Greatest Mo' on Turf (Detroit Lions Dynasty)

[J.hunt1376]

After the shocking news last week from the Detroit Lions of relieving Bob Quin General Manager duties, they followed it up on Monday with another bombshell - they have let go of the entire coaching staff, instead looking for new blood and a “new culture in the Motor City.” The new GM/Head Coaching job was not long vacant, however, as just two days after the vacancies, relative new-comer Justin Hunt has been tapped to fill both roles going forward.

The Lions and their new head coach are set to have a Press Conference today.

Spoiler

So I've always wanted to do a dynasty/season analysis for myself. And I figured maybe some other people would like to follow along with my Detroit Lions team. I will try and update this post with each week of the season. My first post will contain all of the preseason. I am using JoshC1977's sliders with TDawg's XP sliders. I will play a minimum of 3 games a year (Regular Season Weeks 1, 9, and 17. If I make the playoffs, I will play only home games.)

REPORTER: “Mr. Hunt, why do you believe the Ford family has chosen you, a relative unknown, to take over this long and storied franchise?”
HUNT: “Well, I think my college resume speaks for itself. I took an unknown Georgia State squad and navigated the NCAA terrain to win three National Championships. I also helped my players win multiple awards throughout the years. I think my pedigree kinda speaks for itself, don’t you think?”
REPORTER: “Well, yes, there’s no doubt that you can win at the college level, but I think some people attribute your success to your unconventional playbooks at Georgia State. Do you really think you’ll be able to bring your Shootbone and 3-3-5 to the NFL?
HUNT: “Nah, I don’t think the 3-3-5 would be strong enough to stop the top players in the NFL. I do however believe parts of that playbook can be used in certain situations, but I will be keeping with the 3 man front line, but more than likely backed by 4 backers - with maybe a wrinkle or two thrown in *wink*”
Reporter: “Wrinkles, huh? Well, your offense at Georgia State sure did have a lot of wrinkles. What about that playbook; are you planning on bringing it to the Lions?”
HUNT: “Yeah, that was a fun playbook to run. But, if I’m being honest, I just don’t see it transferring over to the NFL. I think defenses are too savvy when it comes to their coverage schemes, and I’m just not sure I’m ready to try it out here. I will be playing a fast-paced offense like I did there, though. You guys remember the ‘99 Rams? Well, in case you didn’t know Detroit also plays on turf *smiles*”
REPORTER: “*Chuckles* Do you really think you can be the new ‘Greatest Show’?”
HUNT: “Well, that’s the plan. I think if we can get the right pieces early, this could be a new dynasty in the NFL.”

Preseason



Preseason Week 1:

Spoiler

After changing his scheme to fit his new NFL philosophy, Hunt begins getting pieces aligned to make some headway on this previously doomed franchise.

Scheme (Playbook): Vertical Zone Run (Dallas), Disguise 3-4 (Baltimore)

Roster Changes:
Signings - ROLB Nick Perry
Trades - TE J. James <---> (NE) SS O. Melifonwu & 2020 3rd Rd Pick
Position Changes - SS O. Melifonwu ---> MLB

Detroit Lions Preseason Depth Chart - 2019-20
Regular Offense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
WR	Jones Jr	Amendola	Fulgham
TE	Hockenson	Thomas
LT	Decker	Crosby
LG	Wiggins	Dahl
C	Ragnow	Koloamatangi
RG	Glasgow	Benzschawel
RT	Wagner	Pope
WR	Golladay	Kearse	Lewis
QB	Stafford	Fales	Savage
FB	Bawden
HB	Ker. Johson	C.J. Anderson	Riddick	Zenner
Base 3-4 Defense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
LDE	Hand	Bryant
NT	Harrison	Robinson	Loewen
RDE	Flowers	Okwara
LOLB	Kennard	Longa
LILB	Melifonwu	Tavai
RILB	Davis	Lamar
ROLB	Perry	Jones
CB	Slay	Coleman	Tabor
SS	Diggs	Wilson
FS	Walker	Adams
CB	Melvin	Ford

New England Patriots at Detroit Lions (SIM)
Aug 8, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
New England Patriots (0-0)					14
Detroit Lions (0-0)					21

New England Patriots

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Fales 19/23 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Johnson/Anderson 26 113 4.35 2 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Kearse 7 107 15.29 1

Preseason Week 2:

Spoiler

No roster changers.

