A Ford speaks, but not the one that counts

With the old man, William Clay Ford, content to remain in somewhere in Florida and do what obscenely rich old men do (I imagine it involves guzzling scotch by the liter, a large box of Depends, nitrous oxide and numerous hookers ), the Lions were represented at the NFL owners meetings by the porn ‘stached goon, and surprisingly, Bill Ford Jr.

If this man is the Lions fans only hope,
then there is no hope…

Considering Michigan’s biggest and most important employer, the auto industry, is in midst of a death spiral, and Ford Motor is the leading the way down the drain, you’d think Ford Jr, who’s intimately involved with running the family business, would have better things to do.

Such as? Oh, I don’t know, let’s say he could be in Dearborn TRYING TO SAVE THE JOBS OF TENS OF THOUSANDS OF MICHIGANDERS WHOSE LABOR BUILT FORD MOTOR, and made the Fords billions. Instead, he defends his addled father’s awful decision making in regard to his football team in Palm fucking Beach.

But when I read what Junior had to say to the Detroit media, the only thing I could think of was…If this clown is running FoMoCo, those tens of thousands of Michiganders with their Ford jobs hanging by a thread best be feverishly working on their resumes.

The answer to this one question says it all about the inept ownership of the Lions…

"Q: Does Millen still make the final call on draft day?Ford Jr: He does."

“He does.” Two words that cut all Lions fans to the core.

Despite a track record that more than speaks for itself, Millen has the final say. After 7 years of shit scouting, and worse drafts, the Fords STILL allow Millen to run the Lions’ draft.

In fact, Ford Jr talks and talks and talks, yet says little of any real import. (Save for the “He does” comment, of course) He spends the entire session avoiding questions like a polished politico, by talking up Rod Marinelli at every opportunity. For example, here’s the first question…

"Q: What do you think of the state of the team?Ford Jr: I think Rod’s a really good coach. I think he’s very organized, and he’s got a really good process in place. He knows exactly the kind of player he’s looking for. It’s taking him some time to get the roster the way he’d like it, and I believe in what he’s doing."

So the state of the team is “Rod is a very good coach.” What. The. Fuck?

The Lions haven’t made the playoffs in a decade, are run by a clueless moron who is a league laughingstock, with a coach who has a career 10-22 record, who’s combined brainpower led the team to an epic 1-7 second half COLLAPSE. That’s the true state of the team, Junior.

Junior also defends his father, though there’s no real way to prove the old man actually cares, as he never shows his face…

"Q: One perception is that your father, William Clay Ford, doesn’t want to win and is in it for the money. What is your reaction?Ford Jr: First of all, nothing could be farther from the truth. Really, all Dad does care about is football and the game on Sunday. The rest of the business doesn’t interest him that much. It’s the competitive aspect, and so he’s been obviously frustrated as well.And the money part, that’s crazy. … We’ve spent I think more — if you add the last 15 years — more than any other team in the league. I think that obviously the money has never been a consideration for him, either the spending it or the making it."

Well, it’s easy to say “the money has never been a consideration” when you were born with the original silver plated spoon in one’s mouth. The Fords have been richer than rich for going on 80 years. Then there’s the fact that an NFL franchise is a license to print money. The Lions are a money making machine that continues to appreciate in value.

Yet for many years, the Lions were run with money being the first and foremost consideration. Just look back at the penny pinching Russ Thomas years, a 22 year era (1967-1989) where the Lions were known as the cheapest of the cheap in the NFL. They refused to pay players. Period.

So don’t bullshit the fans with “the money has never been a consideration.” It’s insulting. Much like the entire interview.

I know it’s not politically correct, but the only thing that can save the Lions is for old man Ford to, putting it bluntly, die.

Nothing will change with him remaining in the picture. If he really cared about his team, Russ Thomas would never have been allowed to run the Lions into the ground for 2+ decades, Millen would have been fired long ago, and he would have handed over the reigns of the team to Junior (Not that he’s any great shakes, but at least he ain’t his dad), or sold the team.

At this point, it’s too late to defend William Clay Ford. His lack of action speaks louder than any words ever could.