The Lions will play their 70th Thanksgiving Day game Thursday against Green Bay. It has been a Detroit tradition since 1934, and since he was hired in January, coach Jim Schwartz has been on a mission to protect it.
"This isn't just another game," Schwartz said. "This isn't just one of 16 for us. This is a special tradition and something we need to embrace and uphold."
As the Lions have struggled in recent history, they have also struggled in their showcase event. They have lost their last five Thanksgiving games — all by large margins, each embarrassing in its own way.
In 2004, Peyton Manning threw six touchdown passes in three quarters, then watched the rest of the Colts' 41-9 victory. In '05, a 27-7 loss to the Falcons led to the firing of coach Steve Mariucci. In '06, quarterback Joey Harrington threw three touchdowns against his former team in a 27-10 Dolphins victory. In '07, the Lions lost to the Packers 37-26 as Detroit fizzled after a 6-2 start.
Last year, Schwartz was the Titans' defensive coordinator as they obliterated the Lions 47-10, contributing to the NFL's first 0-16 season. Even before the game, there was talk in the media that the NFL should take away the game from the Lions. It only intensified afterward.
When Schwartz interviewed for the Lions' head coaching job in January, the subject came up, and after Schwartz was hired, he told season-ticket holders in a town-hall meeting he wanted to put "barbed wire" around the game and not give anyone reason to talk about taking it away.
Finally, when the Lions held an open practice at Ford Field in August, Schwartz took the microphone and addressed the fans. More than 15,000 had come despite gloomy weather. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was visiting.
"I just said, 'Hey, look, anytime I hear somebody around the country talk about taking that game away from Detroit, I'm going to remind the commissioner about 15,000 people standing in the rain for two hours to see a practice,'" Schwartz said. "I think that says something about our fans. I think that says something about our tradition here. That needs to be remembered, and it needs to be rewarded."
Asked then about the possibility the Lions could lose the Thanksgiving Day game, Goodell said: "I don't see that in the near future."
Ever?
"I don't know about ever," Goodell said, laughing. "Give me a chance here."
Now Schwartz has to back up the talk. He kicked off the short week of preparation by giving his players a history lesson and emphasizing the game's importance. He said he had more in store, but he declined to give details.
"It goes way back to before I even got the job, talking about this," Schwartz said. "Saying it doesn't make it. But we want the players to understand the significance of this game."
If anything, the players should be motivated by their only chance to play on national television all season.
"It's not just everybody watching," Schwartz said. "It's everybody with relatives, everybody meeting up with families. They're all sitting around the living room waiting for the turkey and the pumpkin pie, and they're going to turn the game on. ... You're on national television. And there's also a pride thing. You want to perform well in front of a national audience."
SERIES HISTORY: 159th meeting. Packers lead series, 87-64-7. The Lions have lost eight straight to the Packers, including a 26-0 loss Oct. 18 at Lambeau Field. Detroit has hosted Green Bay more than any other team on Thanksgiving: 19 times. The Lions are 11-6-1 vs. Packers on Thanksgiving, but they have lost five straight Thanksgiving games, all by large margins, including a 37-26 loss to Packers in 2007.
NOTES, QUOTES
—Quarterback Matthew Stafford has been named the NFC offensive player of the week for his performance in Sunday's 38-37 victory over Cleveland. Stafford not only returned from a left shoulder injury to throw the winning touchdown pass with no time left on the clock, he became the first rookie since 1937 — and the youngest quarterback ever — to throw five TDs in a game. "It's a huge honor," Stafford said. "It's awesome. Didn't expect that one to happen. I'm just thankful."
—Will Stafford play on Thanksgiving? Stafford didn't practice Tuesday and said he didn't know if he would play Thursday. But he said his left shoulder was improving, and he laughed when reporters said they were giving him the eyeball test as he took off his jersey in the locker room. He pulled it over his head normally. Asked if the shoulder felt good enough to play, Stafford said: "Today, probably not. It's moving in the right direction."
—The last time the Lions played the Packers, Oct. 18 at Lambeau Field, they lost 26-0. And the game wasn't even that close. The Packers took 13 penalties, allowed five sacks, settled for field goals on three short fields and turned over the ball twice in the fourth quarter — once on first-and-goal at the 3.
"We didn't play very well in that game, other than red-zone defense, where we did a pretty good job," coach Jim Schwartz said. "We played probably our worst game of the year against Green Bay, and they're a really good team and that's a tough place to play, so it gives us a little bit more resolve. It's our only chance to be on national television, and our players recognize the significance of that and how important that is, and they want to make up for that game up in Lambeau. There's carryover any time you play an opponent twice. They're a little bit more familiar with you, you're a little bit more familiar with them. It becomes a little bit more of a personnel matchup rather than a scheme matchup. Our players are anxious to get out there."
—The Lions won't have to face linebacker Aaron Kampman and cornerback Al Harris, who suffered season-ending knee injuries. But coach Jim Schwartz tried to play that down.
"Any time you lose starters, you're going to have adjustments," Schwartz said. "They're a deep team. They have good cover guys that can step in at nickel. They run a lot of three corner packages this year, anyway. I think they're equipped to handle that, and they have really good depth at linebacker also. Anytime you run a 3-4, you're going to have a lot of linebackers on your roster, guys that play special teams and are used in a lot of different roles. They have guys that can replace them. Now, those two guys are Pro Bowl-type players. So, it's not just fitting somebody in, it's replacing the talent. I think their schemes will probably stay the same, but any time you have great players like that, you're going to miss them in some respect."
