Detroit Lions 2010 in Review: June
By author
Previous Month: May
June: one of the most hated months in the calendar for me. Not only is it hot outside with nothing to do, but there is next to no football activity. It wasn’t any different for the Lions in 2010. The month saw plenty of stories like “rookie x making big impressions on coaching staff” or “rookie y signs a 3 year deal with team”. There was, however, two stories that highlighted the month of June.
Right on the first of the month, there was a story out that the St. Louis Rams might be parting ways with their Pro Bowl caliber safety in Oshiomogho Atogwe, who is somewhat of a local product. He is from Windsor, ON and many fans were salivating with the idea of a Delmas-Atogwe duo (indeed it would’ve been awesome). The story dragged on for nearly the entire month with different outlets reporting different things, and several mentioned Detroit as a possible landing spot for the stud free safety. In the end however, it was not to be as Atogwe and the Rams agreed to a five year deal.
The other highlight story of the month was of course the DUI of Lions president Tom Lewand. We found out that he blew a 0.21 on his breathalyzer, which is about three times the legal limit in Michigan of 0.08. Later on, we found out that Lewand is a recovering alcoholic. This of course was a big story as players are usually severely punished by the NFL for similar actions. In the end, Lewand ended up receiving a $100,000 fine from the NFL and received a 30 day probation, which was later reduced by 9 days.
Personally, I thought the whole Lewand story was overblown, and I think a part of it had to do with the fact that it came in a very slow news month. At the time and even now, I don’t fully understand why it is such a surprise or a big deal that a recovering alcoholic was arrested for DUI. I understand that he is the president of the team and that puts certain responsibilities on his shoulders, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t allowed to make mistakes, especially when it comes to a fight he has privately been fighting for a while.
Even with the distraction and the absence of Lewand, the Lions were signed two draft picks in Willie Young and Amari Spievey. Other than that, the Lions were found to be in violation of the now dead CBA, which lead them to lose a couple of OTA’s. June was also the beginning of the now continuing Albert Haynesworth vs. Mike Shanahan saga. Overall, the month was quiet other than a few breaking stories.
Next Month: July
Vote sidelionreport.com for the BallHyped Blog of the Year.
Voting takes place through the end of the year. Results will be announced on January 1, 2011!
Like what you see? Give SideLion Report a “like” on facebook, become a follower on twitter, or grab our RSS feed.