Off the start, let’s throw out how the Lions themselves will perform against the Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers and Green Bay Packers in the final three games of the season. As any fan knows, they have been as unpredictable as any team in the league thus far.

However, there are some interesting bilines to this story; Week 14 may have opened up some doors for the Lions to take advantage of in their last push towards the playoffs. (more…)

Photo taken by Michael Olsen

Frank Gore vs. Lions’ front seven

The rejuvenation of Alex Smith’s career has been largely due to the coaching philosophy of Jim Harbaugh, who has relegated Smith to that of a game manager. In the style of Baltimore’s Trent Dilfer, Smith is simply there to hand the ball off, make simple throws when needed, and protect the football.

The engine that drives this 49er offense is runningback Frank Gore, who has churned out at least 125 rushing yards in each of the previous two weeks. The entire San Francisco philosophy is based on strong defense, protecting the football, and controlling the clock with the running game. The key to keeping the Lions’ explosive offense off of the field will be the consistency of Gore in the running game, as well as the 49er offensive line’s ability to control the Lions’ front seven.

Corey Williams has been a beast thus far in 2011 against the run. Ndamukong Suh is learning to balance his responsibilities in the run game, with his aggressiveness as a pass rusher. The linebacking corps played well on Monday night, but injuries may limit this group, leading to opportunities for the 49ers offensive line. Stephen Tulloch is nursing a sore ankle, and Justin Durant has missed two games with lingering effects from a concussion. Bobby Carpenter and DeAndre Levy need to continue their improved play from the past two weeks for the Lions’ defense to have a chance to get off of the field.

(more…)

The most compelling report was the injury report… There were a lot of them.

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That said, beating Cleveland is our only hope to keep out of drafting top three. We need this win. BAD. We can’t afford another bloated contract for an unproven rookie. We need the Browns, the Buccs and the Rams picking ahead of us.

The other thing that has caught my interest this week is the Bears loss to the 49ers. With the Vikings exceedingly far ahead in the NFC North and the wild card competition fierce, the seat must be getting hot for Lovie Smith and Jay Cutler, a guy for whom they gave up a LOT for. How is that going to play out with their aging defense?

On 97.1 they were talking about trading Calvin Johnson… if a team like the Giants is willing to give up a 1st and 3rd plus a 2nd string defensive tackle, I say do it. The Giants are on the ropes as of late, they need an infusion desperately and the Lions are so dismal that we need a shot at getting new young bodies on our squad.

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Show Notes:

In any event, this is a short one. Amber is out right now, personal business stuff and the other girl I had to sub bailed on me. SO… its just 8 minutes of me. I’ll get better, promise.

Music is the new Weezer, “The Girl Got Hot” off of Raditude