Detroit Lions pitch ‘Roar Zone’ plan with tix at $30 a game

Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson makes a catch during the first day of minicamp last month in Allen Park, Mich.

Previewing the Detroit Lions‘ 2009 Season: A Positional Report Card

The Detroit Lions are a team with nowhere to go but up after turning in the NFL’s first ever 0-16 season in 2008.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Lions hope grub will grab fans

We all know a hot dog is the perfect comfort food for a Tigers game. But what is the perfect food for a Lions game? I bring this up because the Lions announced an all-you-can-eat section at Ford Field this season.

2009 Fantasy outlooks: Detroit Lions

The Lions made sweeping changes following their 0-16 season, complete with a tweaked uniform and logo.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Jaguars trade veteran WR Dennis Northcutt to Lions for third-year S Gerald Alexander

The Jacksonville Jaguars have traded receiver Dennis Northcutt to the Detroit Lions for safety Gerald Alexander.

2009 Fantasy outlooks: Detroit Lions

The Lions made sweeping changes following their 0-16 season, complete with a tweaked uniform and logo.

This time, Lions‘ Ford will trust his own judgment

William Clay Ford was quick and clever with his comments when he was the young Bill Ford with ownership of a new pro football franchise.

Stafford, Sanchez helping each other prep for NFL (AP)
Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez are set to become rich beyond comprehension long before throwing their first official NFL pass. The quarterbacks will be anointed as saviors — Stafford for a Detroit team that went winless in 2008, and Sanchez for a New York Jets club that hasn't tasted the Super Bowl in 40 years.

Jaguars trade Northcutt to Lions for Alexander (AP)
The Jacksonville Jaguars have traded receiver Dennis Northcutt to the Detroit Lions for safety Gerald Alexander. The deal was finalized Tuesday after both players passed physicals. Northcutt gives the Lions a veteran receiver opposite rising star Calvin Johnson. Alexander, a second-round pick in 2007, gives Jacksonville depth in the secondary.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Saving Stafford: Start Him or Sit Him?
Start him? Sit him? Whether or not Matthew Stafford is successful in Detroit might have nothing at all to do with what he does in 2009. As for the debate between him and Daunte Culpepper? Much ado about nothing, writes contributor Mike Mady.

Stafford, Sanchez helping each other prep for NFL (AP)
Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez are set to become rich beyond comprehension long before throwing their first official NFL pass. The quarterbacks will be anointed as saviors — Stafford for a Detroit team that went winless in 2008, and Sanchez for a New York Jets club that hasn't tasted the Super Bowl in 40 years.

Jaguars trade Northcutt to Lions for Alexander (AP)
The Jacksonville Jaguars have traded receiver Dennis Northcutt to the Detroit Lions for safety Gerald Alexander. The deal was finalized Tuesday after both players passed physicals. Northcutt gives the Lions a veteran receiver opposite rising star Calvin Johnson. Alexander, a second-round pick in 2007, gives Jacksonville depth in the secondary.

Popularity: 3% [?]

New Lions tackle Grady Jackson has yet to be seen

Veteran defensive tackle Grady Jackson, a mammoth, 350-pound run-stopper, was arguably the biggest free-agent addition to the Lions‘ defense this winter.

Lions rookie sees NFL’s fury up close, courtesy of veteran Sims

Detroit Lions running back Aaron Brown got his welcome-to-the-NFL moment fast. Really fast, courtesy of linebacker Ernie Sims .

Popularity: 3% [?]

DeVries leaves practice after shooting death of his former high school coach, mentor

Before Wednesday’s Lions morning practice was over, Jared DeVries was pulled aside and given the bad news that his high school coach had been shot and killed just hours earlier.

Lions coach shows his young players the city’s spirit, character

Lions coach Jim Schwartz didn’t want television cameras around. He simply wanted to do his civic duty and move on.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Lions coach shows his young players the city’s spirit, character

Lions coach Jim Schwartz didn’t want television cameras around. He simply wanted to do his civic duty and move on.

Lions Trade w/ Jacksonville for WR Dennis Northcutt

The Jacksonville Jaguars have traded wide receiver Dennis Northcutt to the Detroit Lions in exchange for safety Gerald Alexander, according to John Clayton who covers the NFL for ESPN.

Popularity: 4% [?]

NFC Minicamp Insider
Do the Minnesota Vikings have enough cap space to sign Brett Favre?…Which rookie might have the biggest impact for the New York Giants?…Who were the Philadelphia Eagles really targeting had they not traded up in the first round?…Which teams are having trouble clearing up salary cap space to sign their top rookies?…These stories and a lot more, inside.

Pontiac Silverdome may be headed for auction block (AP)
The former home of the Detroit Lions may be headed to the auction block. Emergency Financial Manager Fred Leeb says attempts to sell the Pontiac Silverdome have not been successful, and he's prepared to hand it over to an auctioneer if it will speed up the sale of the empty landmark. Leeb tells The Oakland Press that Pontiac will continue negotiating with potential buyers, but the Detroit…

Scouting Report: WR Dennis Northcutt
After acquiring Dennis Northcutt in a trade (which sent safety Gerald Alexander to Jacksonville), we get the scoop on the Detroit Lions new receiver.

Schwartz: Raiola is “Everything that’s right”
Lions center Dominic Raiola has taken his fair share of lumps, but that doesn’t skew his reputation with head coach Jim Schwartz, who commented highly on the long-time Lion.

Lions Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

•? Lions owner William Clay Ford Sr. made his first extensive public comments since firing president Matt Millen in September, giving some insight on a number of subjects, such as the NFL’s first 0-16 season.

“I feel so sorry for the fans in Detroit,” Ford said. “I mean, I give them full marks for being loyal and showing up. We didn’t perform the way we should have performed or the way we could have performed. I really have felt worse for them than I did for myself. I thought it was horrible.”

Ford said he and Millen recently had settled a dispute over the balance of Millen’s contract and that they remained friends.

He said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell had called him to offer help and he explored some of his suggestions.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Culpepper The Sensible Choice As Starter?
Daunte Culpepper’s 2004 environment seems to have been re-created in Detroit. He has been re-united with Scott Linehan, and once again has a throw-me-the-ball-and-I’ll-get-it safety net in Calvin Johnson. But can he duplicate his previous success? Contributor Mike Mady provides his analysis.

Center Raiola gets multiyear deal from Lions

Lions center Dominic Raiola signed a four-year contract extension Thursday that will carry him through the 2013 season.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Detroit Lions Mini-Camp: Photo Gallery (2)
Another gallery of photos direct from the Allen Park practice facilities.

Lions sign C Raiola to 4-year contract extension (PA SportsTicker)
The Detroit Lions have signed center Dominic Raiola to a four-year contract extension.

Detroit Lions Mini-Camp: Photo Gallery
A gallery of Associated Press photos from Detroit’s June mini-camp.

Lions owner: He & Matt Millen are square, friends

Detroit Lions owner William Clay Ford Sr. says he and Matt Millen have reached an amicable settlement on the balance of the former team president’s contract and the two remain friends.

The UFL would have been the perfect place for Matt Millen (Yahoo! Sports)
You know what would be the perfect job for Matt Millen? If he could be suspended about nine feet above a major…

Prominent Iowa football coach dies after shooting

A gunman shot and killed a prominent Iowa high school football coach in the school’s weight room early Wednesday and was taken into custody shortly afterward, authorities said.

Popularity: 7% [?]