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Lifer
ALLEN PARK -- Preparation has been Jim Schwartz's calling card as one of the bright, young minds in the NFL, from Powerpoint presentations to Friday pop quizzes for his players.
But the Lions' newest head coach couldn't help but smile Thursday night when he was greeted by reporters at Metro Airport and promptly asked whom he wanted to draft with the No. 1 overall pick.
"Can I get my bags first?" Schwartz replied, laughing.
OK, so maybe he's not prepared for everything just yet. But the Lions are convinced he's their man, which is why they'll introduce the 42-year-old Schwartz, who spent the last eight seasons as the Tennessee Titans' defensive coordinator, as their head coach shortly after noon Friday at Ford Field. He was expected to sign his a four-year contract tonight. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"Jim fit the profile that we developed for the person we wanted to lead this football team," team president Tom Lewand said Thursday night, after a wide-ranging search that officially began with Rod Marinelli's firing Dec. 29 -- a day after the Lions reached an historic low with an 0-16 season. "From the standpoint of leadership, intelligence, experience, knowledge of the game, knowledge of the personnel process, Jim fit that profile in a near-perfect fashion."
Schwartz, with 16 years of NFL experience as scout and coach, quickly emerged as a frontrunner in the Lions' tight-lipped search, spearheaded by Lewand and new general manager Martin Mayhew.
The Lions conducted interviews with at least seven candidates, and narrowed their list to three or four favorites, though only Schwartz and Miami assistant head coach Todd Bowles were brought in for second interviews that included owner William Clay Ford Sr.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pb...5/SPORTS0101/901150457
But the Lions' newest head coach couldn't help but smile Thursday night when he was greeted by reporters at Metro Airport and promptly asked whom he wanted to draft with the No. 1 overall pick.
"Can I get my bags first?" Schwartz replied, laughing.
OK, so maybe he's not prepared for everything just yet. But the Lions are convinced he's their man, which is why they'll introduce the 42-year-old Schwartz, who spent the last eight seasons as the Tennessee Titans' defensive coordinator, as their head coach shortly after noon Friday at Ford Field. He was expected to sign his a four-year contract tonight. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"Jim fit the profile that we developed for the person we wanted to lead this football team," team president Tom Lewand said Thursday night, after a wide-ranging search that officially began with Rod Marinelli's firing Dec. 29 -- a day after the Lions reached an historic low with an 0-16 season. "From the standpoint of leadership, intelligence, experience, knowledge of the game, knowledge of the personnel process, Jim fit that profile in a near-perfect fashion."
Schwartz, with 16 years of NFL experience as scout and coach, quickly emerged as a frontrunner in the Lions' tight-lipped search, spearheaded by Lewand and new general manager Martin Mayhew.
The Lions conducted interviews with at least seven candidates, and narrowed their list to three or four favorites, though only Schwartz and Miami assistant head coach Todd Bowles were brought in for second interviews that included owner William Clay Ford Sr.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pb...5/SPORTS0101/901150457