I only know three things about Caldwell.
-He inherited one of the very best teams in the NFL with maybe the best QB to ever play the game. He auto-piloted that team to a Super Bowl.
-When said QB was lost and the team had a few other noteworthy injuries, he stuck with Curtis Painter nearly all season long and oversaw a team that started a season 0-13, a team that has not won less than 10 games in any other season since 1999. Maybe he had orders from up on high to tank for Luck, in fact, I'd be surprised if he didn't. But I just can't see any coach ever worth a salt following those kinds of orders.
-He has the least inspiring sideline demeanor I've seen from a head coach in some time. He looks like a permanent version of an interim coach. No fire, no confidence, no personality, no extroversion. Reminds me a lot of Keith Gilbertson when UW tanked under his watch in the mid-oughts.
Surely, there must have been better hires out there than Caldwell. Either the Lions know something we don't or they just made a mistake.
While it's true that Caldwell's style of offense fits Detroit's personnel, it's going to take more than being a good fit on offense to turn that team around. That offense was already producing. Offense isn't the Lion's problem. That team needs toughness and fire. They hired the perfectly wrong guy in that respect. Maybe the Lions can slip into the playoffs, but can anyone envision a Caldwell led Lions team beating the physically dominating Seahawks or 49ers in the postseason?
