Lions hope to get ahead during unusual summer
Detroit head coach says team has made early, focused moves to improve roster
A pandemic might change the rules for the game, but not the ultimate goal.
NFL teams hope that eventually the COVID-19 pandemic will pass and football will resume. Right now, resigned to a virtual existence, teams also know that some club will find an advantage with this time that will be key to success when the game returns.
The Detroit Lions want to be one of those teams.
“I think there’s probably a little bit of an edge that some teams will be able to get here this spring in these situations based on the makeup of the team,” Lions head coach Matt Patricia said in a conference call on Tuesday.
For the Lions, who had the thirdworst record in the NFL last season, it’s been an off-season trying to put as many pieces in place as possible to turn around last year’s 3-12-1 record.
“We’re going to try to get as much of that edge as possible, and a lot of that just has to do with the guys going out and doing what they’re supposed to do,” said Patricia, whose is working through virtual organized team activities.
Long before the virus had shut things down, the Lions were moving to try to make the transition to 2021 as smooth as possible and it started with hiring defensive coordinator Cory Undlin, who shared an office with Patricia in 2004 when the two were assistants with the New England Patriots. The two share similar thoughts on defence and that should limit the learning curve for players.
“The great thing is Cory (has a) background very similar to mine from that standpoint and obviously expanded knowledge from the different places that he’s coached,” Patricia said. “But he’s been in this league for a long time. He’s an experienced coach and he really is a guy that rolls with the punches very well (with) kind of the different things we’re dealing with here.”
The plan carried over into free agency, where the Lions tagged several players familiar with Patricia’s style like linebacker Jamie Collins, defensive lineman Danny Shelton and safety Duron Harmon, who came over in a trade.
“I think one of the things that certainly comes up in those quick decisions, especially in free agency, is how the player’s fit, and how does he fit into the system, and does he have familiarity with the system,” Patricia said.
“Those are the questions that then come up where there might be some guys who are familiar or have the same techniques or learning that maybe we’re teaching that it’s going to be quicker from that standpoint.”
Even in the NFL draft. While cornerback and first-round pick Jeff Okudah fills a need, he also has some familiarity with the Detroit system that the club feels will let him jump into the rotation earlier.
“Again, his position coach last year, Jeff Hafley, (who was the defensive coordinator at Ohio State University last season) is a good friend of mine,” Patricia said. “We’ve actually coached a lot of the same techniques for a long time, which is something for us that was really interesting about him, even going up and into the draft. Having a guy that we knew was very familiar with our techniques and we thought that it would help us in the long run. So that’s one of the things I think really contributed to the decision for us to bring him along.”
Patricia says teams are limited in ways to improve the roster and feels the Lions were able to do that by jumping on things early and staying focused.
“You know, there’s basically a couple different ways to build your team,” Patricia said. “There’s free agency, there’s the draft, there’s the 53 cut-down and there’s trades. That’s really the major ways that you can change the team, those four avenues.
“So, with two of them back-toback, between free agency and the draft, one of the things that I think everyone did an outstanding job this year of is identifying what are our needs, what do we really need to do to help this team and the areas and the positions, and then where do we think there’s a surplus of players to get those needs filled.”
Heading into this third season, Patricia is under pressure to produce this year, and like all his players, knows he has to improve. He’s hopeful the work the team is putting in now during the pandemic will pay off whenever the team gets back on the field.
“This is different, and I think all the head coaches in the league are trying to figure out the same thing,” Patricia said. “It’s really good. I’m very lucky to have some great friends and friendships throughout the league to be able to talk about different ideas and thoughts, which is cool.
“From that aspect of it, I’m always trying to grow and get better. I always put myself first and foremost in that list of guys who need to improve on the team.”