Reposting from game thread: talent assessment of 2016 & evaluation for 2017.
Pretty deep DL, good talent. Ansah going into contract year, Haloti probably in his last season. Taylor probably walks.
LBs were exposed at times but schematic changes helped (still a WTF on that Zeke 55 yarder - you could see presnsp exactly what was about to go down, & Dre jumps out of the gap away from the flow.) Need more talent here. When's the last time we had an edge rusher OLB? Scroggins? That was 15 years ago, I must have amnesia.
DBs were solid until Quandre got hurt, Slay was the final nail - you can't win games with PS talent covering a pro bowl WR. Lawson improved, Killebrew has potential. Need depth but who doesn't.
OL was better than expected for the most part, Decker & Graham are solid, Swanson gets healthy they're good there, Warford is a road grader (though whatever the cap hit is to cut Tomlinson, should do it - he's turrible), Reif is servicable. Keep building it, keep adding pieces.
HBs - good when healthy (first 2 games.) We've gone like 50 games or something without a 100 yard rusher but being a dome team we tend to favor scat backs...who seem less durable.
WRs/TEs - Marvin fell off badly, Tate is a effective gadget playmaker, Ebron...ugh...let's see if he takes another incremental step forward. Boldin has been great but need another WR3 next year probably. Considering who they lost, about as expected.
QB - the litmus test is six days away. Either beat the best QB / best team when it matters most or you're just a prettier Jay Cutler. Been good for most of the last season and a half, not as good the last three weeks. Who are the playmakers on this team? Tate and...and....and...exactly.
Ks/STs - overall very good.
Need more playmakers & upgrades in at least four areas (in order: LB, OL, DB, WR) but if you compare to other teams, mediocre talent is the norm. I'm feeling good about Quinn going forward. I've actually come to respect JC. He's not a genius but they're on the right path. He's a good organizer, has made some good hires. Although he's ultimately responsible for everything, he's done a good job of staying out of the way and letting JBC and Austin coach in game. Clock management improved this year.
People love to rip Caldwell, he's seemingly an easy target & doesn't waste a lot of calories being egotistical. He doesn't care what you or anyone else thinks, he's just not built that way.
SCOREBOARD: Over his first three years, Caldwell has more wins than any Lions coach except Buddy Parker. That's 87 years. More wins than any Lions coach in the Super Bowl era over 3 years (27-20.) I get people are frustrated we can't get to the next level, but "Fire Caldwell" doesn't accomplish much at this point.
NOTHING ELSE MATTERS: beat GB at home. That's the simplest & truest measure of success for Caldwell & Stafford.
It certainly isn’t ideal losing two straight heading into that Packers game, but Detroit still controls its own destiny.
“We get it at our place and a chance to win the division. Beginning of the year, you tell us Week 17 we have a chance to play the Green Bay Packers at home for the division, I’m taking it all day.” --Stafford