The 2006 season was the Detroit Lions' 77th in the National Football League (NFL), their 73rd as the Detroit Lions, their fifth playing home games at Ford Field, and their first under head coach Rod Marinelli. The Lions failed to improve on their 5–11 record from the 2005 season, finishing 3–13 and missing the postseason.
The Lions began 2–6 before dropping 7 straight games and falling to a 3–13 record at the end of the season. The offense finished below-average while the defense was the third-worst in the league. Wide receiver Roy Williams was named to the Pro Bowl, finishing with 82 receptions, 1,310 receiving yards, and seven touchdowns; he was the only Lion named to the Pro Bowl.
The passing game was led by full-time starter Jon Kitna, who the Lions acquired in free agency. Kitna passed for 4,208 yards, a career high, and finished with a 21–22 touchdown–interception ratio. The run game was led by third-year running back Kevin Jones who finished with 1209 scrimmage yards and 8 total touchdowns. Dré Bly, Terrence Holt, and Jamar Fletcher finished with a team-high three interceptions, while DL Cory Redding finished with a team-high 8.0 sacks.
Offseason
Coaching changes On November 28, 2005, the Lions fired head coach Steve Mariucci and promoted defensive coordinator Dick Jauron to interim head coach. The Lions also fired offensive line coach Pat Morris and tight ends coach Andy Sugarman, while also demoting offensive coordinator Ted Tollner to tight ends coach. Greg Olson was named the offensive coordinator. In the search for their new head coach, San Francisco 49ers assistant head coach Mike Singletary was reportedly interviewed for the job, though later 49ers head coach Mike Nolan would go on to say Singletary was removed from the list of candidates. Jim Haslett, who most recently was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints, also interviewed with the Lions. On January 18, it was reported that Rod Marinelli was nearing a deal with the Lions. A day later, the Lions announced Marinelli as their new head coach. Marinelli had been the defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since their 1996 season. Marinelli was also interviewed by the Oakland Raiders. After a second interview, Marinelli was scheduled to leave Detroit, but he stayed to negotiate his contract.
On January 29, the Lions named Donnie Henderson as their new defensive coordinator. Henderson had been the defensive coordinator for the New York Jets for the previous two seasons. They also announced Phil Snow as the new linebackers coach. A week later, the Lions would announce Mike Martz as their new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Martz had been the head coach of the St. Louis Rams since the 2000 season and was fired after a 6–10 season. The Lions also hired Mike Barry as assistant offensive line coach and Clayton Lopez as defensive backs coach.
Free agency
Offensively, the Lions franchise tagged right tackle Jeff Backus who signed the offer in May. Backus would eventually sign a six-year contract with the team. They also signed quarterback Shaun King to a one-year contract, though he was released a few months later after signing offensive guard Ross Verba. The Lions also re-signed contracts with tight end Casey FitzSimmons, while letting offensive tackle Victor Rogers walk and cutting offensive guard David Loverne. They also signed wide receivers Corey Bradford and Mike Furrey to four and one-year contracts respectively. The Lions would add veteran quarterback Jon Kitna in free agency, while re-signing defensive end Kalimba Edwards and kick returner Eddie Drummond to five-year deals. They also signed quarterback Josh McCown. Shortly after they signed Kitna and McCown, the Lions would trade quarterback and former Lions' third overall pick Joey Harrington to the Miami Dolphins for an undisclosed conditional draft selection. Harrington spent four seasons with the team where he went 18–37 as a starter and accumulated a 60–62 touchdown–interception ratio. The Lions re-signed running back Shawn Bryson to a three-year contract, signed tight end Dan Campbell to a five-year deal, signed offensive tackles Barry Stokes and Courtney Van Buren to three and one-year contracts respectively, and signed center Brock Gutierrez and guard Tyrone Hopson. After the season began, the Lions signed wide receiver and return specialist Az-Zahir Hakim to a one-year deal. Hakim was with the team from 2002 to 2004.
Wide receiver Charles Rogers, whom the Lions picked second overall during the 2003 draft, was cut by the Lions alongside 20 other players shortly before the regular season began. Rogers compiled 36 receptions for 440 yards and four touchdowns in his three seasons with the team. His first two seasons ended with collarbone injuries; during practice in 2003 and during a regular season game in 2004. He was suspended in 2005 for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. After getting suspended, the Lions filed a grievance with the league and sought to recuperate $10.1 million of his $14.4 million signing bonus. In 2008, the NFL granted the Lions their grievance in amount of $8.2 million. After sitting out of practice and two preseason games, the Lions cut Rogers on September 2. Rogers was reportedly dealing with a sore knee during the offseason which slowed him during training camp, and Marinelli grew disinterested in keeping Rogers on the team.
Defensively, the Lions re-signed defensive end Jared DeVries to a five-year contract, and linebacker LeVar Woods and safety Terrence Holt to one-year deals. They also signed free agent linebacker Paris Lenon to a three-year deal, defensive end Tyoka Jackson to a two-year deal, and safety Idrees Bashir and defensive end Cory Redding to one-year deals. The Lions also released defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson while re-signing linebacker James Davis.
