Welcome to the Motor City, Coach Schwartz. I christen thee, a Detroiter.
What makes a Detroiter? Chrysler recently summed it up nicely.
You see, its the hottest fires that make the hardest steel, add hard work and conviction and the know how that runs generations deep in every last one of us. That’s who we are. That’s our story.(lybio.net)
I find it laughable the Utopian articles I read the day after the confrontation between Jim Schwartz andJim Harbaugh.
The overriding conclusion seems to be Schwartz was out of line and reacted in a childlike, unprofessional manner. Are you kidding?
Jim Schwartz three years ago was handed the keys to the worst team in NFL history. The Lions were in need of more repair than Arnie Cunnigham’s 1958 Plymouth Fury in Christine. A historically perfect team of 0-16 awaited Schwartz, looking to him for answers and leadership.
This team needed to change everything it did. He changed the way they practiced, the way they watched film, the way they lifted weights, even where they sat. Here’s what Schwartz said in the summer of 2009.
We’ve moved on. From the time they got here on March 16 (for the start of the offseason workouts), we made sure that things were presented in a different way, Schwartz said. The locker room was changed up, it was a different color and some signs taken down, pictures taken down and a different presentation.
The weight room is significantly different with new equipment and a different philosophy of lifting and a different regiment for the off-season program, Schwartz said. We practiced significantly different than they did last year. All of which was designed for the player, when he walked in, to say, ‘Things are different this year.’ (mlive.com)
Since the transformation began in 2009, the entire culture has turned a complete 180 degrees because of Jim Schwartz and now some are questioning his methods?
To quote Col. Nathan R. Jessep from A Few Good Men , “I’d rather you just said thank you and went on your way.”
Are our memories that short that we forget what it was like before Schwartz?
The losses, the apathy, are that what Lions fans want to go back to? Hell, Schwartz is the first coach in my lifetime that could have chased down Harbaugh to remind him of his coaching protocol gaffe.
Some are saying he set a bad example of sportsmanship for our children. Please; Schwartz was hired to lead men, not sell popcorn as a Cub Scout master in front of Kroger’s. After the altercation, he didn’t expound on the disagreement. He answered a couple questions calmly and put it to bed.
At my nephew’s flag football games, second graders run up and down the field with an occasional pass finding the intended receiver. Afterwards, the teams share a case of Capri Suns. Is that what was expected from Schwartz after Harbaugh tried to emasculate the Lions head coach?
“Great win Coach Harbaugh, after I get your boot out of my ass, would you and your boys care to join us for cream puff sundaes at Sander’s?” As Chris Carter famously says, “c’mon man!”
Was it the most professional way to handle the situation? No; but Schwartz was not going to get disrespected in his own stadium and that’s just what Harbaugh tried to do with his post-game back slap dismissal of Schwartz.
We’ve all been part of a late-night tussle at a local watering hole. One guy bumps another and words are exchanged. When you feel disrespected do you cower and slide off into the corner or do you turn around and give him a piece of your mind? It rarely escalates to fisticuffs and is usually alcohol fueled, but I think you get my point; nobody likes to get punked.
The exchange was not only for himself but I believe it was for his players. Schwartz is very animated on the sidelines with his fist pumps and enthusiastic vigor that his players relish. He’ll even jaw with opposing players as he did with Dez Bryant in Dallas. The players feed off his emotion and after their first loss in 10 months, I think Schwartz wanted to remind them how important it was to protect home field.
More interestingly, I believe Schwartz subconsciously may have been defending the fans of Detroit. I think he identifies with the city in the same manner Tigers’ manager Jim Leyland does.
The persona of Detroit replicates the background of a young man from Baltimore who grew up in a home where values were passed down from parents who raised their family on a policeman’s salary. Schwartz may have grown up in a different city but he lived in the same blue-collar community. He embodies what Detroiters value.
If the NFL decides to fine Schwartz, William Clay Ford Sr. should scratch out a check for double the fine amount to not only cover the fine, but create a slush fund for the next incident. He has been put in charge of resuscitating the Lions and his approach has given the Ford Family reason to smile.
Nobody in the front office will publicly high-five the act but behind closed doors they’re fist-bumping and patting themselves on the back for choosing Schwartz as part of the commission molding this organization’s new identity.
The NFL season is a 17 week grind and nobody expected the Lions to escape unscathed. Nothing is given to you in the NFL and what you have, somebody else wants. Schwartz fiercely defended his manhood, his players and his house. The Lions as a team should take its cue from their head coach, a Detroiter.