'We must be better,' Caldwell tells Lions fans
Detroit — The Lions didn't sign a free agent with significant starting experience this offseason, but during the team's annual town hall meeting with season ticket holders Tuesday, coaches and executives explained why they expect the team to continue an upward trend after going 11-5 in 2014.
"We want to be better, we must be better and I think our guys will buy into that," Caldwell said, eliciting cheers from the crowd of about 5,000 people.
The hour-long event at Ford Field gave fans a chance to write questions for emcee Dan Miller, sports anchor for Fox 2, to ask the panel that included president Tom Lewand, vice president of pro personnel Sheldon White, head coach Jim Caldwell, offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin and special teams coordinator Joe Marciano.
At the start, Lewand recounted the process that led to the departure of All-Pro defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, which led to the trade that landed former All-Pro defensive tackle Haloti Ngata from the Ravens.
One question wondered how, though, this team would be different from the one that went to the playoffs in 2011 and followed that with a 4-12 finish in 2012. Caldwell said the key to avoiding being a flash in the pan is to make sure all the new players buy in and the returning players remain on the same path.
"One thing we had that was unique last year that we've got to get again this year is that we had guys that believed in what we were doing," Caldwell said. "We had guys that were willing to pay the price and committed to do so. We had guys that got along extremely well together. It was a real tight, cohesive group.
"We didn't have a bunch of bickering or fighting and things of that nature — worrying about who's going to get the ball or not get the ball, worrying about who's been assigned to a sack or not been assigned to a sack. These guys loved one another and played extremely hard."
Despite losing Suh and Nick Fairley, Austin said the defense plans to be better next season. Lombardi said he thinks the offense will improve in the second year of his system, particularly 2014 first-round pick Eric Ebron, a tight end he expects to be the No. 3 weapon in the passing game. On special teams, Marciano expressed confidence in kicker Matt Prater and punter Sam Martin while saying there will be a competition for return duties, though he said Jeremy Ross could've benefited from better blocking last year.
"This coaching staff and the tone you just heard coach Caldwell set is one that lives and breathes in our building every day, and when those players come back on April 20, that's the tone that they're going to be a part of and they're going to help set," Lewand said.
The Lions offseason program begins April 20, but Caldwell said team trainers have already sent inquiries to players to check in on their physical health.
Lions general manager Martin Mayhew was not in attendance, but Lewand and White explained why the team didn't make splash signings in free agency. Lewand said the goal in free agency is to be selectively aggressive and avoid spending money just to spend, and White pointed to additions like receiver Golden Tate and safety Glover Quin, whose contracts now look like bargains after they had career years in Detroit.
Lewand also thinks the team won't falter like it did in 2012 because the nucleus — singling out quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Calvin Johnson and linebacker DeAndre Levy — has more veteran leadership.
"I felt like we fielded a team last year that could've won a Super Bowl," White said. "But we want to make a team that dominates and wins the Super Bowl."
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