Draft
Staff
Final roster
Preseason
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.comrecap 1 Denver Broncos W 20–13 1–0 Ford Field Recap 2 at Cleveland Browns L 16–20 1–1 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap 3 at Oakland Raiders L 3–21 1–2 McAfee Coliseum Recap 4 Buffalo Bills L 13–20 1–3 Ford Field Recap
Regular season
Overview The Lions had two losing streaks, a five-game streak to start the season and a seven-game streak nearing the close of the season. They suffered their sixth-straight losing season finishing 3–13, finished last in the NFC North, and extended their postseason drought to seven seasons. The team finished 21st in offense and 30th in defense. The offense turned the ball over 39 times, good for third-worst in the league. Though the passing game, headed by full-time starter Jon Kitna, attempted the second-most passes in the league, they finished 13th in touchdowns and 27th in interceptions. The run game, headed by Kevin Jones, finished last in the league for attempts and rushing yards. The Lions converted 32.6% of their third downs and scored a touchdown on 40.0% of their red zone visits. Kitna finished with 4,208 yards, a 21–22 touchdown–interception ratio, and a 79.9 passer rating. Jones finished with 1,209 scrimmage yards and 8 scrimmage touchdowns. Wide receiver Roy Williams finished with 1,310 receiving yards and 7 receiving touchdowns, earning himself a Pro Bowl nod. Wide receiver Mike Furrey also finished with 1,086 receiving yards and 6 receiving touchdowns.
Starting linebacker Teddy Lehman was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, sidelining him for at least six weeks due to a foot injury suffered last season. After the second-half kickoff of the Week 4 matchup against the St. Louis Rams, offensive guard Frank Davis went down with a neck injury and was taken off the field in a stretcher. The next week against the Minnesota Vikings, offensive guard Damien Woody sprained his foot and missed the rest of the season. The Lions also lost starting offensive linemen Ross Verba and Rex Tucker to injuries during the season. Defensive end James Hall, who had five sacks in seven games going into the bye week, and running back Brian Calhoun were put on the injured reserve. After being suspended for four games for violating the NFL's substance use policy after using a substance to help control his weight, defensive tackle Shaun Rogers was placed on the injured reserve. The team also lost running back Kevin Jones to a foot injury and placed him on season-ending injured reserve.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Game site NFL.comrecap 1 September 10 Seattle Seahawks L 6–9 0–1Ford FieldRecap 2 September 17 at Chicago Bears L 7–34 0–2Soldier FieldRecap 3 September 24 Green Bay Packers L 24–31 0–3Ford FieldRecap 4 October 1 at St. Louis Rams L 34–41 0–4 Edward Jones DomeRecap 5 October 8 at Minnesota Vikings L 17–26 0–5Hubert H. Humphrey MetrodomeRecap 6 October 15 Buffalo Bills W 20–171–5Ford FieldRecap 7 October 22 at New York Jets L 24–311–6Giants StadiumRecap 8 Bye 9 November 5 Atlanta Falcons W 30–142–6Ford FieldRecap 10 November 12 San Francisco 49ers L 13–19 2–7Ford FieldRecap 11 November 19 at Arizona Cardinals L 10–17 2–8University of Phoenix StadiumRecap 12 November 23 Miami Dolphins L 10–27 2–9Ford FieldRecap 13 December 3 at New England Patriots L 21–28 2–10Gillette StadiumRecap 14 December 10 Minnesota Vikings L 20–30 2–11Ford FieldRecap 15 December 17 at Green Bay Packers L 9–17 2–12Lambeau FieldRecap 16 December 24 Chicago Bears L 21–26 2–13Ford FieldRecap 17 December 31 at Dallas Cowboys W 39–31 3–13Texas StadiumRecap
Standings
Regular season
Week 1: vs. Seattle Seahawks
at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan
The Lions opened the regular season at home against the Seattle Seahawks on September 10. The Lions would score first on kicker Jason Hanson’s 44-yard field goal in the first quarter. However, in the second quarter, Seattle would get back in the game with kicker Josh Brown’s 20-yard and 51-yard field goals. After a scoreless third quarter, the Lions would tie in the fourth quarter with Hanson booting a 37-yard field goal, but Seattle got a last-second win with a 42-yard field goal in the closing seconds. With the season-opening loss, the Lions were 0–1.
Week 2: at Chicago Bears
at Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
The Lions played their first road game of the year, as in Week 2, they played an NFC North battle against the Chicago Bears. From the get-go, the Lions trailed, as they allowed 24 first half points. It came in the form of opposing QB Rex Grossman’s 3-yard TD pass to TE John Gilmore and opposing kicker Robbie Gould’s 32-yard field goal in the first quarter. It also came in the form of a 41-yard TD pass to WR Bernard Berrian and a 31-yard TD pass to TE Desmond Clark. The Lions only score of the game came in the form of QB Jon Kitna getting a 1-yard QB sneak for a TD in the third quarter. The Bears put the game well-out of reach, as a 5-yard TD to TE John Gilmore later in the quarter and a 45-yard field goal by Gould in the fourth quarter sealed Detroit's fate. With the loss, the Lions dropped to 0–2.
Week 3: vs. Green Bay Packers
at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan