MegaWho?

Last off season, Calvin Johnson retired from the NFL.  Citing the recurring injuries to his knees and legs, he walked away.  And more power to him.  I read an interview with him and he said there were times when he could only shuffle around his house the day after a game because his legs and knees were in such bad shape.  As a fan of the team he played for, the Detroit Lions, it brought flashbacks to the last great offensive athlete to wear the uniform.  Barry Sanders also walked away with seemingly years left to play.  We, as fans, have to respect the athletes' decisions as tough as they may be to deal with.  Tomorrow your favorite athlete can make a retirement announcement and that is just something we have to deal with.  Some fans get mad at these decisions, others just deal with it, and others worry about the future of the team.  When Johnson retired, most people wondered what it would do to the team.  How would the team look with him gone.  And you know what, it seems to be just fine.  At least the start of the season anyway.

Before I delve into this post, let us be clear:  Calvin Johnson was a once in a generation talent, but was so humble and team oriented that he wasn't a diva.  Not a Keyshawn Johnson.  Not a Terrell Owens.  Not a Chad Johnson.  Not a Dez Bryant.  You see some players that are so talented, but they are so self-centered that they distract from the team.  Watching interviews with Johnson, he always seemed to focus on the team winning.  It didn't matter if he had a three touchdown, one hundred fifty yard receiving game or a game where he caught one ball for five yards.  He wanted to win.  He wasn't always wanting the ball.  He didn't want Matt Stafford to throw to him first and then maybe throw to someone else.  Stafford would throw to him when he shouldn't have at times because Johnson had the ability to go up and catch balls that no one has the right to go up and get.  The best ever was against the Bengals when he was triple (almost quadruple) covered and Stafford hit him for a fifty yard touchdown.  Bananas.  Look it up. 

Because he was so talented, the team seemed to have a tendency to lean on him for clutch situations.  When you do that, other teams know that and focus mainly on that.  The Lions have won four games so far this season.  In all those games, they were trailing near the end of the game.  I'm not going to go through and look at all the details, but what I know is that Stafford is spreading the ball around at the end of the game.  He is taking charge, finding different receivers, and putting the defense on their heels.  In the past, they could focus on Calvin Johnson.  Because that is who everyone in the universe knew Stafford was going to look for at the end of the game.  Now that Johnson is gone, he has other options.  And he did have other options in years past, but you lean on your talent.

After the grieving period of Calvin Johnson's retirement, I came to the realization that the Lions could be better off without him.  That's not to say they're going to win eleven or twelve games (because they still aren't great), but it helps to develop other players.  There were plays that they could take off because Calvin Johnson was such a focus for the team.  Now they can focus more on spreading the ball around.  It allows the team to be more fluid.  It's almost like a team should be.  Not just a quarterback looking for a singular player, but a quarterback that has options.  More offensive weapons means more chances to win.  Stafford has always had the ability to throw the ball to whomever and wherever he wanted, but with Johnson retiring, he could take the next step to becoming a top tier quarterback.  So it's good for him as well. 

The Lions are always going to be the Lions.  Every year they win eight or nine games will be considered a successful year.  If they win ten or eleven games will be outstanding.  Will they ever win a Super Bowl?  It seems unlikely, but then again, no one ever expected the Chicago Cubs to make it to the World Series yet here we are.