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Lions abruptly fire head trainer Dave Granito

Posted by Mike Florio on August 13, 2021, 11:40 PM EDT

The Lions continue to make changes. Whether that changes the franchise’s fortunes remains to be seen.

Via Eric Woodward of ESPN.com, Lions coach Dan Campbell said Friday that the team has dismissed head athletic trainer Dave Grantino.

“Our guys were getting proper treatment,” Campbell said. It was nothing like that, but it felt like we needed to go another way.”

The Lions, according to Campbell, are in talks with an unnamed replacement.

The timing seems odd, with the move coming multiple weeks into training camp. But something has prompted the organization to move in a different direction. Whether it happened at the behest of Campbell or first-year G.M. Brad Holmes or someone else remains to be seen. Whether it makes things better for the Lions also remains to be seen.

Granito arrived in Detroit in 2019, after serving in the same capacity at the University of Michigan. Before that, Granito spent 15 years with the Patriots
 
Lions signed QB Jordan Ta'amu, formerly of the Chiefs.
Ta'amu signed with the Chiefs after a successful stint in the XFL but was waived and added to their practice squad before the start of the 2020 season. He joined the Lions' practice squad in December but quickly returned to Kansas City for their playoff run. Ta'amu didn't see action with either team. Detroit's backup quarterbacks, Tim Boyle and David Blough, are both nursing minor injuries so Ta'amu is likely just a camp body for the Lions unless he excels in practice.
 
Lions released LS Don Muhlbach.
Muhlbach, one of the league's longest-tenured players, had been with the Lions since 2004. The last time he missed a game was 2009. Muhlbach is exclusively used as a long snapper, limiting his utility to a team, but has earned a pair of Pro Bowl invites during his 17-year career. If a team is in need of a long snapper and Muhlbach, 40 years old today, still has the desire to play, they will certainly give him a call.
 
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How Did Hall-of-Fame Voters Manage to Overlook Buddy Parker Again?

He was Jimmy Johnson of the 1950s. Except he was better. Someone remind voters.
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How Did Hall-of-Fame Voters Manage to Overlook Buddy Parker Again?

CLARK JUDGE
AUG 25, 2021

He was the Jimmy Johnson of the 1950s. Except he was better. Someone remind voters.

I’m not sure which is more surprising: That Dick Vermeil was nominated as the coaching candidate for the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame’s Class of 2022 or that Buddy Parker was not.

Prior to Tuesday’s Zoom call of the Hall’s coaches committee, Vermeil was considered a longshot – behind Parker, Don Coryell and Mike Holmgren. Parker was the favorite … and for good reason: He was a two-time NFL champion in Detroit (1952-53) and architect of the Lions' 1957 championship team before abruptly resigning prior to that season.
In essence, he was the Jimmy Johnson of the 1950s. Except he was better. He won more games (104-80), had a better winning percentage (.581-.556) and twice beat Paul Brown in championship games. So what? So Brown, considered one of the greatest coaches ever, was 7-3 in title games with the All-America Football Conference and NFL, with two of those losses to one guy.

Buddy Parker.

Yet Johnson jumped Parker as one of the two coaches for the Centennial Class of 2020 (Bill Cowher was the other). Then Flores nosed him out in the first year of the newly created coaches’ category for the Class of 2021.

So, this was supposed to be Buddy Parker’s time.

Except it wasn’t. After votes were counted Tuesday afternoon, Vermeil became the second candidate to be chosen for the coaches category in an upset of epic proportions – edging out (who else?) Buddy Parker in a photo finish.

“I am overwhelmed,” Vermeil told the Pro Football Hall of Fame. “I’m not sure I belong.”

Of the seven candidates Tuesday, he had the lowest regular-season winning percentage (.524), and was fourth in regular-season wins (120). However, with one Super Bowl win he tied Holmgren for second in league NFL championships
The only candidate with more was Buddy Parker.

Vermeil supporters argue that he resurrected two sad-sack franchises, and that’s accurate. He did. He put the Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Rams on the map aftyears of desultory play. Both went to Super Bowls, with the Eagles losing and the Rams winning. He also led a Chiefs' team that was treading water to its first AFC West title in six years.

In each instance, Vermeil underwent rebuilding efforts – with a combined 32-60 effort in his first two seasons in Philadelphia, St. Louis and Kansas City and a 88-49 mark afterward.

“I hear many people say they judge (Hall of Famers) by ‘could we write the history of the game without them in it?’ “ Hall-of-Fame quarterback Kurt Warner wrote in a letter supporting Vermeil. “I know for a fact the history of two storied franchises, the Eagles and the Rams, could not be written without him.”

Fair enough. But the history of the Chargers and Cardinals could not be written without Coryell, a six-time Hall-of-Fame finalist, yet he’s all but been forgotten by Hall voters. And don’t tell me the history of the Packers and Seahawks could be told without Holmgren … because it couldn’t. Yet he hasn’t come close to crossing the finish line.

