Lions over Jets, 24-31: Millen’s team back on track

By Os Davis  |   Monday, October 23, 2006  |  Comments( 2 )

Detroit Lions
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In Bizarro World, Detroit Lions fans are so happy! After last week's disturbing win against the almost-as-good Buffalo Bills, the Honolulu blue-and-silver got back on track this past weekend with a compelling 24-31 loss to the New York Jets.

The Lions got off to their usual quick start, building up a 0-14 advantage over the home team. From the very first drive, more characteristic and awe-inspiring play saw Detroit's mindful 'D' running up two penalties in the game's first three plays, showing that head coach Rod Marinelli's program of discipline über alles has really taken hold of his Lions' imaginations.

No matter for Detroit backers, as they were soon able to take pride in Chad Pennington's 28-yard strike to wide open up-and-comer Jerricho Cotchery. And that very first drive showed that, while the Lions may not be able to defend the pass, they're just as good against the run. Four consecutive running plays later, it was Jets 7, Lions 0. Detroit nicely allowed Pennington to engineer an 80-yard drive on the subsequent possession.

Despite the best attempts at defeat bolstered by a 7-21 halftime score, the Lions came back. Without DTs Shaun Cody and Shaun Rogers, the Detroit defense graciously gave up 31 points to the Jets and over 200 on the ground. It almost wasn't enough.

The Lions, consistently excellent in closing out games this season at a 16-54 clip in the fourth quarter going into this game, behind QB Jon Kitna disastrously put together two long drives in the fourth. With just over two minutes to play, Detroit was suddenly in danger of allowing the loss to slip through its hands.

No doubt this morning Lions backers are thankful for Leon Washington. After having run up two TDs on 120 yards, Washington was given just the one more play he needed - a nine-yard off-tackle run for a first down - to seal the loss for Detroit.

"That was a winnable game," said Roy Williams afterward. Perhaps it was, but fans in Detroit take cheer in the 24-31. When combined with the Oakland Raiders' win against the Arizona Cardinals, the Lions are again looking like contenders for the Bizarro World Super Bowl and ready to add another story to the last half-century's worth of glory.

No doubt the Motor City is thrilled to see the long rebuilding process bearing fruit, a long-term plan that began in the year 2000 with the hiring of legendary Matt Millen as general manger to turn around a team that managed only seven losses. With the threat of a two-game winning streak vanquished again, this season shows that all systems are go on the turnaround some 50 years in the making. It's enough to take Detroit fans' minds off their Tigers, in the World Series for the first time since Walter Mondale was U.S. president.

P.S. Keep Millen forever! He is the best GM in the universe!

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About Os Davis

Os Davis has taken a twisted route to get to RealFootball365.com in his nearly 17 years in professional writing, working in any number of capacities in the sportswriting, news reporting and film criticism worlds. In print media, Os has served as editor at a few publications, including Albuquerque's...
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