After finishing 9-7, the Detroit Lions failed to make the NFL Playoffs in 2017 and at the conclusion of the season, it was announced the team had fired head coach Jim Caldwell.
General manager Bob Quinn met with the media to discuss the move to let Caldwell go and his plans for the future. He made it clear that he felt the Lions current roster was capable of more than what they had accomplished over the past two seasons and that his goal was to find a coach who would help win a championship.
From Detroit Free Press:
“My preference is to hire the best coach to help us win a championship,” Quinn said. “I think, when you look at the head coaches that are hired in this league, they come in all shapes and sizes. And I’m going out to find the best coach.”
Quinn may believe the Lions have the talent to compete for championships and after reading through social media following the press conference, many fans seemed to buy what he had to say.
http://gty.im/601791162
But one person who disagrees that the Lions have the talent that Quinn thinks they have is former Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky. Orlovsky recently joined 97.1 the Ticket and gave his thoughts on what the Lions are currently bringing to the table.
From CBS Detroit:
“They’ve obviously got good players, but I think the record kind of marries the talent level. Look at the teams that have 11 or 12 wins. You just go piece by piece and you’ll say, ‘Okay, there’s a leg up there, there’s a leg up there, there’s a leg up there,’” Orlovsky told 97.1 The Ticket.
Orlovsky, who clearly still follows the game very closely, seems to think the Lions 9-7 record seems just about right for the talent they have.
“I guess you could make the argument, ‘Should they have been 10-6, something like that?’ Sure, but I don’t know if it’s a three- or four-win better team talent wise,” Orlovsky said.
He also made a point to note that the Lions current defense lacks the talent that good NFL defenses have.
“You’ve got a premier corner and you’ve got a really good safety, but you’ve got some other holes on defense that you would say, ‘Well, there’s better players on other teams that are getting more wins.’ I don’t think that’s really much of a debate,” Orlovsky said.
Orlovsky did not overlook that injuries certainly played a role for the Lions this past season.
“Losing a guy like Haloti (Ngata) inside was paramount, you didn’t really have an impact player opposite Ziggy, and then you had some issues up front offensively,” Orlovksy said. “I don’t know if I go, ‘Wow, look at that team. They should have 11 or 12 wins talent wise.’
“But you can say that for a lot of different teams. I always say if you look at the teams that get to 11 or 12 wins in the NFL, show me their IR roster because it’s going to be smaller than the teams that don’t get there, more often than not.”
So, Nation, do you agree with Bob Quinn or Dan Orlovsky?
Orlovsky, really now….can we hear from someone who knows what he is talking about…..
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