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Hey D6: whats your take?
<div>Lions hired Ravens OC Jim Caldwell as their head coach.
After missing out on top target Ken Whisenhunt, the Lions settle for the man who worked hand-in-hand with Peyton Manning/Tony Dungy in Indy from 2002-2011. His success there as the quarterbacks coach and then head coach was impressive (two Super Bowl appearances, one win), but his ability to turn around the Ravens offense and lead them to a Super Bowl win after Cam Cameron was fired late in the 2012 season should be the bold print on his resume. In Detroit, Caldwell inherits a franchise quarterback that needs polishing in Matthew Stafford, the game's best wideout in Calvin Johnson, a potentially dominant defensive line and an all-purpose back in Reggie Bush. It's a professional hire that figures to benefit Stafford. Only the Browns and Vikings remain as teams still in search of a head coach.
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TMD, there's plenty of rumors and speculation what transpired to lead Ken Whisenhunt to take the Tennessee job instead of becoming the Lions HC. One thing that was mentioned is Tennessee offered a million dollars more per season. Two others were things I touched on yesterday, the Defensive Scheme preference and the Southern location of Nashville. It was also mentioned that Whisenhunt seemed more comfortable working with Tennessee GM Ruston Webster over Detroit GM Martin Mayhew. Another rumor is that Whisenhunt was concerned about the Lions salary cap situation with so much Salary Cap funds tied into 3 players: Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson, and Ndamukong Suh. Who knows how much of all of this is reality. The bottom line is Whisenhunt made his decision. The Lions had no choice going in another direction, whether Whisenhunt was the team's preferred candidate or not.
As for Jim Caldwell, like I expressed yesterday, he brings many positives to the table. Yet, the points made in this thread about his clock management with the Colts, coupled with Caldwell's record when Peyton Manning wasn't his starting QB, lead to bright yellow caution flags on this end. Having said this, there's no question that of the 3 remaining candidates ( not counting Whisenhunt ) that the Lions interviewed, Caldwell is my preferred choice. I remain disappointed that the Lions didn't have a more broad parameter HC search.
This coming afternoon at 4pm is Jim Caldwell's press conference to introduce him to the Detroit media and Lions fan base. It will be interesting to see what comes out of the press conference and the Assistant Coaching hirings coming up. There are rumors flying all over the place about the staff. But until the Lions announce the respective coaching staff hirings, I'm taking a wait and see approach. Some of the rumored coaches are under contract and might not even be able to leave their current jobs for a promotion in Detroit.
