Puddy Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 This writer was on sports radio this morning spewing that he really thinks that Harrington does not want to come back to Detroit and that he probably will not be here. Kowalski also mentioned that he believes the Lions still have a very good shot at landing McCown. Grain of salt warning: This is the same guy who reported that Harrington was going to be cut by the Lions before last season. Column:Unhappy Harrington might be ready to move on Wednesday, March 15, 2006 By Tom Kowalski ALLEN PARK -- Joey Harrington has grown disenchanted with his situation as the Detroit Lions quarterback. This is not surprising. What would really be newsworthy is if Harrington was delighted with what happened during his week-long quarterback school with new offensive coordinator Mike Martz. Think about it. For the last four years, when Harrington has been under attack from all fronts, he fought his way through it by clinging to the belief that all he had to do was stick with the program and work harder. Now he's being told by a coach with an superb resume that, in essence, he just wasted four years of his life. That has to border somewhere between unsettling and devastating and, considering Harrington's temperament, I'd suggest the latter. Martz has repeatedly said that he wants to tear down Harrington and build him back up. Martz wants to make wholesale changes in how Harrington approaches the job of playing quarterback and even, apparently, suggested to a national football writer that he'd like Harrington to change his uniform number. Not exactly an ego booster, eh? There was a recent rumor that there was a rift between Martz and Harrington, but this has almost nothing to do with Martz and everything to do with Harrington. Martz believes Harrington can be successful in Detroit: the question is whether Harrington wants to be in Detroit. This has to be crushing to a player who stood strong against all the criticism he has received because he believed in himself and believed that he was going in the right direction. This is a player who arrived early, stayed late and put in all the extra work he felt he needed. Now, he's being told that the bulk of that work and those painstaking strides were all a waste of time and effort. For all the abuse Harrington took in his first four years, he's about to find out just how bad it can get. And we'll also see what Harrington's really made of. He'll probably get to the point where he despises Martz, who has a history of being harsh on his quarterbacks. But that's not the point. Will Harrington stay strong and fight through it and finally, perhaps, be the quarterback he could have been a couple of years ago? Or will he knuckle under and simply take his football and go play somewhere else? Maybe Harrington is just too far gone and nothing is going to get him mentally back on board again. The allure of starting over has to be exciting and refreshing to Harrington, but he also has to understand that, if he goes to a club with solid coaching, he's in for the same nightmare. Nobody's going to pat him on the head and said "there, there." They're going to do the same tear-down, build-up strategy that Martz has employed. They might say it a little nicer, but it'll be the same process. Harrington has suspected this all along, but he might -- for the first time -- truly understand what he was up against in the last four years. He received lousy coaching from men who didn't want him around in the first place. Then, he was surrounded by overrated talent that did nothing more than hike the expectations and make the subsequent dive all the more painful. The irony is that now Harrington really has coaches who want him to succeed, but it's going to be a painful process. Look, new head coach Rod Marinelli said himself that defensive tackle Warren Sapp hated him for the first year and a half they were together in Tampa. Sometimes, it takes a little time for a player to understand that a coach, despite his seemingly intolerable approach, is doing everything to make the player better. When will Harrington understand this? Will he ever? Those are questions the Lions have to be asking themselves. Their off-season workout program begins next week and then they have a minicamp coming up in April. We'll have a better idea of where the situation stands after that. The Lions aren't necessarily in a time crunch here. There's no financial issue because the deadline on Harrington's $4 million roster bonus isn't until June 15. As far as replacing Harrington, the Lions weren't viable options anyway for quarterbacks like Drew Brees or Daunte Culpepper. Instead, it's possible that moves of Brees (to the New Orleans Saints) and Culpepper (to the Miami Dolphins) have altered the landscape of the draft, allowing one of the top three quarterbacks to slide to Detroit's ninth overall position. Then comes another decision. The Lions could take Matt Leinart, Jay Cutler or Vince Young and then let recently signed Jon Kitna run the show until the rookie is ready to take over -- just like Kitna did with Carson Palmer and the Cincinnati Bengals. If the Lions aren't sold on Harrington's stability in moving forward, it appears he might not be the only one who'll be starting over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTen Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Probably best for both Detroit and Joey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hugh 0ne Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 let recently signed Jon Kitna run the show until the rookie is ready to take over -- just like Kitna did with Carson Palmer and the Cincinnati Bengals. 