Thompson Versus Millen: Cage Match

[Fritz]

I find the recent trades of the two GM's indicative of each person's respective success (or lack thereof). On the one hand, Thompson takes a defensive tackle coming off two promising seasons - but a defensive tackle who, in my estimation, has hit his peak and will get no better (and is not worth the contract he's getting for six mill a year) - and bankrolls that player into a second round pick. Thompson, in short, maximizes the return on that investment.

Millen, on the other hand, is backed into a corner, knowing if he doesn't trade his very talented but lazy defensive tackile, he's going to have to shell out a big bonus on March 1st. So he trades the guy for a third round pick - and a player with an attitude problem (from what I've read in the papers that's the word).

Thompson gets more out of less; Millen gets less out of more.

And by the way, Millen's recent third round draft picks include Andre Goodman, Keith Smith, Corey Redding, Brian Calhoun and the incredible Stanley Wilson.

As a Packers fan, I say long live Matt Millen.

[KYPack]

Millen is such a goof. One thing that really drove me nuts was the Lions start. 6-2 and Millen was proclaimed a genius. I immediately thought, let's wait until season's end to say that fat Matt knows what he's doing.

And he didn't. The Lions went right back to their same old stupid ways.

[Fritz]

Apparently, in the lockerroom after the game that propelled the Lions to 4-2, their wide receiver Mike Furrey went on a bit of a lockerroom rampage, getting into Detroit sportswriters' faces aasking them what they thought now about the supposedly "same ol' Lions." Guess he was being a really cocky ass about it. I wonder if any of the sportswriters asked him about the "same ol' Lions" by season's end...

When people criticize TT, I think of what they'd think of Matt Millen. He drafts "sexy" picks like Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson (and Charles Rogers and Mike Williams and...), fires coaches pretty quickly (Moeller, Mohrinweg, Mariucci), and signs some fairly big-name free agents (Kenoy Kennedy, Damien Woody). These are all traits that many Packer fans seem to desire in a GM - draft the sexy pick, the guy everyone has heard about. Fire the damn coach if he doesn't win right away. Sign some free agents we've read and heard of.

[MJZiggy]

Maybe Millen's really just a fan...

[Fritz]

I think he kinda is. His mindset coming into town was that a 9-7 team that just missed the playoffs was not gonna get it, and he was going to bust up that team of pretenders and build this tough, no-nonsense team that would get right to the Super Bowl. There was a lot of hoopla here - finally, a guy who talked a tough game and was gonna turn the team into the image of Millen as a player - hard-nosed, hard-working, blah blah blah, a guy from a winning organization, etc.

Turns out Millen is all bluster. 31-81. Man, high school coaches get fired for records like that.

[Guiness]

When people criticize TT, I think of what they'd think of Matt Millen. He drafts "sexy" picks like Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson (and Charles Rogers and Mike Williams and...), fires coaches pretty quickly (Moeller, Mohrinweg, Mariucci), and signs some fairly big-name free agents (Kenoy Kennedy, Damien Woody). These are all traits that many Packer fans seem to desire in a GM - draft the sexy pick, the guy everyone has heard about. Fire the damn coach if he doesn't win right away. Sign some free agents we've read and heard of.

What happened to Mohrinweg? I remember reading about how he was this tough guy, was going to straighten them all out, rode into TC on a Harley (don't know why a middle aged fat man's bike makes you tough...) then pfffft - he was gone.

edit: wiki tells me he's the Eagle's OC! Who knew?

lol at the Lions Wiki page. Under 'other notable alumni' they've listed Charlie Batch, Scott Mitchell and Rodney Pete. Also Marcus Pollard (he had a cup of coffee there) and such notables as Paul Naumoff. When these are your 'notable' players, is it any wonder they're the league doormat?

[Iron Mike]

C'mon, Detoilet won three NFL championships in the 1950s!!!! :P

[oregonpackfan]

C'mon, Detoilet won three NFL championships in the 1950s!!!! :P

The modern question is "When is Detroit ever going to make it to the Super Bowl?" :)

Probably not in our lifetimes.

[Fritz]

More accurately, not In Bill Ford's lifetime - or probably not in his son's lifetime, either. And his son is only about forty five or fifty years old. So barring any disasters for him, the Lions should suck for another thirty years or so.