It’s not just any offseason for the Detroit Lions. This is one of the most important offseason periods in the franchise’s history. While the team will have many of their players entact, the Lions’ coaching staff is going through a total makeover, and it will be interesting to see how it all plays out come September.
Unfortunately, the team has been plagued with coaches leaving for other opportunities, notably offensive coordinator Ben Johnson going to the Chicago Bears and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn heading to the New York Jets. Now, the team has lost a key person in their front office.
As Queen Says, Another One Bites the Dust
On Friday, February 14, ESPN analyst and expert Adam Schefter reported that the Detroit Lions‘ director of scouting advancement, Mike Martin, is leaving the Motor City to take a gig as Notre Dame’s new general manager.
The general manager is actually a new role for college football programs, because since instating the NIL and transfer portal, college football has started to mirror professional football. It’s quite an in-demand position, too.
“Notre Dame is finalizing a deal to hire Detroit Lions Director of Scouting Advancement Mike Martin as the school’s new general manager, per source,” Schefter stated on X. He added that “Martin was part of Detroit’s initial front office staff that helped rebuild the Lions’ roster. Now Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman is pulling Martin away from Detroit to bring an NFL model to South Bend.”
So, losing a member of the front office who “helped rebuild the Lions’ roster” isn’t good news. But, the Lions still have general manager Brad Holmes at the head of the front office, so that should offer some reassurance.
Joshua Vowles of One Foot Down comments on the expected hiring in a February 15 feature, stating, “I will say that I think this is a much different direction than keeping Chad Bowden on staff or even hiring James Blanchard.”
“As we all read between the lines a little bit,” he added, “it sounds like Notre Dame will have the GM position but definitely be supplementing the position with more people to provide better scouting and player development.”
Martin joined the Detroit Lions in 2021 and was one of the first big hires for Holmes. Serving as the head scout, Martin helped evaluate talent. Before the Lions, he also worked for the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans.
Not All Doom and Gloom for the Lions
Not everyone is jumping ship. After Glenn left to take the Jets head coach position, Lions linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard promoted to the defensive coordinator role.
Sheppard is confirming that he could have gone elsewhere. Speaking with Dan Miller of Fox 2, Sheppard said that he had other opportunities outside of Detroit but stayed with the 15-2 team.
In the interview, Sheppard said head coach Dan Campbell’s trust and support is “the reason I chose to stay here over other opportunities. It would have been almost impossible to take another job, no matter what.”
He added that he owes “a lot to Dan” and that the most important thing is “the belief system he’s had in me since day one when I met him in 2014 as a player, and that’s carried over into the coaching career.”
