Lions Diary

On the radio this morning, I heard one of my brethren, a fellow Lions fan, complain that the Lions will go nowhere as long as the Ford's own the team. This is a familiar refrain around town. The thought goes that the Lions are doomed because William Clay Ford: A) Has so much money he doesn't care if the Lions win. B) Makes so much money owning the Lions, he doesn't see any difference between winning and losing. C) Just plain doesn't care. D) Insert your reason the Lions have failed under Ford's tenure here. This thought is fine and good, but it's partly nonsense.

Ok, maybe it's not all nonsense. Maybe Mr. Ford really isn't all that concerned about the Lions on-field success. At least not in relation to people who paint their faces Honolulu Blue and Silver each Sunday. They care, perhaps, too much, but that's another topic altogether. However, in all fairness, the Lions parade of coaches, quarterbacks, mind-numbing personnel moves, shocking losses and missed opportunities are only partly Ford's fault.

He's hired some people who have made bad decisions. He's kept people he probably should have fired or, at least, fired sooner. In this day and age, loyalty is a lost treasure and Ford may have it, like wealth, to a fault. That's doesn't make Mr. Ford responsible for poor evaluation of talent or tossing the ball to the opposition in critical situations. No, that responsibility lies at the feet of his employees.

As such, I have trouble with the notion that the Lions simply will never win until the Ford's are no longer owning the franchise. I even reject the sentiment that Bill Ford, Jr. is the answer to the Lions woes. He may, indeed, be the Lions owner when they eventually win, but I refuse the believe that the Lions cannot win with William Clay Ford at the helm.

Why? You may ask. Why, would I think Ford can get past his own history and get handed the Vince Lombardi Trophy someday? I have one simple example-Art Rooney.

When Rooney bought the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1930's, the team wasn't exactly atop the NFL. Rooney's ownership didn't improve the situation one bit. For about the next forty years the black and gold were amongst the worst teams in pro football.

They stumbled through season after season. They had a string of unsuccessful coaches, some of whom weren't fired soon enough because Rooney liked them personally, and made some bad personnel decisions. Case in point-the Steelers cut a quarterback named Johnny Unitas in training camp. And you thought Matt Millen didn't know talent when he saw it.

Then came the Seventies. Rooney, looking for yet another coach, was given the name of a guy named Chuck Noll. The rest is history. Noll cleaned house. I mean he really cleaned house. When the Steelers captured their first of four Super Bowl titles, I believe only four players survived from Noll's first day on the job. The exact number of survivors doesn't matter, what matters is that Rooney got handed the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Art Rooney didn't suddenly care more about winning in the 1970's than he did in the 1950's or 1930's. No, Rooney just managed to find the right guy to run the operation and Noll managed to evaluate talent and obtain the right players. Now, pessimists will argue that Ford hasn't found the right man in either Millen or Steve Mariucci. That may be true, but it doesn't mean he hasn't, either.

It also doesn't mean it's impossible for Ford to one day be standing next to Paul Taglibue with the Lombardi Trophy in hand. I know. The Lions have mustered only one playoff win under Ford's watch. Believe me, I know. That doesn't mean that the trend won't someday end. Art Rooney's prolonged streak of horrible football teams came to a crashing end. An end that made the Steelers of the 70's the greatest team in NFL history. The Steelers have gone on to become one of the league's premier franchises.

In spite of what any or all of us may think about Mr. Ford and his ownership tenure, his continuing reign simply does not make it impossible for the Lions to be NFL champions. Might it be harder? Sure. But impossible? No way. If you or I actually believed this train of thought, why are we bothering to watch each Sunday, follow each potential free agent acquisition with such energy and get all fired up for another draft day? If the Lions are truly doomed to failure under Ford's leadership, why are we wasting so much of our time, energy and money?

I know it seems impossible to not to put all the blame on the only constant in the organization throughout this incredible dry spell. Ford does merit some of the blame, but don't cave in to the idea that the Lions have absolutely no chance to win because Mr. Ford, or Bill, Jr., is in charge.

The next time you find yourself lamenting Ford's ownership of Detroit's NFL entry, I want you to stop and think of Art Rooney. Think of those forty terrible years of football followed by the greatest success in NFL history. Picture the Steelers owner holding the Lombardi Trophy and remember his path. Therein lies our hope.