ALLEN PARK — Gunther Cunningham, the defensive coordinator, will not put up with missed tackles like the ones he saw in the second preseason game on Saturday. He made his point clear to the media today when the more he talked, the more heated he became.

“One of the messages I sent to the defensive guys is they’re not going to play here if they can’t tackle. What I was disappointed in the game, early on they got us a little bit, but we settled down and we were playing really good then a couple guys went in there and let the whole defense down,’’ Cunningham said. “I think there were two plays for 103 yards. Our coaching staff is not going to tolerate it and I told them what I thought.

“If you can’t tackle, you can’t play defense and you definitely are not going to play here on defense. They picked up and worked at it this week and they looked better,’’ he added.

For more on Cunningham's thoughts about the defense, see Thursday's Oakland Press.
— PAULA PASCHE