their stadium and out of timeouts. Third string quarterback Drew Stanton, another potential draft bust who was taken high in the second round, threw an incomplete pass stopping the clock for the Jets and the rest is history.

The play was summed up by the Jets players after the game with ex-Lion Damian Woody saying, “I couldn’t believe they called that,” With Braylon Edwards being more direct:

“That was a stupid call.”

Yes it was and the most troubling part of it is the fact it was made by a knowledgeable man with way more intellect than I and most others could ever claim. That said, is there a force that removes every speck of common sense from a man’s cranium after he dons a headset with a Lions logo on it?

Being very familiar with the vicious cycle surrounding coaches in Detroit over the years, I have to wonder how numbered Schwartz’ days have suddenly become.

In all fairness Schwartz has created some important pieces for the Lions including the defensive line who prior to Sunday is said to be one of the better in the NFL and he deserves to stick around at least through next season. But the NFL is like life in the sense that people, media and fans alike, tend to forget anything good that has been done when they feel cheated or betrayed and those are the feelings that are associated with this Lions loss on Sunday.

With Sunday’s blatant mismanagement of the clock, the media began reexamining several other questionable calls Schwartz has made during his 4-20 run and are going as far as comparing them to other infamous blunders from the past including Marty Mornhinweg winning an OT coin toss and giving the ball to the Chicago Bears, a move that led to another Lions loss.

Linehan appears to be jumping ship at the end of this season as rumor has it he is taking a head coaching position in the NCAA. Will he be remembered for calling the passing play that Stafford was injured on or will that just blend in with the rest of the gaffes we have seen in Detroit?

So going into Buffalo to play the 0-8 desperate Bills, Schwartz will have to somehow keep his team focused to play another meaningless game outdoors on the road in the later half of a season. With Stafford again on the sidelines collecting part of his guaranteed $41 million and center and team leader Dominic Raiola saying Sunday’s debacle “the worst loss in my ten years here” I have to say good luck with that Mr. Schwartz.

Stafford and the Lions are a bad marriage – Sports Climax

How Durable is Matthew Stafford? – Sports Climax

Copyright © 2010 Sports Climax, LLC

The 2010 NFL has featured a plethora of injuries and controversial hits but no position has been hit harder than quarterback. In the week after numerous teams were forced to use their third-string signal-callers, the NFL started reinforcing their rules on excessive hits to any players and levied stiff fines, like the one for 75K issued to James Harrison of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Some notable dispatches from the trainer’s room thus far and there’s more:

• Detroit Lions: Former first-round pick Matthew Stafford injured his shoulder on opening day and has yet to return.  His replacement, Shaun Hill, broke his arm last Sunday against the New York Giants, forcing third-stringer Drew Stanton into action.  With the luxury of a bye week this Sunday, Stafford may finally return next week against the Washington Redskins.
• Cleveland Browns: People didn’t expect to see rookie quarterback Colt McCoy much this 2010 season, that is until both starter Jake Delomme and second-stringer Seneca Wallace were sidelined with ankle injuries. Colt got the start last week against the Steelers physical defense now imagine if he would have gotten knocked out of the game. . . fans then would have been given the opportunity to see a guy named Brett Ratliff who needed to be signed off the Patriots’ practice squad.
• Philadelphia Eagles: Starting QB Kevin Kolb suffered a concussion in Week 1 opening the door for Michael Vick’s comeback.  Vick then injured his ribs a few weeks later, thus opening the door for Kolb’s “comeback” and yet another quarterback controversy in Philly. Although not a QB, an honorable mention goes to wideout DeSean Jackson who was KO’ed from a vicious hit from the Falcons last Sunday, another hit that produced a large fine against the defensive player ($50,000).
• Chicago Bears: Jay Cutler missed a recent game against the Carolina Panthers, thanks to suffering a concussion (and 9 sacks) against the New York Giants the previous week. Todd Collins saw time in that game against the Giants until he was injured on a crushing hit opening the door for the Bears’ third-string QB, “what’s his name”.
• Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars: Both starters, Vince Young and David Gerrard left last Monday night’s game with injuries setting up a battle on Monday Night Football between two second string slingers.

