Matt Millen: I’d have fired me.
Burning Questions | by Mike O'Hara | 01.3.2009/4:01PM
Matt Millen answered questions from Dan Patrick on NBC Saturday afternoon:
On what it was like to be fired and watch the Lions go 0-16:
“It was brutal. Obviously, knowing everybody up there, knowing and understanding the details, watching it unfold, it was probably harder watching it from home than it was when you’re up there.
At least when you’re up there, you have some interaction. At home, you’re just sitting there—your wife (Patricia) just keeps beating on you. So it’s tough.”
How responsible Millen was for the Lions’ record:
“Oh, completely responsible. When you’re head of football operations, you throw it back on me. You can say something about coaching, say something about the players, but inevitably, I’m responsible for them so I’m completely responsible for it in my mind.
Whether he was qualified to be a team president when he was hired out of the television booth:
“In some areas yes, in some areas no. Certainly from a football standpoint, and Xs and Os, that’s something you study for a long time. There’s a whole other side to that job that you have to learn. Frankly, I didn’t understand it going in and had to learn it.”
On the lack of consistency, including changing coaches:
“You change coaches, obviously you’re not having success. Any organization that’s going to have a winning record, it all comes back to not only stability but consistency. You have to have consistency in philosophy. You have to have consistency with scheme and that type of thing. When changing things over and over, that’s tough to do.”
On being successful in the rest of his life, but not with the Lions:
“If you’re just going to say ‘that’s the stiff that used to be in Detroit, they lost all those games, it’s got to be on him’—I’d say I was in Detroit, you have to blame me. There’s a lot more to it than that. I could give you excuses. I could give you reasons. To me, that’s just an excuse after the fact. You take the hit and move on. And how they look at me, I know what I am. You can say whatever you want about me.”
On if he would have fired himself:
“I would have, actually. Probably not this year—until after the season. I think when you start having changeover in an organization, it filters down into the locker room. That’s tough to do. I thought that was a tough position for Rod Marinelli to be in. Rod’s a stud. Rod’s an outstanding football coach.”
On whether the Lions are close to winning:
“A lot closer than people think. Right now, it’s easy to sit around and say, ‘The Lions, they stink,’ and kick them when they’re down. Is there enough talent up there in Detroit? Absolutely. They’ve got one of the top receivers in the league in Calvin Johnson. They’ve got a top running back (Kevin Smith). There are some pieces in the offensive line. They need some help (on defense).”
Contact Mike O’Hara at mikeoharasports.com
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