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Lions pick Schwartz to turn team around

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Jay Glazer

Senior NFL Writer Jay Glazer is one of NFL's top insiders. In addition to providing breaking news, columns and video, he appears weekly on FOX NFL Sunday. Visit Jay's exclusive page for hot scoops and watch MMAthetics and The After Party.

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Updated Jan 15, 2009 4:16 PM ET
     
 
The Detroit Lions can go nowhere but up in 2009. And now they've found the man to lead their revival.
The Lions on Thursday gave Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz a four-year deal to be their new head coach. Schwartz interviewed for the second time on Monday, two days after the Titans were eliminated from the AFC playoffs by the Baltimore Ravens. "I don't shy away from a challenge," Schwartz said Monday at a news conference that was scheduled as part of his day at the team's headquarters. Schwartz just finished his 10th season with the Titans, his eighth as defensive coordinator. He was promoted from linebackers assistant coach to coordinator in January 2001. Before being hired in Tennessee, he spent three years on the Baltimore Ravens' staff. He also was a college and pro scout for the Cleveland Browns and that experience might be valuable in Detroit. The Lions have the No. 1 pick in April along with first- and third-round picks from the Dallas Cowboys and need to find players to spark a turnaround. "It's probably time to find a replacement for Bobby Layne," Schwartz joked, showing he knows at least a little about the history of perhaps the NFL's worst franchise. Since winning a title in 1957 with Layne at quarterback, the Lions have the same number of playoff victories as Pro Bowl QBs: one. Schwartz will be counted on to come up with ways to improve a defense that ranked last in the league and gave up 517 points — threatening the NFL record for points allowed (533) in a season set by the 1981 Baltimore Colts. "There's no better feeling than turning a situation around," he said. The 42-year-old Schwartz played linebacker at Georgetown, where he earned a degree in economics. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Maryland in 1989, later had the same position at Minnesota and went on to become a secondary coach for North Carolina Central and linebackers coach at Colgate.
Tamed Lions
It's been a long decade in Detroit, where the Lions haven't had a winning season since 2000. In the eight years since, they've gone 31-97 with five last-place finishes and no playoff berths:
Year
Record
Finish
Coach
2008
0-16
4th, NFC North
Rod Marinelli
2007
7-9
3rd, NFC North
Rod Marinelli
2006
3-13
4th, NFC North
Rod Marinelli
2005
5-11
3rd, NFC North
Steve Mariucci
Dick Jauron
2004
6-10
3rd, NFC North
Steve Mariucci
2003
5-11
4th, NFC North
Steve Mariucci
2002
3-13
4th, NFC North
Marty Mornhinweg
2001
2-14
5th, NFC Central
Marty Mornhinweg
The Baltimore native became a candidate to be a head coach, though, because of what he's done in Tennessee. The Titans ranked in the top seven in yards allowed each of the past two seasons and finished second in points allowed per game at 14.6 in 2008. His 2003 defense ranked first in the NFL in rushing defense and led the league in third down defense at 27.7 — the lowest since the 1998 Oakland Raiders. The avid chess player analyzes football-related statistics, looking for tendencies, then has the ability to relay what he has learned to players. "You've got to have the right kind of guys who know how to translate it off the computer to the field and play," Titans defensive end Jevon Kearse has said. "He pretty much has what it takes if you ask me."
Tagged: Titans, Jevon Kearse, Browns, Cowboys, Lions

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