And this list doesn’t even include the QBs who almost didn’t make it to the starting lineup last week – the Packers’ Aaron Rodgers (concussion) and the Vikings notorious “texter” Brett Favre (elbow), who nearly missed last week’s games.  So what’s the league to do?

First off, there’s not much that can be done to change the rules further to protect quarterbacks.  But keep in mind that this has become a pass-happy league – ten quarterbacks threw for over 4,000 yards in 2009 – so protecting them will be even more vital to the NFL’s future success.

That will lead to a further increase “The Blind Side” effect – namely, teams will spend top-dollar on quality left tackles that can protect their prized QBs.  Mammoth-sized offensive linemen with quick feet will only get richer (just ask Miami’s Jake Long who went No. 1 overall in his recent NFL Draft).

Finally, this all ties into a recent hot-button issue that has emerged during the collective bargaining agreement negotiations between owners and the NFLPA: should the NFL really expand to an 18-game season?  Player injuries as a whole have been trending upward, and two more games can’t be good news for QBs.  At this rate, will teams be forced to carry four of them on their rosters?  And who wants to hypothetically see Matt Flynn facing off against Tarvaris Jackson in a Sunday might match-up at Lambeau?

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri also covers the NFL for Sports Climax and the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com.  He has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. He previously wrote for 1766, the Rutgers Alumni Magazine, and popular blog, ‘The Outer Loop’.  Be sure to follow Chris on Twitter for more MLB and sports observations

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

The NFL is just one week into its 2010 season, and yet the list of players already placed on injured reserve or out indefinitely is substantial. 

Packers star running back Ryan Grant is done for the year with torn ankle ligaments, Jets defensive tackle Kris Jenkins saw his season end due to a torn his ACL for the second consecutive season, Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb is out indefinitely with a concussion and the Lions number one overall pick from 2009, quarterback Matthew Stafford, is out four to six weeks with an injured shoulder.  Oh yeah, and Colts Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders is also out indefinitely with a torn bicep muscle.

And that’s just the big names. 

The Eagles, Giants Bears and Broncos all suffered injuries to key starters.  The week two NFL injury report might as well be named “The Walking Wounded.”  Fantasy owners everywhere are scrambling to find replacements even before the leaves have changed colors.  So what’s different this year?

While one factor remains constant – the league is filled with stronger and faster players, resulting in harder collisions – the other is a new phenomenon.  While NFL teams continue to play at least four preseason games each year, teams now do not play their key players as much (particularly in the last game before the regular season starts). 

This is a perfectly logical move – who wants to run the risk of a key starter being lost for the season in an exhibition game?  However, this decrease in game action has led to more injuries in week one, when players suddenly go full-force.  But there is a bigger problem looming.

Should the NFL owners approve Commissioner Roger Goodell’s proposal to extend the season to 18-games beginning in 2012, players would then have two less preseason games to get in shape, and two more regular season games.  That’s two more opportunities for players to endure more physical punishment.  While this also gives two more opportunities for both players and owners to make more money, it could be a recipe for disaster. 

Ironically, this increase in injuries so early in the season has actually given the NFL Players Association some leverage in their upcoming negotiations with the owners regarding the expiring collective bargaining agreement.

Two additional games may not seem like a lot, but it’s a 12.5% increase in both the amount of football played and the likelihood of additional injuries.  And let’s not forget the increased risk of future physical ailments and complications.  Remember the “Real Sports” piece on former Houston Oilers great Earl Campbell?

Look, I’d love to see additional football as much as the next fan.  But extending the season is not the right move.  An 18-game season would lead to extended rosters (i.e., more jobs) and higher salaries, but it is not worth the physical cost.  Don’t believe so?  Just see the NFLPA’s own research, which shows that in the past three years, an average of 423 players have been put on IR.

At this rate, expect that number to increase after 2010.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. He previously wrote for 1766, the Rutgers Alumni Magazine, and popular blog, ‘The Outer Loop’.  Be sure to follow Chris on Twitter for more MLB and sports observations.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC