Tatum Bell requests a trade. The Lions say he's valued...As a Kevin Jones insurance policy

The oh so on the ball Detroit fish wrap beat writers reported late Friday afternoon that Lions tailback Tatum Bell has requested a trade. Considering the NFL trade "Deadline" (It's hard to call it a true deadline when midseason NFL trades happen about as often as Lions' OT George Foster remembers the snap count) is this Tuesday, I seriously doubt we'll see Bell move on.

Factor in that Kevin Jones has never stayed healthy for an entire season, and TJ Duckett has all but disappeared after his injury, the Lions aren't about to do anything with Bell other than give him the ball 5-10 times a game, and watch him put the ball on the ground at least every 5th carry.

Marinelli to Bell: I said "Pound the rock," not "Drop the rock!"

I'm guessing when Bell's agent approached Matt Millen with the trade request, Millen shrugged his shoulders, and said, "Tough shit, sherlock. I traded an pro bowl cornerback for a fumble prone tailback, and an O-tackle who thinks the snap count is not set in stone, but just a "Suggestion" as to when to fire off the ball. So to make the trade continue to look somewhat palatable, Bell is going nowhere."

Well, Millen might have said that, but he more likely blurted, "D'oh!"

Though I originally thought the Broncos deal was one of...No, the only decent player transaction of the Millen era, it now appears that the Lions were swindled. At the very best, it was addition by subtracting a vocal about his unhappiness Dre' Bly. That, and nothing more. (Looking back at my thoughts at the time of the trade, I was OK with the deal, but still quite skeptical as to how it would turn out, because Millen brokered the trade)

In return for the disgruntled but talented Dre' Bly, Millen got himself a running back with terminal fumblitis, who's become so disgruntled over his playing time that he wants out of Detroit, and a tackle who's already been benched once this season, while committing false start penalties at a record pace.

No wonder Denver was so willing to deal. They got a solid cornerback, while the Lions ended up the Broncos' headaches.