Scanning the Savanna: Detroit Lions News from Around the Web

Scanning the Savanna searches the web for Detroit Lions news and notes each morning and brings it to your fingertips in one easy location.

Stopping Bengals DT Geno Atkins will be tough task for Lions
Josh Katzenstein – The Detroit News

"Entering his fourth season, many considered Geno Atkins to be the best defensive tackle in the NFL, using strength and impeccable technique to make up for his 6-foot-1 stature.But when Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford played with Atkins at Georgia, Stafford said the Bengals star wasn’t technically sound in one aspect of his life.“You just see him in the weight room, early on in his career just had awful technique,” Stafford said. “But (he) could lift all sorts of weight. You’re like, ‘How’s this guy doing it?’”"

QOTW: What TV character would you be?
Michael Rothstein – ESPN.com

"They ranged from a political boss based on a true-life character to a Friend to a car — seriously, a car.In this week’s Question of the Week, we asked various Detroit Lions if they could be any television character in history, who would they be? The answers may surprise you.And we’ll start with an all-too-typical debate between rookie punter Sam Martin and rookie tight end Joseph Fauria, who have their lockers next to each other."

NFL vice president of officiating explains why Ndamukong Suh’s hit was illegal
Justin Rogers – MLive.com

"In an interview with Andrea Kramer, which aired on NFL Total Access, Dean Blandino, the league’s vice president of officiating, explained why Suh’s hit was a violation.“Well, we’re going to aggressive enforce the player safety fouls and when I looked at the play, I felt he did make contact with the forehead and hairline, lowered the head and made contact with the forehead and hairline.,” Blandino said. “Not to the head or neck, but the rule does prohibit that contact to the body.”"

Detroit Lions’ Ndamukong Suh, Cincinnati Bengals’ Geno Atkins: Top DTs in NFL, both from 2010 draft
Dave Birkett – Detroit Free Press

"The two best defensive tackles in the NFL were taken 118 picks apart in the 2010 draft.Ndamukong Suh went second overall to the Detroit Lions, Geno Atkins went midway through the fourth round to the Cincinnati Bengals, and Atkins said Wednesday he understood completely the disparity on draft day.“Suh was a beast,” Atkins said in a conference call with Detroit media. “He was the best defensive player in the 2010 draft, so looking at that I can understand why he went first. I think a lot of people also look at the tangibles. Me being 6-2, about 300 (pounds), I’m not the prototypical size of a defensive tackle so I think that kind of scared people off. But once I got to the league, I just made the best of my opportunity.”"