1370320[/snapback] Y'all do realize that Kitna has thrown 133 passes in the last 2 years, right? And he's started exactly 3 games in those 2 years. And he's thrown 5 TD's and 6 INT's in the last 2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egret Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 But he's a Whizzer award finalist! I don't see the Lions dumping him. Ford's love character guys... almost more than players that produce on the field. Joey hasn't lived up to all of the promise on the field, but he's been a great guy in the community. There's no hope to the season if the Lions go with Kitna/King/Orlovsky as the three-headed QB monster. Joey's our starter this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loyalboyd Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 But he's a Whizzer award finalist! I don't see the Lions dumping him. Ford's love character guys... almost more than players that produce on the field. Joey hasn't lived up to all of the promise on the field, but he's been a great guy in the community. There's no hope to the season if the Lions go with Kitna/King/Orlovsky as the three-headed QB monster. Joey's our starter this year. 1370409[/snapback] Thats is correct! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiss Cheezhead Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 That was a very poorly written piece. All conjecture, no supporting facts. Kowalski is officially a female spray cleanser in my book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puddy Posted March 15, 2006 Author Share Posted March 15, 2006 Oops. Forgot the Lions rule for this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thecerwin Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Ford's love character guys... almost more than players that produce on the field. 1370409[/snapback] What is your basis for this assertion?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Los Gigantes Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 I wonder how joey would do with a scheme that plays to his strengths, good coaching, and receivers that learn how to run proper routes. We certainly haven't seen that yet in motown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarge5121976 Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Killer Kowalski is a tool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Furd Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 He's really done in Detroit. Forget all the crying about the Lions o-line, coaches, WRs, weapons etc. Harrington is a Megan Fox. His teammates think that he's a Megan Fox. The fans think that he is a Megan Fox. The guy is going to get strung up if he has a bad series, let alone a bad game or series of games. Even if he had skills, he can't work under those circumstances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGrunt Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Given the Lions history, not many people can work under their circumstances. I do think it would be best for Harrington to part ways and shine like a motha-f$#@& somewhere else. It'll give Lions fans another thing to cry about; how the coaches let go an amazing QB. I think Joey would have a much easier time with this whole transition if he were actually supported by his 'fans' if we may call them that. I've said it all along, it's the coaching, not the QB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTen Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Given the Lions history, not many people can work under their circumstances. I do think it would be best for Harrington to part ways and shine like a motha-f$#@& somewhere else. It'll give Lions fans another thing to cry about; how the coaches let go an amazing QB. I think Joey would have a much easier time with this whole transition if he were actually supported by his 'fans' if we may call them that. I've said it all along, it's the coaching, not the QB. 1370999[/snapback] How long have you been a Lions fan? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Furd Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 How long have you been a Lions fan? 1371185[/snapback] Ever since that the Lions drafted him 3rd in the 2002 draft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsmayes Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 That was a very poorly written piece. All conjecture, no supporting facts. Kowalski is officially a female spray cleanser in my book. 1370551[/snapback] What is it about the word "column" that you don't understand? This isn't a news story, it's his opinion. BTW, Kowalski never said the Lions were cutting Joey last season, he said they were considering cutting him. I buy that. As far as I'm concerned, Kowalski is about as reliable as the other Lions beat writers, right maybe 50% of the time. Except for Rob Parker, now there's a total tool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Holliday Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Kowalksi has always been a moron who knows nothing.I learned a long time ago to bypass anything he wrote...kind of like Rob Parker (believe his 1st name is Rob). Harrington has been told by his past regime that the QB is the guy everyone has to look up to, he told him he had to be a leader. in reality, all he has to do is play QB, if he does that the team will respect him. you could see him acting out of his character all of the last few years. to the point he irritates the people around him. I don't blame this on Joey, I blame this on coaching. Now what I do blame on Joey is the guy is a horrible decisionmaker. he is always late on his reads(and it does not help that his WR's get lost too). he forces throws that he does not have to(of course the O-line contributes here). and he tries to make throws that he just cannot make. anytime he throws across his body it will be a bad throw.knowing what you are capable of is the major thing a QB has to know, and if he does not know it by now, I wonder if he will ever know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengal Mania Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 I wonder how joey would do with a scheme that plays to his strengths.... 