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 This is a Blog that Howie Long wrote for Fox Sports. I liked it so I thought I would share it with my fellow Lions Fans. ENJOY!!!

Jimmy Johnson mentioned Packers coach Mike McCarthy as a candidate for Coach of the Year on our show, but what about Rod Marinelli? I think it's remarkable that Marinelli went into Detroit last year and talked about being the janitor and coming in and cleaning the place out. Well, it looks like he's got just about everybody out. The ones who have hung around have come around to his way of thinking and - surprise, surprise - the Lions are 6-2 at the halfway mark. 

Let me tell you, it's not easy changing the mindset of a losing locker room. When he got there, the Lions showed a lot of complacency and weren't accountable. They never showed any resiliency.

That horrible 56-21 loss in Philadelphia in Week 3 was a tipping point. The Lions were going to go one way or another. Marinelli has done a tremendous job of dealing with that, and these Lions have bounced back from adversity.

The Lions are far from a perfect team; they have some holes. The secondary is average at best. But their defensive front seven is very good. Marinelli has done a great job of building it around a mixture of youth and experienced players like Shaun Rogers. When he's healthy and in shape, Rogers can be as dominating defensive tackle as there is in the NFL. I know he looks heavy, but he sure looked great after that 66-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Broncos. He is a disruptive force in a solid rotation. But if you get the unit blocked - like Philadelphia and Washington did - there are plays to be made down the field.

I also like linebacker Ernie Sims. He's a hit-seeking missile. Sims is speed, pure speed. And they've done a pretty good with the offensive line. Now, I'm not a big fan of Mike Martz, but he is an innovator and you see something new from him all the time. And that's saying something in football. But there's a fine line between genius and insanity. When the quarterback, Jon Kitna, gets sacked 96 times since 2006 - and that doesn't count the hurries, knockdowns and pressures - well, that is never good.

What Kitna and Martz needed was Kevin Jones to come back. The Lions got Jones 15 carries two weeks ago, but he held up really well and they fed him last week and again against the Broncos. For them to get the running game going with the receivers that they have and that offensive scheme, that means they have a chance to do some really good things.

The Lions have finally shown some great resiliency. They rallied to beat Chicago with 34 points in the fourth quarter and again at home to beat Tampa Bay. It shows great mental toughness and resolve. GM Matt Millen said the players are starting to believe they are actually good as a team. And believe me, after seven years of losing, that is a huge thing.

I know Green Bay is 7-1, but I think the NFC North is still wide open. The Packers have a really good defense and Brett is Brett. But if there's one antidote to Favre, it's putting pressure on him up the middle. And that's something the Lions can do; they can get after the quarterback and come up the middle. The Packers still have to play the Lions twice.