hotfudgedetroit.com

It’s question-and-answer time – where we ask the question, and freep.com readers provide the answers.

Today’s question: Where would you like to see Matt Millen go?

Our enjoyment of Saturday’s Michigan-Connecticut game waned when we realized the former Lions president was broadcasting the game.

We keep the volume low normally, in hopes of filtering out most of what the play-by-play guys say. But a few minutes into the game, one of the announcers said something so dumb that it made us realize Millen was doing the game.

Millen’s flub – one of many – came when Connecticut called a timeout as the play clock was ticking to zero. When a ref blew the whistle, Millen mistakenly thought UConn was being flagged for delay of game.

With typical bluster, Millen pointed out the ref’s mistake, only to realize a few seconds later that the ref was signaling a timeout.

As was the case throughout his tenure with the Lions, Millen displayed a rare, one-two punch: He doesn’t know what he doesn’t know, and he doesn’t know what he thinks he knows.

When, later in the game, Millen expressed admiration for UConn coach Randy Edsall, calling him a great coach, you could only feel sorry for the guy.

Perhaps we’re biased against the man who drove the Lions into the ground. He’s probably no better or worse than most college football announcers.

But why must ABC continually inflict Matt Millen upon football fans in the Lions’ TV market? Why not exile him to broadcasting Pac-10 or Western Athletic Conference games?

What do you think?

http://www.freep.com/article/20100907/S ... z0yrNLqQL7

Doctor Detroit wrote:ESPN is putting him on Saturday's Michigan/Michigan State game.

http://www.freep.com/article/20101006/S ... creen-ESPN

Andy wrote:

Doctor Detroit wrote:ESPN is putting him on Saturday's Michigan/Michigan State game.

http://www.freep.com/article/20101006/S ... creen-ESPN

Last Monday, I felt like catching some of the Pats/Dolphins game. It was about 8:15 or so when I switched over to ESPN. When I saw Millen at the portable sports desk on the field with Stuart Scott and whoever I didn't want to deal with it and switched away. I intended to come back to the game but forgot and watched something else on another channel.

The Suburban Avenger wrote:

Andy wrote:

Doctor Detroit wrote:ESPN is putting him on Saturday's Michigan/Michigan State game.

http://www.freep.com/article/20101006/S ... creen-ESPN

Last Monday, I felt like catching some of the Pats/Dolphins game. It was about 8:15 or so when I switched over to ESPN. When I saw Millen at the portable sports desk on the field with Stuart Scott and whoever I didn't want to deal with it and switched away. I intended to come back to the game but forgot and watched something else on another channel.

Not that Terry Foster should be the voice of civil disobedience, but I got a chuckle out him asking fans to get a "Fire Millen" chant going during this weekend's game. I'll be there working and will report back if such a thing happens.

John Elway will be the third to try.

Only twice before in the modern era has a former NFL star player taken the top executive role of a team's football operation with no previous league experience in coaching, scouting or personnel.

The first two went 0-for-2.

In 2004, Hall of Fame Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino was hired to become the team's senior vice president of football operations.

After three weeks, Marino quit. He said the job was too much as he tried to maintain balance with his family.

Then there was Matt Millen, who failed miserably running the Detroit Lions.

The Broncos are counting on Elway to break a trend.

"I hope John does better than I did, because I stunk at it," Millen said.

At least Millen has maintained his sense of humor after his unfortunate, eight-season run overseeing the Lions. Elway, the greatest player in Broncos history — and a player Millen said is the best to ever play the game for any team — will be welcomed by owner Pat Bowlen and chief operating officer Joe Ellis as the head of the Broncos' football department during a 1:30 p.m. news conference today.

Elway has front-office experience. He oversaw the now-defunct Colorado Crush of the Arena Football League, so he will have a slight head start on Millen, who went from the broadcast booth to become the Lions' president and chief executive officer in 2001.

But Elway is vastly inexperienced compared to Ozzie Newsome, another former great player who spent 11 years in scouting and player personnel before becoming the Baltimore Ravens' general manager in 2002.

Millen? Even if he became arguably the most reviled executive an NFL team has employed when he was fired early in the Lions' 0-16 season of 2008, he does understand the challenges confronting Elway.

"The first thing John has to do is learn the culture of the building," said Millen, who is once again an NFL color analyst. "He should be ahead of the curve, because he's been around it. And then he has to learn the culture of the league. There's a lot of red tape, and there's a lot of politicking. And that's fine; you have that everywhere. Pat will help him. Joe Ellis will help him a lot too. Joe is really good at what he does."

Next, Elway will have to learn the people inside the building. He must become familiar with general manager Brian Xanders, who will join Elway and the not-yet-known head coach in shaping the Broncos' roster.

