Getty Scott Pioli on the field with Kansas City in 2012.
When the Detroit Lions moved on from Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn, they got a fresh start from an approach deemed “the Patriot way” given both of their former bosses’ ties to New England.
Thus, it might seem like a bit of a surprise that a former head honcho from the team is praising their new approach. However, that’s just what happened recently on NFL Network as the 2022 offseason continues to play out. The Lions have different folks in charge now, and Scott Pioli has no trouble crediting them when it comes to what they’ve done right in his estimation regardless of where he once worked.
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Pioli joined NFL Network and jumped in on a segment about what teams hosts were excited to watch on the field in 2022. As he admitted, while the Lions don’t fit the bill as a Super Bowl contender like some of the others, he still sees a team that should be improved in plenty of ways given how they trended late during the 2021 season in terms of some very important details.
“They improved dramatically, and I think they will (in 2022). This team sure seems to love, respect and trust their head coach and that is critical. The Lions finished up strong in Dan Campbell’s first year. After starting 0-10-1, they finished the year 3-3. In the last six games, they showed real, tangible signs of improvement,” Pioli said. “You look at sack differential, the first 11 games they were -12, the last six games they were +6. In terms of penalties, playing smart, clean football. The first 11 games, 7.1 average penalties per-game, then 4.5 (penalties) in those last six games. The other place I saw improvement? Special teams. Those are the detail things that I believe Dan Campbell is paying attention to.”
Pioli seems to appreciate Detroit’s staff as a reason for improvement as well, shouting out defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn for his work, and citing him as a head coach in the making.
“They also have a terrific up-and-coming head coach in Aaron Glenn, so to me, I see a team on the rise,” Pioli said of Detroit.
Add it all up and it’s clear that even former New England bosses can appreciate what the Lions are doing to reshape their team and attempt to change their fortunes on the football field.
How Lions Have Reshaped Their Team This Offseason
It’s taken a few offseasons full of work for Brad Holmes to restructure the Lions, but in 2022, he has made some major headway. Detroit’s work started early, and it began with re-signing multiple in-house free agents. Before free agency got going, the Lions had brought back names like wideouts Kalif Raymond and Josh Reynolds, safety Tracy Walker, defensive lineman Charles Harris and linebacker Alex Anzalone. In terms of outside spending, Detroit didn’t do much, adding wideout DJ Chark to the offense and linebackers Chris Board and Jarrad Davis, safety DeShon Elliott and cornerback Mike Hughes. All are underrated players who could break out for the Lions in 2022.
When the draft came around, the Lions stuck with the plan as well. They landed strong Aidan Hutchinson from Michigan in a stroke of luck, who will be a slam-dunk fit for the defense. After that, the Lions traded up for wideout Jameson Williams, who should add a dynamic element to their offense. Day two brought the team some more defensive help with gritty and classy Josh Paschal. Super athletic safety Kirby Joseph closed out the day in round three, and should contend for a role quickly in the Motor City on a needy defense. During day three, the Lions added James Mitchell, a tight end from Virginia Tech, Malcolm Rodriguez, an Oklahoma State linebacker and James Houston, a Jackson State linebacker. Chase Lucas, a cornerback from Arizona State, was the team’s final selection.
As a whole, combined with how the 2021 season finished, the additions as well as the way the roster is set up could have the Lions in pretty good shape moving forward for this coming season.
Pioli’s Career Biography
Pioli, 55, has football in his blood from the beginning, so he’d know a thing or two about a successful program. He started his career by coaching Syracuse as a graduate assistant in 1988 and 1989. From there, he spent a pair of seasons coaching Murray State’s offensive and defensive lines. In 1992, he accepted a role with the Cleveland Browns as a pro personnel assistant and would stick with them through their first season in Baltimore in 1996. He transitioned to the New York Jets in 1997, where he stayed as their director of pro personnel. In 2000, he followed Bill Belichick to New England to become the team’s assistant director of player personnel, and he would thrive in that role, capturing Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII and XXXIX with the Patriots. He then became the Chiefs’ general manager from 2009-2012. As part of both of those stops, Pioli was named NFL Executive of the Year four times. In 2014, he got back into football and joined the Atlanta Falcons as the team’s assistant general manager, vacating that post for a television gig in 2019. Interestingly enough, he interviewed to be Detroit’s general manager in 2020.
Pioli’s praise for Detroit is notable given he has been a high level executive and had plenty of success while doing so. He should also have good perspective on what went wrong in his career in addition to what went right. For that reason, his words seem extra wise when it comes to what the Lions are doing at this point in time.
Right now, it’s clear that the former boss respects what the Lions are building, and is quite eager to see how that work off the field translates when the 2022 season gets going in a few months time.
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Former Patriots Executive Praises ‘Improved’ Lions During Rebuild