Detroit Lions week 10 power ranking roundup

Not a good week in the for the Honolulu blue and silver, but their awful effort in Arizona didn't effect them in the power rankings all that much. They rank as high as 6 (Scout.com), and as low as 22 (Football Outsiders/AOL). Overall, the Lions average ranking dropped nearly a full 2 points, from 9.5 last week, to 11.3.

As last week's hot topic was the easy to bring up Jon Kitna and the 10 win prediction, this week's topic du jour was also the obvious one, the -18 yards rushing. As I said last week, football writers are quite the unimaginative bunch.

Let's see how a many different ways the NFL writers can make fun of the Lions running game...

SI: 12 - Dr. Z, showing his advanced age, tells us a story. A story about the 1943 Detroit Lions, who couldn't run the ball either...

If you think their minus-18 yards rushing was anywhere near an NFL record, forget it. The mark came back in 1943, when sack yardage counted as yards lost rushing, and on the afternoon of Oct. 17, these same Lions rushed for minus 53 against the Chicago Cardinals. There are a lot of mysterious things about that game, and if there are any of you spry 90-year olds out there who were at the contest, please contact me with information. The Lions should have run better, since their top rookie was a popular collegiate All-American named Frankie Sinkwich. It was a Cards' home game, but it was played in Buffalo. And guess how badly the Lions were beaten. Come on, pick something wild. How about this? They actually won the game, 7-0.

The worldwide leader: 10 - The 4 letter rips the mad scientist, legend in his own mind, Mike Martz, while also referencing the Lions awful running game.

OK, we all know O-coordinator Mike Martz would rather throw than run. But eight running plays in losing to Arizona? For a minus-18 yards? The second-worst rushing day in franchise history? No wonder so many skeptics remain.

CBS Sportsline: 9 - We officially have what the cool internets kids call a "Meme." Sportsline gives the Lions a mulligan for their awful Arizona performance, but they have to...Wait for it...Run the ball better. Unlike when I play golf with friends, the Lions only get one mulligan. Hey, we play "Winter rules" all year long...

We'll call what happened at Arizona a mulligan. But if they don't run it better than they did down there, they will have big problems.

MSNBC/ColdHardFootballFacts.com: 9 - The ripping of the Lions running game continues, with a quip about Jon Kitna's lack of protection for good measure.

Last week: The Lions’ road to legitimacy took a hard left with a 31-21 loss in Arizona that featured three lost Lions fumbles and -18 yards rushing (really) despite the stadium-mandated lack of weather. Cold, Hard Football Facts: Jon Kitna has been sacked an even 100 times in 25 games as Detroit's starter.

Yahoo: 12 & 14 - Not much about our Lions from the Yahoo scribes, as they have more interesting things to write about. At least they didn't jump on the "Lions can't run" meme.

Cole: No comment.

Robinson: While Mike McCarthy and Rod Marinelli are getting plenty of love for coach of the year, has anyone handled a volatile player better than Wade Phillips has handled Terrell Owens?

Sporting News: 11 - No longer bullish about the Lions playoff hopes. How much you want to bet that if the Lions win, their playoff bandwagon is overflowing?

Considering the killer schedule that awaits, starting with the Giants and Packers the next two weeks, losing at Arizona does not bode well for the Lions' wild-card hopes.

NFL.com: 9 - Rather than hop on the playoff bandwagon, Carducci hops on the meme train...

Seriously, minus-18 yards rushing?

Football Outsiders / AOL: 22 - As their norm, there is absolutely no love for the Lions from the football sabers. They do note how much better a team the Leo's are at home.

Defense is eighth in DVOA at home, 31st in DVOA on the road.

Scout.com: 6 - It's all about the turnovers. Doesn't 6 seem kind of high?

The Lions' O-line doesn't match up well versus the Giants, but the G-men don't match up well against the Lions' receivers. Lions giveaway-takeaway ratio is the key.

Real Football 365: 11 - Don't like the looks of the Lions' upcoming schedule, or their playoff chances. The NFL types are jumping off the Lions' playoff bandwagon like rats leaping off a sinking ship...