"There's a misconception about the job," Millen said. "It's less about the game of football. It's less about X's and O's. It's less about personnel decisions. It's a job about managing people. It's about building a consensus when you pick the right head coach. You can't go in and be this football czar and say this is how it's going to work. If you pick somebody that a coach doesn't like and doesn't coach, that's a bad situation.

"Scouts all have certain types of players they like and don't like. Some guys are good at evaluating backs, some guys aren't good with safeties. Some guys are quarterback guys, some guys aren't. Some guys like athletes, some guys like tough guys.

"John has to get to where he can read all these things in his guys."

Among Newsome's best decisions was to hire John Harbaugh as the Ravens' coach in 2008. Elway seems to be making a concerted effort to make Harbaugh's brother Jim his first coaching hire.

Once the coach is settled on — interim coach Eric Studesville and Atlanta offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey will also be among the candidates interviewed — perhaps Elway's next big decision will be to oversee the evaluation of Broncos current quarterback Tim Tebow.

"There's no question," Millen said. "Any player who's making any cash, anybody who they've invested in, has to be evaluated. They have people there who have already formed their own opinion. But John is going to have to get his own opinion. Absolutely, John has a shot to be successful."

http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_ ... z1AZ4xMmEI

Elway, the greatest player in Broncos history — and a player Millen said is the best to ever play the game for any team

I stunk at it," Millen said.

You're fired, Matt Millen! Again.

SI.com is reporting that the NFL Network, which hired Millen after he was canned following a disastrous tenure as general manager of the Lions, is sending him packing. The report said Mike Mayock, a highly respected draft analyst, will join the network's game broadcast, while Millen and Joe Theismann are out.

The NFL Network also is considering added Detroit's Gus Johnson, a hit for his NCAA Tournament coverage, SI reported.

The NFL Network hired Millen in 2009 and Theismann the following year, and since has been bombarded with criticism from fans.

Millen, 53, was a popular on-air analyst before the Lions hired him to run the team in 2001. What followed was one of the most embarrassing stretches of play in NFL history, before he was fired by William Clay Ford in September 2008.

Millen still is doing college football for ABC.

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110414/SPO ... z1JaRAW0yr

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Former Lions president Matt Millen said he’s glad the Honolulu Blue and Silver are having success this season. He’s a big fan of quarterback Matt Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson.

“Stafford has some (Brett) Favre in him,” Millen said today at Ohio Stadium, where he’s working as analyst for the Michigan State-Ohio State game.

“He can make throws in awkward positions, in bad positions; he throws it in tiny windows. I put him in the top six or seven (quarterbacks). He’s ascending.

“I’ve always said if you’ve got a quarterback you’ve got a chance. Well they’ve got a real chance now.”

Millen said Stafford and Johnson “are on the same page.”

“He knows how to throw to Johnson,” Millen said. “He can overthrow him if he has to and let him go get the ball.”

Millen said he just heard about the recent comments made by Cris Carter that Johnson wasn’t an elite receiver.

“I just saw that, actually this morning,” Millen. “Maybe that word is something different than (Carter) thinks, because he’s elite. He’s elite. He’s a stud.”

http://www.freep.com/article/20111001/S ... in-Johnson

Millen said he just heard about the recent comments made by Cris Carter that Johnson wasn’t an elite receiver.

When talking about Lions receiver Calvin Johnson -- who will face the Cowboys on Sunday -- Ryan gave the standard remarks about how Johnson is a great receiver. But then he said this:

"We work against better receivers with Miles Austin and Dez Bryant,” Ryan said via the Dallas Morning News. “They are probably two of the premier receivers in football, but this guy is right there. He's almost that good. He's excellent."

Ya Mar wrote:If you think Cris Carter's comments were bad, Rex Ryan's made me want to throw up in my mouth...

When talking about Lions receiver Calvin Johnson -- who will face the Cowboys on Sunday -- Ryan gave the standard remarks about how Johnson is a great receiver. But then he said this:

"We work against better receivers with Miles Austin and Dez Bryant,” Ryan said via the Dallas Morning News. “They are probably two of the premier receivers in football, but this guy is right there. He's almost that good. He's excellent."

http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22475988/32404844

I wonder if he will change his thoughts after today? Although I do have to agree that Dez Bryant is also a stud.

“I’m just glad that the third-best receiver on their team is on our team,” Schwartz said.

Mulligan wrote:

Millen said he just heard about the recent comments made by Cris Carter that Johnson wasn’t an elite receiver.

That's just crazy. Maybe Carter is so bitter that he can't get elected into the Hall of Fame, he's waging his own PR campaign against any future competition on the ballot.

Carter crowns Johnson king of receivers

“But right now — Calvin Johnson?” Carter said. “He’s the king of the NFL right now as far as wide receivers.