Detroit Lions owner prefers to stay out of the spotlight
Michigan
Posts: 4,942 ✭
in Sports Talk
William Clay Ford is regarded as a dignified man by the select few who seem to know the only surviving grandson of automotive pioneer Henry Ford.
To the masses, he's simply the owner of the Detroit Lions - one of the worst teams in pro sports history.
Ford's first full season atop the franchise was in 1964, seven years after winning the NFL title. His winning percentage in the regular season is a paltry 41 percent and his 388 losses are surpassed only by the Cardinals - by one.
The only playoff victory the 83-year-old Ford enjoyed was in 1992 and his last postseason defeat was in 2000.
After trying various ways to win, his outside-the-box idea of luring Matt Millen out of the broadcast booth to run his front office failed miserably. It has led to what might become the worst season in NFL history.
The Lions are the first team to start 0-14 since New Orleans in 1980 and are just the third ever, joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who finished their inaugural season 0-14 in 1976.
Season of futility
If Detroit loses Sunday at home to the Saints, it will be the first 0-15 record in NFL history. The Lions will close the season at Green Bay with a chance to seal an imperfect record that might be tough to top.
The public is only left to guess how Ford is coping with the embarrassment because he hasn't spoke to reporters in 14-plus months.
"A lot of people seem to have the opinion that he doesn't care, but he has taken the things that have happened to heart," said Joe Schmidt, who played and coached for Ford and was introduced by him at his Hall of Fame induction. "He's not in the sport to be seen on the sideline so that everybody can see him on TV or to have people hear what he has to say."
When Ford finally fired Millen two months ago with a 31-84 record over seven-plus seasons - a reign of futility that was lengthened thanks to a contract extension - he only released a statement.
The reclusive man is occasionally seen at Ford Field, a $500 million stadium he built without the public money most owners demand, and at the Lions' headquarters and practice facility, a $36 million complex which he financed.
"I know him a little bit from being here all the years," said kicker Jason Hanson, who has played for the Lions since they drafted him in 1992. "He's real nice. He's not outspoken.
"But when he has addressed the team in the past he was well-spoken and I was like, 'Hey, that was pretty good.' But I can't tell you definitively what Mr. Ford is like."
Turning point
Two seasons after Hall of Famer Barry Sanders' sudden retirement, Ford decided to essentially start over when Chicago's Paul Edinger, an ex-Spartan, made a winning kick in the 2000 finale to drop Detroit to 9-7 and out of the playoffs.
"That was the turning point because we were fighting for the playoffs and everything from then was changed," Hanson said.
Ford handed the keys to the franchise to Millen and he drove it into a ditch.
"The change wasn't made because we were the most disgusting product in the NFL, but we were trying to get to the next level," said Hanson, referring to the hiring of Millen. "People forget that and somehow think the Fords are bumbling fools."
Hanson referenced the Fords because the owner's son, Bill, is involved with the team as vice chairman when he isn't busy as Ford Motor Co.'s executive chairman.
What Ford might want to do with his team now is anyone's guess. He certainly isn't speaking out about it.
To the masses, he's simply the owner of the Detroit Lions - one of the worst teams in pro sports history.
Ford's first full season atop the franchise was in 1964, seven years after winning the NFL title. His winning percentage in the regular season is a paltry 41 percent and his 388 losses are surpassed only by the Cardinals - by one.
The only playoff victory the 83-year-old Ford enjoyed was in 1992 and his last postseason defeat was in 2000.
After trying various ways to win, his outside-the-box idea of luring Matt Millen out of the broadcast booth to run his front office failed miserably. It has led to what might become the worst season in NFL history.
The Lions are the first team to start 0-14 since New Orleans in 1980 and are just the third ever, joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who finished their inaugural season 0-14 in 1976.
Season of futility
If Detroit loses Sunday at home to the Saints, it will be the first 0-15 record in NFL history. The Lions will close the season at Green Bay with a chance to seal an imperfect record that might be tough to top.
The public is only left to guess how Ford is coping with the embarrassment because he hasn't spoke to reporters in 14-plus months.
"A lot of people seem to have the opinion that he doesn't care, but he has taken the things that have happened to heart," said Joe Schmidt, who played and coached for Ford and was introduced by him at his Hall of Fame induction. "He's not in the sport to be seen on the sideline so that everybody can see him on TV or to have people hear what he has to say."
When Ford finally fired Millen two months ago with a 31-84 record over seven-plus seasons - a reign of futility that was lengthened thanks to a contract extension - he only released a statement.
The reclusive man is occasionally seen at Ford Field, a $500 million stadium he built without the public money most owners demand, and at the Lions' headquarters and practice facility, a $36 million complex which he financed.
"I know him a little bit from being here all the years," said kicker Jason Hanson, who has played for the Lions since they drafted him in 1992. "He's real nice. He's not outspoken.
"But when he has addressed the team in the past he was well-spoken and I was like, 'Hey, that was pretty good.' But I can't tell you definitively what Mr. Ford is like."
Turning point
Two seasons after Hall of Famer Barry Sanders' sudden retirement, Ford decided to essentially start over when Chicago's Paul Edinger, an ex-Spartan, made a winning kick in the 2000 finale to drop Detroit to 9-7 and out of the playoffs.
"That was the turning point because we were fighting for the playoffs and everything from then was changed," Hanson said.
Ford handed the keys to the franchise to Millen and he drove it into a ditch.
"The change wasn't made because we were the most disgusting product in the NFL, but we were trying to get to the next level," said Hanson, referring to the hiring of Millen. "People forget that and somehow think the Fords are bumbling fools."
Hanson referenced the Fords because the owner's son, Bill, is involved with the team as vice chairman when he isn't busy as Ford Motor Co.'s executive chairman.
What Ford might want to do with his team now is anyone's guess. He certainly isn't speaking out about it.
0
Comments