The Lions played great defense in this game and that was the main reason for the win.  DE Corey Smith led the way for the Lions’ defense in this game with 6 tackles and 1.5 sacks.  Fellow DE Cliff Avril was also very active against the Bills with 4 tackles and 1.5 sacks.  The Lions also had 2 safeties in one game which is pretty odd.  The Bills finished up this game with 102 yards rushing on 30 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 26 passes for 126 yards. 

Dan Orlovsky started this game for the Lions and he was so-so.  He completed 12 of 21 passes for 114 yards with a 9-yard TD pass to fullback Jerome Felton.  Drew Henson got his first action for the Lions in this game and he completed his only pass attempt for 11 yards.  Artose Pinner was the workhorse on offense for the Lions as he carried the football 23 times for 78 yards (3.4 ypc).  The Lions finished up this game with 80 yards rushing on 27 carries (3.0 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 22 passes for 104 yards.  The Detroit Lions finished off a very good preseason with a 4-0 record and they hope the success carries over into the regular season.

The Detroit Lions looked like a pretty good football team last Saturday afternoon against the Cleveland Browns.  Jon Kitna was very effective as he completed 9 of 11 passes for 98 yards.  Dan Orlovsky finished up the game and he was also very sharp connecting on 13 of 20 passes for 167 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Brian Calhoun led the way on the ground for the Lions in this game with 61 yards rushing on 9 carries (6.8 ypc).  Rookie RB Kevin Smith was also very effective as he carried the football 10 times for 45 yards (4.5 ypc) and he had a sensational 35-yard TD run against the Browns.  Roy Williams led the Lions in receiving in this game with 61 yards on 3 catches (20.3 avg).  WR Devale Ellis (4 receptions, 60 yards) and WR John Standeford (3 receptions, 41 yards) both pitched in for the Lions in the passing game.  The Lions finished up with 129 yards rushing on 30 carries (4.3 ypc) and they also completed 22 of 31 passes for 257 yards.

The defense was also outstanding for the Lions in this football game.  Linebackers Ernie Sims (8 tackles) and Gilbert Gardner (6 tackles) led the defensive surge by the Lions in this game.  The Browns finished up with only 55 yards rushing on 16 carries (3.4 ypc) and they completed 27 of 46 passes for 195 yards.

The Lions have signed 28-year old QB Drew Henson to replace Drew Stanton for now.  Henson last played in the NFL in 2004 when he completed 10 of 18 passes (55.6%) for 78 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception (61.8 QB Rating) with the Cowboys.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 7 yards.  This was a suck up move by the Lions’ front office due to the fact that Henson played at Michigan because he just isn’t a legit NFL QB.

This is a shame as Drew Stanton was outplaying Dan Orlovsky for the backup job this season.  Stanton banged his thumb on a teammates’ shoulder pad yesterday at practice and it’s in a cast right now.  Stanton has completed 7 of 8 passes for 85 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 interceptions (150.5 QB rating) during this preseason.  He also carried the football 8 times for 46 yards (5.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.  This was a bad break for both the Lions and Stanton as he’s starting to look very injury prone since he was drafted last season in the 2nd round.

The Lions really excelled in the 4th quarter as they outscored the Bengals by 17 points to pull away.  Jon Kitna completed all three of his pass attempts for 76 yards with a 27-yard TD pass to WR Calvin Johnson.  Dan Orlovsky was solid on Sunday Night as he completed 11 of 22 passes for 137 yards.  2nd year QB Drew Stanton was the real star of the show for the Lions against the Bengals.  Stanton completed both of his pass attempts for 58 yards including a 50-yard TD strike to WR Brandon Middleton.  Stanton also carried the football 2 times for 20 yards (10.0 ypc) and he scored on a 10-yard TD run.  RB Artose Pinner was the leading rusher for the Lions in this game with 52 yards on 13 carries (4.0 ypc).  Rookie Kevin Smith pitched in with 19 yards rushing on 4 carries (4.8 ypc).  WR John Standeford led the Lions in receiving with 85 yards on 4 receptions (21.3 avg).  Calvin Johnson also had an outstanding game as he caught 3 passes for 76 yards (25.3 avg) with a TD reception.  WR Brandon Middleton also was really effective late in the game for the Lions as he caught 2 passes for 58 yards (29.0 avg) with a TD.   The Lions finished up this game with 112 yards rushing on 31 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 27 passes for 263 yards.

Linebacker Leon Joe led the way for the Lions’ defense with 8 tackles.  DE Rudolph Hardie was living in the Bengals’ backfield with 2 tackles and 2 sacks.  The Bengals finished up with 100 yards rushing on 21 carries (4.8 ypc) and they also completed 25 of 41 passes for 224 yards.  This was a nice win for the Lions.