1370713[/snapback] Is there a scheme where missing a WR entirely is a "strength"? Harrington would be a great knuckleball pitcher, you think the ball is coming to you, but it sails off, or hits the dirt 3 feet in front of you. I bet Harrington's VD clinic name is Phil Neikro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puddy Posted March 15, 2006 Author Share Posted March 15, 2006 I bet Harrington's VD clinic name is Phil Neikro 1371691[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiss Cheezhead Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 What is it about the word "column" that you don't understand? This isn't a news story, it's his opinion. BTW, Kowalski never said the Lions were cutting Joey last season, he said they were considering cutting him. I buy that. As far as I'm concerned, Kowalski is about as reliable as the other Lions beat writers, right maybe 50% of the time. Except for Rob Parker, now there's a total tool. 1371450[/snapback] Dumbass, I know the difference between a column and an AP report. My problem with the COLUMN is that it makes some fairly strong assertions, but it doesn't support them with solid evidence. Just because a column allows for opinions doesn't mean those opinions don't need to be supported. If Kowalski wants to write columns simply based on his hunches, kudos to him for stealing a paycheck. I just won't read them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Score 1 Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Kowalski is officially a female spray cleanser in my book. 1370551[/snapback] Dumbass, I know the difference between a column and an AP report. 1372456[/snapback] Dang Swiss, you on a roll or what? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gsmayes Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Dumbass, I know the difference between a column and an AP report. My problem with the COLUMN is that it makes some fairly strong assertions, but it doesn't support them with solid evidence. Just because a column allows for opinions doesn't mean those opinions don't need to be supported. If Kowalski wants to write columns simply based on his hunches, kudos to him for stealing a paycheck. I just won't read them. 1372456[/snapback] When was the last time you opened a newspaper? This kind of piece has become the norm. I quess if he had thrown the phrase "unnamed source" in there a few times all would be well? You got your panties in a bunch over Kowalski, I'm saying he's no different than any of the other "insiders" in every sports city across the nation. Sometimes they throw stuff out there and see if it sticks, they're right maybe half the time. By all means don't read it, but I think your sports reading will go down by about 75%. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puddy Posted March 16, 2006 Author Share Posted March 16, 2006 Chalk one up for Kowalski, specualtion, rumor and innuendo. With the signing of both Kitna and McCown, it is now just a formality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiss Cheezhead Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 I quess if he had thrown the phrase "unnamed source" in there a few times all would be well? 1372572[/snapback] Actually, yeah. If he doesn't at least refer to some sort of SOURCE of his opinions, then it comes across as just one of his hunches. Then, even if he ends up being right, he looks like a total chickensh*t for not citing his source, even anonymously. I mean, seriously -- what was he afraid of? Did his source order him not to even mention him, even in an "unnamed" context? If Kowalski agreed to that demand, then we're back where we started: female spray cleanser. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RussMan Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Lions | Harrington's agent in talks with Redskins Thu, 16 Mar 2006 09:38:14 -0800 Len Pasquarelli, of ESPN.com, reports Detroit Lions QB Joey Harrington will likely join Washington Redskins in a trade. Harrington is due a $4 million roster bonus on June 15 and is scheduled to have a base salary of $4.5 million for the 2006 season. The team is currently restructuring a deal, friendly to Washington's salary cap situation. His trade would save the Lions in upwards of $5.4 million in salary cap space. Washington is considering the deal which requires a 3rd round pick in 2007. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiss Cheezhead Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 Lions | Harrington's agent in talks with Redskins Thu, 16 Mar 2006 09:38:14 -0800 Len Pasquarelli, of ESPN.com, reports Detroit Lions QB Joey Harrington will likely join Washington Redskins in a trade. Harrington is due a $4 million roster bonus on June 15 and is scheduled to have a base salary of $4.5 million for the 2006 season. The team is currently restructuring a deal, friendly to Washington's salary cap situation. His trade would save the Lions in upwards of $5.4 million in salary cap space. Washington is considering the deal which requires a 3rd round pick in 2007. 1373967[/snapback] Brunell, T. Collins, J. Harrington, and J. Campbell? And they'd have to give up a 3rd-rounder to get him? I don't buy this for a second. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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