Ron Borges

After years of failure, the Lions are taking a tough approach to a tough problem — incessant losing.

New coach Rod Marinelli was brought in because he's a no-nonsense guy, and he put the pressure on a team that went 5-11 last year and 21-59 the past five seasons, the worst record in the league over that time period, all summer long. He kept it up when among his final cuts was wide receiver Charles Rogers, who was once the second guy taken in the entire draft but has been a disappointment because of injuries and a lack of production.

How Marinelli's team reacts to his constant pressure will bear watching, but the coach made clear early that he's a no-nonsense guy when some veterans filed a grievance with the NFLPA after the first mini-camp, accusing him of overworking them. He was, but Marinelli couldn't care less.

He will continue to demand attention to detail, focus and toughness and the slipshod Lions can use it.

Marinelli hired two of the game's brightest and toughest minds to help him when he brought in ex-Rams coach Mike Martz to run the offense and ex-Jets' defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson to run the defense. They are all of a like mind, relying on hard work and aggressiveness. Martz and Marinelli said they supported Joey Harrington at quarterback and then after one look got rid of the former No. 1 pick in a hurry, so disappointing ex-No. 1 selections Rogers and Mike Williams should have taken note. Apparently Rogers didn't and Williams has tumbled down the depth chart, playing behind ex-Texan Corey Bradford. For now.

Martz intends to demand perfection from an offense that was 24th in the league a year ago and is well-satisfied with veteran quarterback Jon Kitna. Kitna played well in Cincinnati before Carson Palmer replaced him, and Martz believes he can be steady and productive for him.

Marinelli has been pushing underproductive running back Kevin Jones by letting him know he wants him to have the ball 25 times a game. Jones rushed for 1,133 yards as a rookie but last year fell to 664 yards and a disappointing 3.6 yards per carry. Part of that was his doing and part of it was a de-emphasis of the running game. Martz and Marinelli will increase Jones' workload because they want to establish a physical running game to set a tone for the entire team.

Defensively, Henderson has many questions he needs answered, not the least of them being who will play linebacker and where will they play. No. 1 pick Ernie Sims will be on the field somewhere, most often on the weakside. Undersized Boss Bailey and Teddy Lehman both finished last season on injured reserve, and Lehman is out again, so Bailey must prove he can stay healthy.

Henderson likes to gamble with aggressive blitzes and to do it Sims and second-round choice Daniel Bullocks, a safety, have to be productive as situational players because with the exception of Pro Bowl defensive tackle Shaun Rogers and cornerback Dre Bly, this is a pretty average group. If Bullocks can become a poor man's Troy Polamalu at times and Sims resembles Derrick Brooks as much as Marinelli hopes he will, the Lions will have taken a step forward.

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If veteran cornerback Fernando Bryant can stay healthy after missing 20 games the past two seasons, then Henderson's unit should be even more improved. Whether it can improve enough to improve their record is another matter.

Hot seat
Mike Williams. The former No. 1 pick produced like rookie free agent a year ago. Now he's behind Corey Bradford on the depth chart, too heavy and been given a harsh warning of what the future may hold with the release of Rogers. Williams came to Detroit out of shape and with a less than exemplary attitude a year ago and did nothing. Marinelli and Martz are not married to him and they've shown it by installing Bradford as the starter ahead of Williams because of his reliability.

Overheard
The Lions are concerned that their best corner, Dre Bly, could become a liability in the cover 2 scheme Henderson is installing. Bly likes to freelance, but Marinelli's defense demands he be disciplined. How those two styles mesh will become evident as the season unfolds. If they don't, the Lions have few options because veteran backups R.W. McQuarters and Andre Goodman left in free agency. Next year Bly may be out as well if he doesn't go along with the program.

Outlook
Grim but improving. There is a lot of work to do here and the presence of Marinelli's attitude and the adroitness of Martz and Henderson will be major improvements. But is the line anywhere solid enough to allow the deep drops Martz's offense favors, or will Kitna get killed the way Kurt Warner and Marc Bulger did in St. Louis under Martz? Defensively, do they have the speed to play the Tampa 2 coverages and will their front four be good enough to get to the quarterback with regularity? The Lions don't have many answers yet.

Prediction
Third.

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