Getty C.J. Anderson rumbles away from the Chargers.
The Detroit Lions have struggled under Matt Patricia, and while many are calling for the coach to be fired, so far, no suitable replacements have been identified.
Consider that to be no longer the case now that former running back C.J. Anderson has spoken up. In the aftermath of the Lions falling apart in Week 4, Anderson hopped on Twitter and said that he will coach the team and get the Lions back on the right track.
Anderson played in Detroit last season, so it’s interesting he isn’t rushing to Patricia’s defense. The running back had only a brief stay with the Lions, and collected just 43 yards and 1 score with the team in 2019 before being released after 2 games in what has become a merry-go-round in the team’s backfield the past few seasons on the field.
Still, for those weary of Patricia, Anderson would represent an interesting option. As the saying goes, could things really get any worse?
The fact that it’s even worth asking that question at this point is bad news for Patricia.
Matt Patricia’s Future Murky With Lions
This week, Detroit heads into the bye week with a woeful record. The pressure from the fanbase to make a move will likely be immense, but that doesn’t mean the Lions are going to do so. In fact, probably far from it in the short term at this point in time.
Speaking to WXYZ’s Brad Galli after the 35-29 loss, Detroit Free Press reporter Dave Birkett was asked directly about Patricia’s future. As he said, while there might not be a short term danger to Patricia, there is certainly a long term danger.
Breaking down the 1-3 Lions with @davebirkett, and what another blown lead means for Matt Patricia’s future:
Birkett said:
“I do think he should have concern for the long term future. I don’t think the Lions will make a move right now. I don’t know there’s much point to making a move after 4 games. 1-3, the Lions still have a shot, especially when you look at what’s ahead. I think the 7 teams before Thanksgiving, one of them has a winning record. We’re 36 games into Matt Patricia’s tenure as head coach. He inherited a 9 win team. When you look at what this team has done under Matt Patricia, there’s very little reason to believe that Matt Patricia is going to get a 4th season as head coach.”
Waiting until the end of the season might be painful for Lions fans, but it seems like the most likely scenario at this point for the team. Patricia had better hope he can use his upcoming schedule to make a run, or it could be curtains for the coach in Detroit.
Right now, that could be the direction things could be heading in the future.
NFL Wideout Calls Matt Patricia a Liar
Speaking after another Lions debacle on Sunday, Patricia said that the team he took over had a lot of work to do in order to be successful, and he’s trying to do that work now. Naturally, that excuse isn’t sitting well with some fans and even some alumni of the team.
It also isn’t sitting well with former Super Bowl champion wideout Torrey Smith. While Smith never played for the Lions, he did play under their former coach Jim Caldwell with the Baltimore Ravens, and recognizes that Caldwell had the Lions a lot closer to the playoffs and the postseason success than Patricia ever has.
As Smith tweeted, Patricia’s assertion that the franchise had a lot of work to do is a lie, considering the team was 9-7 following Caldwell’s departure.
It’s certainly getting harder for defenders of Patricia to find rallying points given his miserable record and the decline of the team under his watch. Just this week, Patricia lost to a team that was down 6 starters while the majority of his own team was healthy.
In the aftermath, it’s probably not wise for Patricia to blame his situation on his predecessors. He should be taking complete ownership of the team’s failures. When he doesn’t, it only makes him seem more ridiculous in the end.
What would the Lions look like under Anderson’s leadership? Fans can now only be left to wonder.
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