WANTED & UNWANTED » two losers if the Lions d

The Detroit Lions surprised a lot of people on Tuesday when they made a small Calvin Johnson Jersey White , but important change at quarterbacks coach. Out goes George Godsey, in goes Sean Ryan. As Justin Rogers of The Detroit News pointed out, this will be Stafford’s fourth quarterbacks coach in five years, leaving Ryan with a big responsibility to get Stafford’s career turned around after an extremely disappointing 2018 season. To many, Ryan is an unknown commodity—seeing as quarterbacks coaches don’t get much media play. So here are three thoughts I have on the Lions newest coach: Up-and-comerPerhaps the most positive thing about this hire was the perception that Sean Ryan is an up-and-comer. Last year, Ryan’s success in Houston with Deshaun Watson led to offensive coordinator interviews with the Vikings and Browns. Though he failed to land those jobs, the fact that he is getting looks speaks to the respect he’s earned around the league.Ryan has steadily worked his way up from quality control coach to quarterbacks coach and had plenty of stops along the way. As a result, Texans head coach Bill O’Brien believes Ryan is fully capable of calling plays in the future.“I think Sean is destined to be a coordinator in this league,” O’Brien said back in 2017. “He’s a very bright guy Kerryon Johnson Jersey White , is quick on his feet and works his butt off. Players respect him. So, yeah, I can see him doing that (calling plays) down the road.”No Patriots ties... well, not reallyMatt Patricia has earned some criticism for only hiring coaches he has had a previous relationship with. While that’s certainly common in the NFL—especially for a first-time head coaches—Patricia appeared to take that strategy to its limits his first year.Patricia has never worked alongside Ryan, but they do share some history and some philosophy. Having worked under Bill O’Brien for the past three years, Ryan is very, very familiar with the Patriots’ offensive scheme. Here’s an interesting passage I found from Brett Kollmann, a contributor over at Battle Red Blog, the SB Nation Texans blog:Obviously Womens Luke Willson Jersey , Ryan’s predecessor—George Godsey—was similarly well-versed in the Patriots’ scheme, but the (lack of) results from 2018 speak for themselves. What will be interesting to see is how Ryan’s philosophy melds with new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who doesn’t really have experience using the Erhardt-Perkins approach (explained nicely here). Lateral movePerhaps the most curious part of this hire is the fact that Ryan took a completely lateral move to Detroit. By all accounts, Ryan wasn’t fired from Houston, yet he took the exact same job with the Lions. Did Ryan have some philosophical differences with O’Brien? Does he prefer working with a veteran quarterback (Matthew Stafford) to a young one (Deshaun Watson)? Was Ryan frustrated that there wasn’t likely any chance at a promotion in Houston with O’Brien running the show on offense? It’s impossible to know exactly why Ryan made the move, and we likely won’t have any clear idea until he talks with the media—and that could be several months from now. Regardless the reason, it’s a good look for the Lions that they could pull a well-respected coach away from another team.2 Winners, 3 Losers from the Lions’ preseason finale loss to the Browns WinnersRB Dwayne WashingtonThough he likely won’t make the final roster, Washington looked like the only Lions player that wanted to play football on Thursday night and had himself plenty plays where I was thoroughly impressed. He had a nice blitz pickup that won’t show up on the stat sheet in which Jake Rudock promptly threw over his intended target’s head and if Washington’s lucky Trey Flowers Jersey , some team out there will see his tape against the Browns and give him a shot.QB Matt CasselDespite the awful pick-six throw and awful statline, I think Cassel showed more poise in the pocket this preseason and has the edge over Rudock for the backup job. He has the experience and the better arm and that’s really what it mostly comes down to. Cassel being listed as a winner has less to do with his performance against the Browns and more to do with the fact that Rudock hasn’t done much at all to get a leg up over Cassel. Neither one of these guys have shown much to write home about, but that’s what we’ve got. LosersQB Jake RudockRudock was pulled before the first half even ended for Cassel, but came back in halfway through the third quarter and struggled for most of the game until fourth quarter preseason Rudock showed up. But he had that one really cool first-down scramble, right?Sadly, Rudock, to me, didn’t do nearly enough to etch himself in as the backup QB, as he averaged a paltry 4.7 yards per attempt in his last game of the preseason.I may have split these two QBs into one winner and one loser for the game Levine Toilolo Jersey White , but roster cuts are looming, and it could very easily turn into two losers if the Lions decide to pick someone up off the waiver wire pretty soon.Rudock can barely hand the ball off correctly to his running back.S Rolan MilliganOnly this guy would get called for a defensive holding and still give up a 41-yard catch. He was already way on the outside looking in with one eye closed, and Thursday night’s performance was likely the nail in the coffin for his hopes at a roster spot. Lions fansProps to the fans that voted Toto’s Africa for song of the game, although I never want to associate that song with such a dull, pointless game like this. Anyway, I feel bad for anyone who spent the time to watch the entire game like I did and I hope at least one of you will be compensated with delicious pizza for your dedication. The Thursday before cut day will forever be the worst day of the year (April Fool’s is a close second).