Food for thought
Here’s something to think about, though. Martha had just taken over ownership duties and from the looks of things, she never hired Lions personnel before. She hired a man with zero experience at his new job.
That man (Wood) hired a general manager who had never held that position before. That man (Quinn) hired a man who had never been a head coach at any level before. Finally, that man (Patricia) hired two coordinators who actually had experience doing what they were brought in to do.
Are you following the logic of all of that?
Patricia may have gone a little too heavy on experience when he hired mentor Paul Pasqualoni as the defensive coordinator; Pasqualoni started coaching in 1972, meaning that he may have coached your grandfather if you lived near his home in Connecticut. His first head coaching job was at Western Connecticut State in 1982 but is better known for his stint with Syracuse University from 1991-2004, college football head coaching record from Sports Reference.
At least someone in the chain hired some experience but we wish that it was spread out a bit more, instead of one guy with 46 years at his current job or higher.
Now, is it a wonder that the franchise is struggling after we frame it that way?
Everyone is on-the-job training to different extents; Quinn was the head of player personnel and Patricia was a defensive coordinator in his previous coaching stint. They each worked for a guy whose title that they now hold with the Detroit Lions.
So, before you defend Mrs. Ford like she is a cross between Wonder Woman, Bette White, and Amelia Earhart, remember that she set the tone by choosing unqualified people. Stop with the “Change the culture” mantras, how about we ask ownership to find qualified people and not rubber-stamp a string of questionable hires?
If they only hired one guy, say, Bob Quinn, who had never been a general manager, it wouldn’t overwhelm everyone. It isn’t that uncommon for a guy to get a chance at a bigger role after he excels at the previous one. That isn’t usually the case for every person in charge, though.
Literally every person is acclimating to bigger responsibilities and new duties at the same exact time.
Maybe by year ten, they’ll all have it figured out?
Without further ado, let’s discuss what Bob Quinn has done with the roster in his four years, starting with the offensive line because he indicated that was a priority.