by Ryan Wilson
In the latest sign that Rod Marinelli has indeed lost the last remaining marbles rolling around his noggin, the embattled, weary, sometimes delirious-seeming head coach has some good news for the downtrodden folks of Detroit: the Lions ain't going 0-16.
In fact, the thought of becoming the first team to lose 16 games in an NFL season hasn't even entered Marinelli's mind, which is a clear indication that he lost it a while ago. Despite the historical implications, rookie running back Kevin Smith is trying to keep things in perspective, though.
... Smith insisted he's not worried about the possibility of surpassing the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who went 0-14 in an expansion season, as the worst team in NFL history.
"If I cared about what everybody thought about the Lions in the world, I'd be worried about a lot of people," Smith said. "Who cares?"
Perhaps this weekend's opponent, the Vikings, offer the Lions the best chance at victory. Daunte Culpepper has the added incentive of facing his former team, and when Detroit started the 2001 season with 12 straight losses, it was Minnesota who obligingly laid down, prompting running back Aveion Cason to say, "It felt like winning the Super Bowl." Yep, just like it, actually.
Interesting, 53 percent of the 4,198 mlive.com readers who cast their virtual ballots are actually hoping for 0-16. The poll is unofficial, of course, presumably because Matt Millen has been voting "Yes, bring on history!" for two days now.
Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli Tells Team They Aren't Going 0-16 originally appeared on NFL FanHouse on Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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