Detroit Lions at Houston Texans (SIM)
Aug 15, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Detroit Lions (1-0)					24
Houston Texans ()					21

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Stafford 9/9 123 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Johnson/Anderson 32 111 3.47 1

Houston Texans

Preseason Week 3:

Spoiler

No roster changes.

Buffalo Bills at Detroit Lions
Aug 22, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Buffalo Bills ()					36
Detroit Lions (2-0)					31

Buffalo Bills

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT QBs 24/29 325 4 0

Preseason Week 4:

Spoiler

Roster Changes:
Cut Players - RT A. Donnal, QB T. Savage, TE D. Muhlbach, DT D. Kilgo, FS C. Washington, WR A. Jones, LE E. Lee, TE J. Cunningham, WR T. Lewis, HB T. Johnson, ROLB J. Reeves-Maybin, CB M. Cooper Sr

Detroit Lions at Cleveland Browns
Aug 29, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Detroit Lions (2-1)					31
Cleveland Browns ()					28

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Fales 17/26 222 2 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Johnson/Anderson 30 121 4.03 0

Cleveland Browns

Regular Season


Reporter: "Coach, after a great preseason where you went 3-1, do you think you'll be able to keep up that momentum when the games actually matter?"
Hunt: "Every game matters. Even preseason games help the team figure its identity out. You know I think our team has shown that we can be a contender. You know we beat the defending Super Bowl champs *smiles*. We had multiple depth guys step up so far and I just hope we can keep that up."

Season Goals: Win 4 Games (+1 from IRL 2019 Detroit Lions Season)

Current Starting Lineup:

Spoiler

Depth Chart -
Regular Offense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
WR	M. Jones	D. Amendola	K. Listenbee
TE	T. Hockenson	L. Thomas
LT	T. Decker	T. Crosby
LG	W. Schweitzer	O. Aboushi
C	F. Ragnow	L. Koloamatangi	G. Glasgow
RG	G. Glasgow	J. Dahl
RT	R. Wagner	R. Pope
WR	K. Golladay	J. Kearse	T. Fulgham
QB	M. Stafford	D. Fales
FB	N. Bawden
HB	K. Johnson	C. Anderson	T. Riddick	Z. Zenner
Base 3-4 Defense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
LDE	B. Nichols	A. Bryant
NT	D. Harrison Jr	A. Robinson	M. Loewen
RDE	T. Flowers	R. Okwara
LOLB	D. Kennard	S. Longa
LILB	O. Melifonwu	J. Tavai
RILB	J. Davis	T. Lamar III
ROLB	N. Perry	C. Jones
CB	R. Melvin	T. Tabor
SS	Q. Diggs	T. Wilson Sr	M. Killebrew
FS	T. Walker	A. Adams	W. Harris
CB	D. Slay Jr	M. Ford

Regular Season Week 1:

Spoiler

Roster Changes:
Trade - CB A. Oruwariye, 2020 6th and 7th rd pick <---> ATL LG W. Schweitzer
Release - LG Kenny Wiggins

Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals
Sep 8, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Detroit Lions (1-0)	0	10	3	14	27
Arizona Cardinals (0-1)	0	10	7	0	17

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 27/39 277 3 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD K. Johnson 14 59 4.2 0 C. Anderson 6 33 5.5 0 T. Riddick 4 13 3.2 0 M. Stafford 2 12 6.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD T. Hockenson 8 81 10.1 1 M. Jones Jr 6 50 8.3 1 K. Golladay 5 57 11.4 0 D. Amendola 4 50 12.5 0 L. Thomas 2 25 12.5 1 K. Johnson 2 14 7.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD T. Flowers 2.0 D. Kennard 2.0

Arizona Cardinals PASSING C/A YDS TD INT K. Murray 20/32 333 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD D. Johnson 11 16 1.4 1 K. Murray 4 36 9 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Johnson 5 54 10.8 0 A. Isabella 5 47 9.4 0 L. Fitzgerald 4 63 15.7 0 K. White 4 148 37.0 1 C. Clay 2 21 10.5 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD M. Wilkerson 2.0

That K. White number is inflated, as he was able to get past my CB for a 73(!) yard TD.
**K. Johnson injured his elbow - out for 6 weeks**

Roster Change:
Signed (post-game) - WR K. Listenbee

Text from Taylor Bennett: "Congratulations on the win, Coach! Early victories can make or break a team's forward momentum, so you guys are definitely starting the season on the right foot."