Which brings us back to Buddy Parker. Tell me the last time the Lions were a dominant team … and, yes, I said dominant. It was the 1950s when Parker took them to three consecutive NFL title games and built the 1957 championship squad with the acquisition of quarterback Tobin Rote.

And since then? Crickets, that's what. The Lions haven't returned to the league's title game in over 60 years.

Prior to Parker’s arrival, Detroit hadn’t had a winning season in five years – which is a kinder way of saying the Lions stunk, with a 16-43 record and .271 winning percentage. Four times they lost twice as many games as they won, including two seasons with 10 defeats – once in an 11-game schedule (1946), then again in a 12-game year. Furthermore, they hadn’t won a championship in 15 years or won 50 percent of their games.

Ever.

Enter Buddy Parker in 1951. In his six years there, he was 47-23-2 (.671), with three division titles and three consecutive championship-game appearances (1952-54). Tiring of meddling ownership, he left the Lions in 1957 for Pittsburgh, where the Steelers hadn’t had a winning season in seven years. No problem. Parker produced a 51-47-6 record (.520), with only three losing seasons in eight years.

So what happened after he retired in 1964? Nothing, that's what. The Steelers didn’t have a winning season again until 1972 – going 25-70-3 in the process and never winning more than six games in any year – a stretch that included the first three seasons of Hall-of-Famer Chuck Noll’s tenure.

Yes, Vermeil turned around two moribund franchises. But so did Buddy Parker. But for some reason the Hall has fallen asleep on him, and don’t ask me why. His regular-season winning percentage (.581) exceeds Vermeil (.524). So does his playoff percentage (.750-.545). He won two NFL championships, or one more than Vermeil. He went to three NFL title games. Vermeil went to two. In 15 seasons as a head coach (including 1949 where he was a co-coach of the Bears) he had four losing years. In Vermeil’s 15 seasons as a head coach, he had seven.
I know, Vermeil had more regular-season wins (120-104) and more playoff victories, but read the fine print, people. Because of expanded schedules, he coached 229 regular-season games. Parker coached 188, or 41 fewer.

Now do the math. Applying Parker's .581 winning percentage with 41 more starts he'd have won 24 more games -- or 127.
"I was surprised Vermeil jumped to the top," said NFL historian John Turney of Pro Football Journal. "He would've just made my top five, behind Parker, Coryell and a couple of others. However, he was the first special-teams coach under George Allen in 1969 and took two underwater teams to Super Bowls.

"But with Parker's two rings and then turning around the Steelers, who were drowning themselves, I thought he had the edge So good for Coach Vermeil. But it seemed Parker would have been in the top of this group of seven finalists."

Enough already. I think you get the picture. Buddy Parker deserves to be recognized for his achievements. He deserved it with the Centennial Class of 2020. He deserved it with the Class of 2021. And he deserved it with the Class of 2022. Yet he’s still on the outside looking in.

Someone please tell me why. Better yet, tell the voters who just knocked him down.

Again.
 
There were apparently two losers in Detroit’s kicking competition.

The Lions announced that they’ve released both Randy Bullock and Zane Gonzalez while reducing their roster to 53 players.

Bullock made all three of his field goals and Gonzalez made his one attempt during the three preseason games.

Bullock signed with Detroit as a free agent back in March, following a five-season stint with the Bengals. Last year, Bullock finished 21-of-26 on field goals and 24-of-25 on extra points.

Detroit added Gonzalez in August after he struggled through the 2020 season with Arizona. He missed five field goals from 40-49 yards, finishing the season 16-of-22 in 12 games.

The Lions will presumably look over the waiver wire and the list of free agents to bring in a kicker or two before the start of the regular season. Considering the elimination of the fourth preseason game, the club does have some time to figure it out.

Also on Detroit’s list, the club notably released Nickell Robey-Coleman. The slot cornerback, notorious for the non-defensive pass interference call during the 2018 NFC Championship Game, signed with the team earlier this month.

Additionally, the Lions released receiver Geronimo Allison and cornerback Corn Elder. The club waived linebacker Tavante Beckett, linebacker Rashod Berry, safety Jalen Elliott, defensive tackle Bruce Hector, guard Tommy Kraemer, tight end Alize Mack, receiver Javon McKinley, running back Dedrick Mills, offensive tackle Darrin Paulo, running back Craig Reynolds, receiver Sage Surratt, linebacker Jahlani Tavai, and tight end Brock Wright. And Detroit placed defensive end Jason Cornell on injured reserve.
 

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Lions claimed K Austin Seibert off waivers from the Bengals.
The Lions moved on from both of their kickers at the deadline to cut down to 53 players so a move to add a new leg was necessary. Seibert played in five games last year, four of which came with the Bengals. He connected on 6-of-9 field goals on the year and made all but one of his nine extra points. With the Lions projected to have one of the league's worst offenses, their kicker, by extension, can be ignored for fantasy purposes.
 