—Should the NFL take away the Thanksgiving tradition from Detroit because the Lions have stunk? The irony is that the Lions' struggles on Thanksgiving Day might help them keep the tradition, not lose it. The Detroit and Dallas games were discussed at the committee level this year, but the issue didn't make it to the owners.
"We always look at the fact: Is there a competitive advantage by teams that have the repeat game, in this case on Thanksgiving?" Rich McKay, co-chairman of the NFL competition committee, said in March. "And we have not found that statistically there is a competitive advantage. The statistics don't back that up."
The Lions have lost their last five Thanksgiving games, all by large margins. The Cowboys have won their past three Thanksgiving games but are 6-6 in their past 12.
"The reality is, it's a great tradition here," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in August. "I was here two years ago. I know how terrific it is, and we've added a third game to the roster so now we can get some circulation of some other teams into that."
—Schwartz remembers watching the Lions on Thanksgiving when he was growing up in Baltimore.
"Everybody always watched the Lions because the family got together and everybody was waiting for the turkey to get done," Schwartz said. "So you always caught the whole Lions game, and then you watched maybe a half of the Cowboys game before you fell asleep on the sofa. We were always getting to my grandmother's house. The Lions game was on."
BY THE NUMBERS: 23.4 — Average margin of defeat for the Lions over their last five Thanksgiving Day games.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "This game's been going on for such a long time, and it's a great chance to be on national TV and show the nation kind of what we're about. It's just something you want to keep around. You want to play on Thanksgiving Day. It's a great opportunity. It's great fun. It's awesome to be able to say you're one of two teams that gets to do it every year." — Rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford, on the Lions' Thanksgiving tradition.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
The biggest question is whether QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson will play. Neither participated Tuesday in the Lions' only real practice of the week, but neither really needs to practice. Stafford said his shoulder was improving but he probably couldn't play unless the pain improved. Johnson also will be a game-time decision, according to coach Jim Schwartz.
If the Lions must turn to Daunte Culpepper again without Johnson, that obviously puts more pressure on Detroit's running game and defense to somehow keep the game under control. Culpepper played without Johnson the last time the Lions faced the Packers, Oct. 18 at Lambeau Field, and it was ugly. Culpepper went 6-for-14 for 48 yards, took two sacks and threw an interception before leaving with a hamstring injury in a 26-0 loss.
"We need to help him offensively and defensively," Schwartz said. "I think that was a game Calvin didn't play, so we didn't do a good job of helping our quarterback in that game. And there's some other things that Daunte can do better. He knows that. But third-down conversions are going to be big. We need to keep drives alive. We can't go three-and-out and keep putting the pressure on the defense. We've got to take care of the football, and we've got to get rid of the ball. We can't take sacks."
PLAYER NOTES
—QB Matthew Stafford did not practice Tuesday after suffering an AC joint separation Sunday against Cleveland. He said he was feeling better but probably wouldn't play Thursday against Green Bay unless the pain improves.
—WR Calvin Johnson did not practice Tuesday because of hand and knee injuries. Coach Jim Schwartz said he was improving but would be a game-time decision.
—S Ko Simpson did not practice because of a knee injury. Schwartz said injured reserve was a possibility and the Lions would likely make the decision before the game.
—S Marvin White is slated to take injured Ko Simpson's place in the starting lineup.
—S Kalvin Pearson did not practice Tuesday because of a hamstring injury and seems unlikely to play.
—LB Ernie Sims did not practice Tuesday because of a hamstring injury and seems unlikely to play.
—DE Dewayne White did not practice Tuesday because of a toe injury and seems unlikely to play.
GAME PLAN: The Lions cannot keep up with the Packers' passing attack, especially if they don't have quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson, their top offensive weapons. They must try to control the clock as much as possible with runs and high-percentage passes to keep the Packers offense off the field.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Packers QB Aaron Rodgers, who ranks near the top of the NFL in most passing categories, vs. Lions pass defense, which ranks at or near the bottom in most pass defense categories. Rodgers is completing 64.8 percent of his passes and has posted a 102.6 rating. The Lions are allowing opponents to complete 70.4 percent of their passes and post a 110.3 rating, worst in the NFL. Rodgers has a lot of weapons, and the Lions' secondary does not match up, especially now that it has been depleted by injuries.
Lions RB Kevin Smith, who has been more of a threat as a receiver than a runner lately, vs. Packers defense, which ranks third overall, fourth against the run and seventh against the pass. The Lions will need to rely on Smith if QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson cannot play because of injuries. Smith does not have breakaway speed and has not rushed all that well, but he has shown ability as a receiver.
INJURY IMPACT: If QB Matthew Stafford plays, he shouldn't be limited too much. His injury is to his non-throwing shoulder, and he has been playing on little practice lately anyway because of a right knee injury. If WR Calvin Johnson plays, he could be slowed a bit, however. Both of his knees are gimpy, and he has some sort of hand issue. Coach Jim Schwartz made a point to say Johnson was closer to full speed Sunday when he caught a career-high 161 yards, and now Johnson is banged up again.
