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One thing you can count on with the Detroit Lions is that they are never, ever boring. Follow the latest news including injuries, roster moves and more here daily from Oakland Press beat writer Paula Pasche. Plus you'll find regular commentary about the team.

12/07/2007

Alama-Francis up; Kalimba down?

Lions coach Rod Marinelli said rookie defensive end Ikaika Alama-Francis will play this week for the first time since Sept. 30. A second-round pick out of Hawaii, Alama-Francis is healthy after missing the last three games with a pulled hamstring.

He should play plenty over the next four weeks as the Lions try to determine what sort of contributor he'll be next year. The team has three or four positions it desperately needs to address this offseason: Right tackle, linebacker, cornerback and maybe defensive end. If Alama-Francis proves a capable pass rusher — and by all accounts he's made big strides in practice — scratch one need off the list.

Marinelli said Alama-Francis is among his top seven linemen this week and he'll decide Saturday whether to dress seven or eight. The most likely candidate to sit is Kalimba Edwards, who's disappointed all year and could be a salary-cap casualty come June. With Dewayne White and Jared DeVries starting at end and four tackles likely up, there's a good chance Edwards and his three sacks could be a healthy scratch.

As poorly as he's played the last four weeks, there's no reason to sit Shaun Rogers Sunday. He's woefully out of shape, but the Lions (6-6) are still in the playoff hunt and if Rogers has one big game left in him it's bound to come against the Cowboys, his home-state team. Alama-Francis has worked everywhere on the line in practice, including nosetackle, so it's possible Rogers could be benched later this season. But for now, keeping him — and Alama-Francis — up gives the Lions their best chance to win.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

They should bench the Big Fat Baby the rest of the year and then cut his a$$ in the offseason.

9:10 AM 
Blogger Paula Pasche said...

Dan, cutting Rogers is a possibility - he's due $4.5 million next year - but I think a bit of a longshot for now. There's no doubt the Lions haven't been happy with his production recently, but he's still a great talent. I think it's more likely they try to trade him in the offseason for a starter or draft pick.

8:43 AM 

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