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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.

6/11/2013

Detroit Lions' QB Matthew Stafford not bothered by criticism


 Matthew Stafford’s every move every Sunday in the fall is examined and then rehashed for weeks and months afterward.

  It’s part of the job description as the Detroit Lions quarterback or any NFL quarterback and he knows it.

  In 2012, even though he came up just shy of 5,000 passing yards the Lions lost eight straight to finish the season at 4-12. Not acceptable for Stafford or the team.

 His mechanics were scrutinized, even though he has made it clear again and again that he is not working on changing the way he passes the ball.

  He hears all of this.

 “It’s impossible not to hear it just because I watch SportsCenter like everybody else and I’m a person, too, but it’s not the main fuel. ... The main fuel for me is I want to keep progressing in the right direction,’’ Stafford said after the first day of the mandatory minicamp on Tuesday.

“I want to be a great quarterback and I want to be able to help this team win, and the only way I’m going to be able to do that is if I let nothing get in my way and just concentrate on what I’m supposed to concentrate on and get better at what I need to get better at,’’ the 25-year-old quarterback added.

He said he didn’t work harder this offseason — he works hard each offseason. It just happened that this offseason he stayed in town instead of working out elsewhere.

  Coach Jim Schwartz said Stafford has always been a hard worker. That has never been an issue.

 “You know, Stafford’s a very consistent guy in his approach to the game, the way he prepares for a week, the way he prepares in the offseason, training camp, those kinds of things,’’ Schwartz said. “There’s a confidence that goes with that. You know, Matt’s not happy with last year. None of us were happy with last year, but you also can’t overreact.

“I think that’s a balance we’ve talked about going through this offseason in not getting away from what you do and who you are knowing that you just need to improve on finer things. We have a lot of confidence that he will and he’s a great leader in setting that example,’’ Schwartz added.

Even though minicamp is a watered-down training camp — no contact, no one-on-one drills — every player can get something out of it even Stafford who is entering his fifth season.

“You know, every player is working on something and they’re also working through the scheme,’’ Schwartz said. “They’re working on precision in the passing game, making good decisions in the run game, you know, leading his team tempo on offense, decision making in the passing game and things like that. Every player has stuff that they’re working on this time of year and Matt’s no different.”

Stafford’s agent and the Lions are working on a contract extension, as they have been since last season ended.

That is not Stafford’s area of expertise.

He said he’ll play football and let his agent handle that.

(Follow @PaulaPasche on Twitter. Order her book,  “100 Things Lions Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die’’ here. It’s also available at bookstores.)





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