Even though the Lions collapsed down the stretch last season they still finished with their best record (7-9) since the 2000 season when Bobby Ross was the head coach (9-7).  The Lions started out last year 6-2 before losing 7 of the last 8 games but at least they showed some fire.  The Vikings appear to be better in 2008 but the Bears and Packers could step down a tad which opens the door for the Lions to make another move upward.  Marinelli needs to get the Lions off to another fast start in 2008 and he needs them to sustain it all season long.  That might be easier said than done but the Lions do appear to finally be on the right track.  Marinelli has now been the Lions head coach for two years now and he has compiled a 10-22 record (31.3%).

The Lions have signed 25-year old kicker Dave Rayner.  Rayner will likely only be around until Jason Hanson returns from a hip flexor injury.  Rayner played in 11 games last season for the Chiefs and Chargers.  He made 15 of 22 field goals last season (68.2%) and he connected on all 14 of his extra point attempts.  Rayner has now played in 41 games in his NFL career and he has made 41 of 58 field goals (70.7%).  He has also connected on 45 of 46 extra points (97.8%) in his career to date.  The Lions better hope Hanson is ready to go when the season starts because Rayner just isn’t that good of a kicker.

The Lions want to run the football more so they tried it out tonight and it didn’t go that well but they did win the time of possession battle holding onto the ball for 33:59 of the football game which helped them win.  Jon Kitna was sharp while he was in the game connecting on 6 of 7 passes for 106 yards.  He hit Roy Williams with a 20-yard TD pass to open the scoring for the Lions.  Dan Orlovsky followed Kitna in the game and he completed 8 of 11 passes for 81 yards.  2nd year man Drew Stanton finished up the game completing 5 of 6 passes for 27 yards.  Stanton also led the Lions in rushing with 26 yards on 6 carries (4.3 ypc) which proved that he’s getting healthy.  Rookie Kevin Smith rushed for 22 yards on 8 carries (2.8 ypc) in his first taste of NFL action.  Veteran RB Tatum Bell did not play too well as he rushed for 8 yards on 7 carries (1.1 ypc) last night.  2nd year WR Calvin Johnson had a huge game to lead the way for the Lions as he caught 4 passes for 78 yards (19.5 avg).  The Lions finished tonight’s game with the Giants having rushed for 84 yards on 35 carries (2.4 ypc).  They also completed 19 of 24 passes for 214 yards against the Giants.  The Lions have some work to do in the running game but they have time to fix it.

The Lions defense was bending but not breaking against the Giants.  Linebacker Leon Joe led the way for the Lions with 6 tackles.  Safety Greg Blue was also very active with 3 tackles and a sack.  The Lions played good run defense against the Giants who finished with 79 yards rushing on 24 carries (3.3 ypc).  The Giants did completed 21 of 32 passes for 231 yards so the Lions have to get better at defending the pass.  Overall this was a nice win against the World Champs to start the preseason for the Lions.

The Lions always seem to be looking to replace 38-year old Jason Hanson but he keeps beating out whoever they bring in.  Hanson played in all 16 games for the Lions last season and he made 29 of 35 field goals (82.9%).  He also connected on 35 of 36 extra points last year.  Look for Hanson to have another decent year in 2008 for the Lions as he always seems to do a decent job for them.  Hanson has now played in 255 games in his NFL career and he has made 385 of 472 field goals (81.6%).  Hanson has also connected on 504 of 511 extra points (98.6%) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C+

If the Lions are indeed going to shift to a more regular pro style offense then they are going to need some production in the passing game from the TEs.  32-year old Dan Campbell appears to be ahead at the start of training camp for the starting job at TE.  He only played in 2 games last season for the Lions and he caught 1 pass for 1 whole yard.  Campbell will need to catch a few passes if he wants to get any playing time in 2008 with the Lions.  Campbell has now played in 113 games in his NFL career and he has caught 90 passes for 913 yards (10.1 avg) with 11 TD grabs.

6’3″, 277 pound Michael Gaines was brought in as a free agent in the offseason from Buffalo and he will likely play a lot on running down for the Lions.  Gaines played in 15 games with the Bills last season and he caught 25 passes for 215 yards (8.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for Gaines to probably also catch a few more passes this season for the Lions.  Gaines has now played in 57 games in his NFL career and he has caught 56 passes for 550 yards (9.8 avg) with 4 TD grabs.

27-year old Casey FitzSimmons will also have a legit chance to earn a lot of playing time this season for the Lions.  FitzSimmons played in all 16 games for the Lions last season and he caught 8 passes for 85 yards (10.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  FitzSimmons should catch more passes in 2008 than he did in 2007.  He has now played in 73 games in his NFL career and he has caught 58 passes for 464 yards (8.0 ag) with 4 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  D