Try to find a team with a more daunting remaining schedule than the Lions: a home-and-home series with Green Bay, the Giants, at Minnesota, Dallas, at San Diego, Kansas City. There is a very good possibility the Lions will miss the playoffs, and they'll kick themselves for losing to the likes of Washington and Arizona.

The Big Lead: 11 - Back to the "Lions can't run" meme. As they're bloggers, a meme is to be expected.

Egads: Eight rushes, -18 yards, three fumbles, one touchdown.

Detroit Lions week 9 power ranking roundup

The Lions continue to rise in the various NFL power rankings, with a high of 7 (Real Football 365, MSNBC), and low of 19 (Football Outsiders), the 19 ranking dragging their average down to 9.5. The general consensus (8 of the 12 rankings tracked) having the Lions at 8, or above. For what it's worth, 4 of the rankings made reference to Jon Kitna's 10 win prediction. As if I didn't see that coming, I'm finding football writers aren't the most original bunch...

Anyway, enough bitching about the football media hoi polloi, on with the roundup!

SI: 8 - Dr. Z's got nuttin', so rather than talk about the Lions' resurgence, he makes a "Shaun Rogers is fat" joke.

DT Shaun Rogers, 380 now and the Player of the Game last Sunday, was suspended after the sixth game last year for "violation of the NFL's policy on banned substances." He admitted to taking an over the counter product to help lose weight. "What's wrong with that?" the Flaming Redhead asks. Everything. The NFL does not favor the image of skinny linemen. "That can't be true," she says. "You made that up? You mean you didn't?" No. Yes. I don't mean that.

The 4 Letter: 8 - Impressed by the Lions 44 point outburst, as were we all.

It's been 10 years since the Lions scored more than the 44 points they posted in beating the Broncos. But head coach Rod Marinelli thinks there's room to improve. "Offensively, I still believe the best is ahead of us," he told the Free Press.

CBS Sportsline: 8 - No longer laughing at Jon Kitna's 10 win prediction.

Jon Kitna was right. This team can win 10 games. No, it will. The best thing is that the defense is growing.

MSNBC/ColdHardFootballFacts.com: 7 - Impressed by Mike Martz regaining his sanity, proved by his offense's ability to run the ball effectively.

Detroit's shift toward a rational offensive plan continued with the blowout of Denver. In the last three games, they’ve run the ball 46.3 percent of the time; in the first five, they ran 31.9 percent of the time. Next: at Arizona. This is the last easy one for the Lions; they have two with Green Bay, along with the Giants, Cowboys, Chargers, Chiefs and Vikings still to come.

Yahoo: 10 & 11 - Tells we fans to "Chill," more praise for Marinelli's defense, while calling Big Baby "Elite."

Jason Cole: Detroit fans should chill out a little now that the Lions are in the top grouping.

Charles Robinson: Rod Marinelli has done in Detroit what he did in Tampa Bay – turned a defensive line with one elite player (Shaun Rogers) into a unit that makes everything easier for the rest of the defense.

Sporting News: 8 - Another "OMG! Kitna predicted 10 wins, and we made fun of it" comment. The Sporting News, always last to the party.

Who would have predicted it? Other than Jon Kitna, I mean.

NFL.com: 8 - Couldn't do anything better than make a "Lions' roar" pun.

The Lions' roar gets louder by the week.

Football Outsiders / AOL: 19 - Still not impressed, it's make or break time for the Lions.

Schedule about to get harder, with three games against 7-1 Dallas and Green Bay plus underrated Minnesota and San Diego on the road.

Scout.com: 12 - Kitna isn't good at making predictions!

Kitna was wrong. Barring injuries this team is capable of winning as many as 12, not just 10 games in 2007. I like the way they have hung in there in tight situations.

Real Football 365: 7 - More "Kitna predicted 10 wins, who knew?" reaction.

Jon Kitna said before the season that Detroit would win 10 games this year, and many scoffed at his bold prediction. Through eight games, though, the Lions are on pace for 12 victories. Not too shabby.

The Big Lead: 8 - Like most bloggers, TBL are skeptical. They are not totally convinced the Lions are for real.

Jon Kitna, you deserve 6-2, buddy. But don’t buy that o-line any Piaget watches just yet.

I eliminated Pro Football Talk and Mlive, as I got tired of waiting on them. I'm a blogger, my time is valuable!

