The agony of defeat
Standing alone on the sideline Sunday in the waning minutes of his team's 48-3 butt-whipping at the hands of the Ravens, with M&T Bank Stadium nearly empty and rain still falling from the dishwater-gray skies, Lions coach Jim Schwartz was as forlorn-looking as I've ever seen a man.
The Baltimore guy, a Mount St. Joe's grad, looked like he'd aged 10 years since the opening kickoff.
You know how President Barack Obama's hair is now flecked with gray after just a year of dealing with the awesome responsibilities of his office? Well, Schwartz's hair will be as white as Santa Claus if the Lions keep losing like this.
It didn't get any easier for the likeable Schwartz when the game was over and he had to face the Detroit media.
Asked what he would say to the people back in Detroit who felt the Lions had quit, he replied: "First of all, I'd applaud them if they watched to the very end."
Ouch.
Schwartz was then asked to assess how prepared his team was to play, and again he was brutally honest.
"I thought they were. It wasn't like our guys didn't want to show up today. We got our butts kicked on the field. It was what happened after the first whistle blew. It wasn't what happened before."
The guy sounded beaten and drained.
You talk about what a year in the Oval Office can do to a man.
Apparently a year coaching the Lions can do pretty much the same thing.
Comments
Unfortunately the Lions haven't improved and the coach has to be accountable regardless of how likable or if he is a local guy.
It take the right guy to turn around an organization and team and it probably isn't Schwartz.
The Cards went through a similar thing with years of losing until they found Whisenhunt and he has managed to install a level of professionalism and accountability.
Posted by: Rich | December 14, 2009 11:15 AM
It looked to me like his players were playing not to get hurt,like before the season ends.Then the hardest runner they have wrecks his knee trying to play 100%.How ironic and sad to observe.That team is so entrenched into a losing mentality at this point in the season that it reflects to the players sitting on the bench and no amount of tongue lashing is going to move those guys,it seems to me.Anyway,see you in OC,Jim.
Posted by: Dan R. | December 14, 2009 7:05 PM