Jason_R

I don’t take MB as saying that anyone was arguing that Brad should trade for Cam Robinson. I take him as using Cam Robinson as an example, just like everyone else was, of the kind of player that one team would find expendable at the trade deadline but another team might need. Last year, given Minnesota’s circumstances where Darrisaw was out for the year, it may have made sense for them to trade for Robinson. It is notable that Robinson was only made available by Jax because he had warts as a player, which are evident in the fact that he has been on four teams in the past year. It is easy to say that Brad could have had almost any player if he just cared enough about the roster, but the fact is players don’t get moved unless there is a really good reason. Maybe we think they should feel like they were in as much of a crisis as Minnesota was in last year, but they don’t. Maybe they are wrong but we will see.

You talk about logical fallacies then say "...almost any player can be had for the right price... the middling players that other teams can replace and that are an upgrade for the Lions." With the trade deadline being halfway through the season and especially with the extra wild card team, very few teams were obviously out of playoff contention. And even those that are out of playoff contention are not necessarily in fire sale mode. GMs know they have to field a roster next year, and, in fact, the rest of this year. So while, in the very abstract, one GM could pry away a player another GM was not actively shopping by making a ridiculous offer, that strategy is not going to work long-term. Also, maybe five years ago or more, a middling player on another team might have been an upgrade for the Lions, but this roster is now one of the best in the NFL. How many middling players on the Jets, Titans, Raiders -- players they believe they can field a team without -- would actually be an upgrade for the Lions? I don't think there are as many as you think there are. The people complaining now that Holmes did not make a trade at the deadline are the same people complaining that he didn't re-sign Zadarius Smith in the offseason. Hmmm... maybe he knows things we don't. Holmes does have a track record of reaching with those third-round picks. It is hard to see the investments in players like Martin and Hooker not pay off, and maybe if he had been more conservative there he could have been more aggressive at the trade deadline. But this is the best Lions team we have ever seen and they are a legitimate Super Bowl contender if they can dial in their protection and play calling.

“He chose not to improve this team.” 😂 I love it when fans get passive aggressive with the GM like an angry wife. “Oh, so I guess you think this roster has no holes. You must not care about winning cause if you did you would have done something.” The only thing that might be considered an urgent need is a replacement for Mahogany, and it wasn’t a need until 48 hours before the deadline. Do you give up a sixth round pick for a guy another team thinks is no better than its sixth-best big, to get a short-term replacement for a guy who will be back this year, and when you already have Miles Frazier scheduled to come back?

Just because a guy like Cam Robinson is available one year doesn’t mean another guy like him is going to be available every year. Also, Jax seems to have wanted to get rid of him after a knee injury. In the course of the last year he has played for them, Minnesota, Houston, and Cleveland. Is this really the kind of big move we are blaming Holmes for not making?

How do we know that Ruiz, Teller, and Bitonio were available?

Would you have traded two first round picks and Kalif Raymond for Sauce Gardner? If you aren’t ready to give up a massive trade package at the deadline, you are only going to end up with marginal players. The Bears got Joe Tryon-Shoyinka. He was barely seeing the field in Cleveland. Whose roster spot are you going to give up for him? Is he any better than Paschal or Davenport or Wingo for that matter? The defense has been sound, not great, but improving and getting healthier. The biggest problem on offense is not with personnel, it is with scheme and coaching. Yes, OL took a hit on Sunday but the solution to a problem that is largely based on communication is not to drop in new players.

They are #2 in the league in sacks despite having missed their entire starting secondary for a game and both starting CBs for multiple games. Not sure what they could have done defensively that would have moved the needle other than let guys get healthy. Offensively, are we supposed to think that they should have traded for a starting center or left tackle in the middle of the season? Has that ever happened at the trade deadline? What needs to happen is Dan Campbell, Johnnie Morton, and Hank Fraley lock themselves in a room for a day and come up with a simple game plan with a lot of two TE and jumbo sets and some play action. Lay off the cutesy screens for a bit.

Then the fan base demanded the team re-sign him only for him to retire halfway through the season.

I didn’t say nobody has been concerned about the OL. Clearly the Ragnow retirement was a blow, as has been Decker’s injury. I did say that nobody was talking about trading for OL help at the deadline until the injury bug hit them on Sunday. One name Campbell didn’t mention was Miles Frazier. I like to think he is part of the solution in the foreseeable future.

Tater needs a post-trade deadline call from Steve Yzerman. 😊 It was a rough day for the OL, and has been a rough season with Ragnow surprising them with a late retirement and Decker apparently having lingering issues from his shoulder surgery. But before Sunday, nobody was seriously talking about trading for OL help. And the thing that will help them most is if MCDC steps in to provide a bit more direction to Morton. Defensively they will get a lot of players back, including an All Pro safety and their starting CB and DE.

One thing about analytics is that this mindset can lead some to believe that the game is played on a spreadsheet. It is not. I agree that with Skubal, internal improvements, and a few key FA investments, this team could make a deep postseason run. As a front office and as an ownership group, you have to demonstrate to your team and the league that you intend to compete as hard as you can. It would be a massive failure not to go all-in on at least one more season with Skubal.

To the extent you are saying your offense won’t be effective unless your offense is effective, I agree with you. The issue is that this offense is not effective, at least in part, because it has strayed from its identity as driven by play action. Yes, continuity in OL has been a major factor, but a lack of continuity is all the more reason to focus even more intensely on your core identity. It would be one thing if you abandon your core identity because your OC guru is implementing clever play designs that scheme people open. This is not happening. What seems to be happening is they are calling more screens trying to make the passing game lower risk for Goff, and trying to take advantage of Gibbs as a playmaker, but neglecting the downfield PA game that they got a lot of explosive plays from previously. They should have this part of the offense dialed in by now but they’ve been chasing shiny objects for the first two months and aren’t there. This guy captures my sentiments: “Get back to the play-action stuff that made Goff more effective than he’s ever been and everything else will follow.” https://www.prideofdetroit.com/detroit-lions-opinion/147445/detroit-lions-lost-without-offensive-line-identity

There is no rule that says you have to have a certain number of rushes or yards per carry before you use play action. This is a team identity question. This offense has no identity under Morton.

MUST WIN

Can we get back to play action please?

“John Morton’s offense has now delivered the two least successful offensive performances at Ford Field of the entire Dan Campbell era in the last two games.”

Well, at least Detroit didn’t lay as big of a turd as Washington is.

He’s their best offensive player.

The defense did not play all that badly today. Arnold was back and had a big play. The team had two terrible roughing the passer penalties called against them. Those hurt. I am not sure what the problem was with special teams, but there were a few lineman injured, and I wonder if mahogany would have been in on that field goal attempt that got blocked. The biggest problem is offensively. I wonder if Dan will do what he did with Anthony Lynn, and start being more hands-on about what he expects the offense to look like I hope he does.

I agree everybody was bad today from the coaches to the players. But the problem all season has been that this offense has no identity. Last season they started every drive with Montgomery and they ran play action off of him. This season, they have made Gibbs the lead back. I understand why, but this is a different team when they are running it through Montgomery and setting up everything else off of that. I am not sure I saw a single play action drop back today. That is unacceptable when you have the best play action passer in the NFL.

Special teams may have lost this game.

These refs are awful.

Awful coming out of the bye.

They have lost their offensive identity. They think it is clever formations and motions. It is really a power run game with David Montgomery and play action passing based off of that. Once again the officiating has been bad at best.