Detroit Lions week 8 power ranking roundup

If you're anything like me, when you search out the numerous NFL power rankings, once you see where the the Lions rank, you move on. Between you and me, I'm not all that interested in seeing where Dr. Z or Vic Carducci rank the Jaguars and Panthers, to name 2 of the teams I couldn't give a shit about.

I took the time to find 14 different NFL power rankings, with 15 writers doing the ranking. After week 8, the Lions average out at an wholly unexpected 11.6. Not too shabby for a team most had below 25 before the start of the season.

So as a public service, here's your one stop shop for the Detroit Lions NFL power rankings.

SI: 10 - The great Dr. Z is all sorts of confused by the Lons. Well, he's not getting any younger...

This is terra incognita for the Leos. Have I ever had them in my top 10? I mean it's been seven years since they had a winning record, and 15 teams were as good or better than their 9-7 back in 2000. And when did I start doing this thing, anyway? OK, well, here they are. Uncork the Piper Heidsick. A word of caution, though. Six of their next nine opponents have winning records.

The 4 Letter: 10 - The WWLiS says to beware the Favres. And we still want Millen fired, despite the winning record!

Who wants Matt Millen fired now? For the first time in his tenure, the Lions have started out 5-2. They've swept the Bears and are 3-0 in the division. But they still must face the Packers twice in the final six weeks.

CBS Sportsline: 10 - Pete Prisco puts forth the "P" word.

I said last week the Lions would be in the playoffs if they started then. I was wrong. They would be in if they started now. Wow.

MSNBC: 10 - Brings up a 10 win season, along with the greatest coach of all time...

If the Lions do achieve Jon Kitna’s preseason goal of 10 wins (or more), it’ll be their first 10-win season since 1995. The Lions have won 10 or more games just eight times in their 78-year history (three times under Wayne Fontes in the early 1990s).

Yahoo: 13 & 17 - The Lions are part of what Yahoo calls the NFL's "Muddled middle." That's just a high falutin' way to say mediocre.

Jason Cole: 13 - Detroit posted perhaps its most impressive win of the season in beating Chicago last Sunday in the Windy City. The best part of that victory is the Lions defense showed up. Sure, the Bears are challenged offensively, but that's still some nice work for the Lions .

Charles Robinson: 17 - You have to give respect to the Lions for a gritty win in Chicago, but the easy part of the schedule is over. Seven of their final nine games are against teams that should be in the thick of the playoff hunt.

Pro Football Talk: 8 - Flabbergasted.

Stunned.

Sporting News: 10 - Their comment infers that Kevin Jones hasn't returned to the lineup. And people wonder why The Sporting News is dying a slow, painful death...

The return of Kevin Jones should restore some balance to this pass-heavy offense.

NFL.com: 8 - The Lions play defense! Who knew?

Maybe the Lions can play a little bit of defense after all.

Mlive: 9 - Not impressed by the Bears. No one was, actually.

The Lions reappear in the top 10 after stuffing the not-so-intimidating Bears at Soldier Field.

Football Outsiders / AOL: 23 - Using their DVOA ratings, they don't think all that much of the Lions' start. Damn buzz killers!

Jon Kitna is racking up yards, but not in a particularly efficient or effective manner. His 2.4% DVOA is right in line with his 2006 DVOA of 3.9%.

Scout.com: 12 - All hail Mike Martz!

The Lions were outplayed last week in Tampa Bay, but hung in there and brought home a victory. Is there any doubt that Mike Martz is the top offensive mind in the game today?

Real Football 365: 11 - They're AMAZED!

Before the season, who expected the Lions to sweep the defending NFC champion/North division-rival Bears? What an amazing story Detroit has been.

Most Valuable Network: 11 - Brings up Jon Kitma's 10 win prediction, but thinks our favorite bible thumping QB will come up just short.

Will Jon Kitna be right about the Lions winning 10 games this season? Don’t count on it with them playing the Packers twice, two NFC East teams and the Chargers. Expect the Lions to go 9-7.

The Big Lead: 12 - Praises the Lions and their strategy to NOT kick to Devin Hester. Tell that to Nick Harris...

Finally, a team that keeps the ball away from Devin Hester. See, it works!