Regular Season Week 2:

Spoiler

Text from Def. Coordinator: "Hey Coach. What's the game plan for Melvin Gordon III?" "He's gonna be hard to contain, but if we figure out how, their offense falls apart. How do you want handle him?"
HUNT: "We'll manage him as well as we can. I don't think we'll be able to shut him down completely... but I don't think we HAVE to. If we can just slow him down, I think we can pull out the win."
DC: "Yeah, I like that approach. We don't have to stop him. We just have to contain him. Let's do it."

Los Angeles Chargers at Detroit Lions
Sep 15, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Los Angeles Chargers (1-1)	7	7		7	21
Detroit Lions (2-0)	3		8	13	24

Los Angeles Chargers PASSING C/A YDS TD INT P. Rivers 21/35 246 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD M. Gordon III 15 71 4.7 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD M. Williams 6 81 13.5 1 K. Allen 5 67 13.4 0 T. Benjamin 5 51 10.2 0 H. Henry 5 51 10.2 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD M. Ingram III 2.0

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 25/40 287 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD C. Anderson 14 66 4.7 0 T. Riddick 8 27 3.4 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Amendola 5 69 13.8 0 K. Holladay 7 67 9.6 0 T. Hockenson 5 43 8.6 2 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK T. Decker 2 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD J. Davis 1

**D. Hand injured MCL, out for 39(!) weeks**

Regular Season Week 3:

Spoiler

Weekly Awards: NFC DPOW - D. Kennard (7 TKL, 1 SACK, 1FF, 1FR)

Roster Changes:
Re-Sign - D. Amendola $17.3M (Total) over 2 yrs; C. Anderson $15.8M (Total) over 3 yrs
Trade - CB J. Coleman, 2020 3rd & 2nd round pick <---> CHI LE B. Nichols
Practice Squad - MLB Tre Lamar III called up

Text from Off. Coordinator: "Coach, I wanted to brief you about Fletcher Cox before our game this week." "He brings a TON of power to the Philadelphia defense, and he has the strength to collapse the pocket against the run AND the pass. How do you want to handle him?"
HUNT: "Cox is DEFINTELY on our radar. We're gonna do whatever we can to slow him down."
OC: "Don't forget, Coach... we can take advantage of his aggressiveness with outside zone runs. We do that, and I really feel like we can score on the ground."

Detroit Lions at Philadelphia Eagles
Sep 22, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	OT	SCORE
Detroit Lions (3-0)	7	10	0	10	6	33
Philadelphia Eagles (1-2)	7	10	9	10	0	27

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 25/36 307 3 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD T. Riddick 12 48 4.0 0 C. Anderson 11 39 3.5 0 Z. Zenner 6 27 4.5 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD M. Jones Jr 9 106 11.8 3 D. Amendola 4 51 12.8 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD D. Harrison Jr 3

Philadelphia Eagles PASSING C/A YDS TD INT C. Wentz 23/27 302 2 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD J. Howard 17 109 6.4 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD N. Agholar 5 85 17.0 1 Z. Ertz 5 76 15.2 0

Regular Season Week 4:

Spoiler

Roster Changes:
Re-sign: CB R. Melvin $5.94M (Total) over 1 yr

Kansas City Chiefs at Detroit Lions
Sep 29, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Kansas City Chiefs (3-1)	14	7	0	0	21
Detroit Lions (3-1)	0	7	0	10	17

Kansas City Chiefs PASSING C/A YDS TD INT P. Mahomes 16/24 224 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD D. Williams 22 88 4 1 P. Mahomes 3 11 3.7 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD T. Hill 2 107 53.5 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD A. Okafor 2

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 26/41 303 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD C. Anderson 13 54 4.2 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD M. Jones Jr 7 92 13.1 0 T. Hockenson 6 50 8.3 0 D. Amendola 3 31 10.3 1

Regular Season Week 5 (BYE):

Spoiler

Roster Changes:
Re-sign - DT A. Robinson $10.8M (Total) pver 2 yrs

Regular Season Week 6:

Spoiler

Text from Def. Coordinator: "Coach, We've got a tough matchup this week. We've gotta figure out a way to shut down Aaron Rodgers." "Rodgers's film is incredible. He ALWAYS finds a way to move the ball downfield. There's no such thing as a broken play when he's under center. You got any ideas?"
HUNT: "I don't know if we can STOP Rodgers, but if we slow him down, then the entire team starts to fall apart. Do whatever you can to make him uncomfortable out there."
DC: "I'm all for it, Coach. But let's play conservatively. If we blitz too much, he's gonna burn us. Bad."

Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers
Oct 14, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	OT	SCORE
Detroit Lions (3-2)	7	7	0	7	0	21
Green Bay Packers (5-1)	0	0	7	14	6	27

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 25/35 252 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD C. Anderson 21 49 2.3 0 T. Riddick 12 44 3.7 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD T. Hockenson 8 77 9.6 0 M.Jones Jr 5 55 11.0 1

Green Bay Packers PASSING C/A YDS TD INT A. Rodgers 20/28 248 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD J. Williams 20 61 3.0 A. Rodgers 6 27 4.5 D. Williams 4 2 .5 2 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD G. Allison 7 89 12.7 1 M. Valdes-Scantling 4 41 10.3 1

Regular Season Week 7:

Spoiler

Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions
Oct 20, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Minnesota Vikings (3-4)	7	7	0	3	17
Detroit Lions (4-2)	0	7	7	7	21

Minnesota Vikings PASSING C/A YDS TD INT K. Cousins 14/26 136 0 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD A. Abdullah 19 73 3.8 2 A. Mattison 9 32 3.6 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD G. Allison 7 89 12.7 1 M. Valdes-Scantling 4 41 10.3 1 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK P. Elflien 2

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 10/15 99 2 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD K. Johnson (First Game Back from Inj) 23 174 7.6 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD M. Jones Jr 3 27 9.0 1 J. Kearse 2 15 7.5 1

Regular Season Week 8:

Spoiler

Season Goal: 4 Wins (MET)

Text from Taylor Bennett: "Awesome game this week! You're piling up some quality wins, and if the trend continues, you're gonna be the team to beat in the playoffs! Good luck out there!"

Text from Def. Coordinator: "Hey Coach. What's the game plan for Saquon Barkley?" "He's gonna be hard to contain, but if we figure it out, their offense falls apart. How do you want to handle him?"
HUNT: "We'll manage him as well as we can. I don't think we'll be able to shut him down completely... but I don't think we HAVE to. If we can just slow him down, I think we can pull out the win."
DC: "Yeah, I like that approach. We don't have to stop him. We just have to contain him. Let's do it."

New York Giants at Detroit Lions
Oct 27, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
New York Giants (2-6)	7	7	7	0	21
Detroit Lions (5-2)	7	14	7	7	35

New York Giants PASSING C/A YDS TD INT E. Manning 15/28 190 1 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD S. Barkley 18 95 5.3 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD S. Shepard 5 78 15.6 0 G. Tate III 5 73 14.6 0 W. Gallman Jr 1 9 9.0 1 E. Engram 1 6 6.0 1

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 26/33 321 3 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD K. Johnson 22 73 3.3 2 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD M. Jones Jr 9 132 14.7 0 T. Hockenson 5 74 14.8 0 D. Amendola 5 58 11.6 2

Regular Season Week 9:

Spoiler

Detroit Lions at Oakland Raiders
Nov 3, 2019	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Detroit Lions (6-2)	0	7	7	21	35
Oakland Raiders (2-5-1)	10	10	0	7	27

Detroit Lions PASSING C/A YDS TD INT M. Stafford 17/28 295 1 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD T. Riddick 14 98 7.0 1 K. Johnson 7 51 7.2 1 Z. Zenner 5 86 17.2 1 N. Bawden 2 1 0.5 1 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD D. Amendola 5 61 12.2 1 T. Hockenson 5 126 25.2 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD D. Kennard 2.0

Oakland Raiders PASSING C/A YDS TD INT D. Carr 32/44 421 3 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD D. Martin 16 32 2.0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD L. Kendricks 8 146 18.2 2 T. Williams 7 107 15.2 0 A. Brown 6 36 6.0 0 J. Richard 5 48 9.6 0 L. Willson 1 1 1.0 1

**M. Jones Jr injured back, out for 8 weeks**

[TMJOHNS18]

Good first win! Stafford needs a playoff run, hope you can get him there!

[J.hunt1376]

I'm thinking this is going to be his prove-it year for Stafford. He needs to show me why I should keep him through his contract. But it would be nice to see a playoff run for this team, especially since I'm playing minimal games.