Lions claimed WR KhaDarel Hodge off waivers from the Browns.
It is a sensible flier for the receiver desperate Lions, though 26-year-old Hodge is probably still most likely to contribute on special teams. He has 17 career receptions. Hodge does not change the calculus if you are sifting through the Lions' post-Breshad Perriman receiver corps for fliers.
 
Former Lions standout Cecil Souders dies at 100

Posted by Charean Williams on September 1, 2021, 8:41 PM EDT

Cecil “Cy” Souders was the NFL’s oldest living NFL alum until his death Monday at his home in Hilliard, Ohio. He was 100.
Tony Paul of The Detroit News reports Souders still was watching college football and breaking down plays into his 90s.

Souders played for the Lions from 1947-49, retiring because the NFL didn’t pay well enough to support his family, Souders’ wife, Jean, told Paul in 2019.

Souders was a star end and tackle at Ohio State, earning induction into the school’s athletics Hall of Fame, before Washington drafted him in the 25th round in 1945. His only career action came with the Lions.
He caught 15 passes for 184 yards and his only career touchdown in his first season with Detroit. Souders added two catches for 19 yards in 1948.

Souders is survived by wife Jean, daughter Sharon and grandson Randall Cohen.
 
Lions G.M. Brad Holmes downplays first-round pick Penei Sewell’s rough preseason

Posted by Michael David Smith on September 3, 2021, 5:16 AM EDT

One of the most consistent observations from Lions preseason games was that rookie right tackle Penei Sewell did not play well. Sewell was consistently beaten by pass rushers and did not look ready to be an NFL starter.

But Lions General Manager Brad Holmes, who selected Sewell with the seventh overall pick, says Sewell will be just fine as the Lions’ starter when they take the field in Week One against the 49ers.

“I believe that he will be ready for Week 1 and I think he’s ready now,” Holmes said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “Yeah, I mean, he’s going through the normal process that a rookie would go through, regardless of where he’s drafted. That’s a tough position to play out there on that island and he’s sat out for a year. So what he’s done, and I know it’s magnified by what may be a hiccup here or there, but there’s so much of the good stuff that maybe kind of hidden when you really kind of deep dive the film, little subtle nuances that is going to make a big difference.”

Sewell is only 20 years old and only played a season and a half of college football: He was injured for half of his freshman year in 2018, won the Outland Trophy as the best lineman in college football in 2019, then opted out in 2020 before declaring for the draft in 2021. So he clearly is not a finished product and has a lot of room to improve. But if the Lions are going to put him in the starting lineup from the start of his rookie year, they need him to look a lot better in the regular season than he looked in the preseason
 
Pride of the Lions inductee Roger Brown dies at 84

Posted by Charean Williams on September 17, 2021, 8:44 PM EDT

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Former Lions and Rams defensive tackle Roger Brown died Friday, the Lions announced. He was 84.

Brown made six Pro Bowls in 10 NFL seasons, seven played with the Lions and three with the Rams. Detroit made him a fourth-round choice in 1960.

Brown earned first-team All-Pro in 1962 and 1963. Sacks did not become an official statistic until 1982, but according to the Lions, Brown had seven sacks of Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr in a 1962 Thanksgiving win over the Packers.

Brown earned five consecutive Pro Bowls with the Lions from 1962-66 before joining the Rams in 1967.

“Roger Brown will always hold a special place in our team’s history,”
Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp said in a statement. “A member of the Lions’ esteemed ‘Fearsome Foursome’ of the 1960s with Alex Karras, Darris McCord and Sam Williams, Roger’s career accomplishments solidify his legacy alongside some of the all-time greats of our game.”

Brown played three seasons in Los Angeles alongside Deacon Jones, Merlin Olsen and Lamar Lundy before retiring following the 1969 season.

The Lions inducted Brown, along with Karras, into the team’s hall of fame, Pride of the Lions, in 2018. Brown also earned enshrinement into the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2015, College Football Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
 
Ifeatu Melifonwu’s thigh injury “a bad one” for Lions

Posted by Curtis Crabtree on September 21, 2021, 1:42 AM EDT

The Detroit Lions lost cornerback Ifeatu Melifonwu early in the third quarter of Monday night’s loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Melifonwu was trailing Davante Adams on a 50-yard completion from Aaron Rodgers when he fell to the turf at the end of the play. He was listed as questionable to return with a thigh injury but he never returned to the contest.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell said after the game the prognosis for Melifonwu isn’t great.

“Yeah, it’s a bad one,” Campbell said, via Kyle Meinke of MLive.com. “Looks like he will be out for a little bit.”

Melifonwu was a third round pick of the Lions this spring and was pressed into starting duty with the loss of Jeff Okudah last week to a torn Achilles.

The loss of Melifonwu will test the Lions reserves that much more with Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens coming up next week.
 
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