The Detroit Lions have a new general manager and a new coach. With the same old result in Green Bay, they may have a new quarterback very soon.

The Matt Millen-Marty Mornhinweg era began with a whimper as Charlie Batch and the Lions failed to get in the end zone in a 28-6 loss to the Packers, who got 157 yards and two touchdowns from Ahman Green.

"We didn't score any touchdowns -- that's the first thing you have to look at," Mornhinweg said.

"We just were not able to make plays," Batch said. "I made a lot of mistakes but they were correctable mistakes."

Millen was hired by owner William Clay Ford to overhaul a team which has won one playoff game since 1957. He hired Mornhinweg, with whom he was familiar from their days with the dynastic San Francisco 49ers.

The two agreed that Batch -- coming off an injury-plagued poor season -- would be kept on a short leash while he learned the West Coast offense that Mornhinweg used in San Francisco to make a star out of CFL quarterback Jeff Garcia.

Last week, the Lions waived aging Jim Harbaugh and traded for Ty Detmer, who could be starting soon if Batch has another game like this one. Under pressure most of the game, he completed 20-of-39 passes for 276 yards with two interceptions -- both by safety Darren Sharper -- and a fumble.

"At no time did we think about putting Detmer in the game," said Mornhinweg, who added, "We will do whatever it takes to get this team winning."

The Packers built a 28-6 lead through three quarters and cruised to their 11th straight home win over the Lions behind Green and Brett Favre, who threw for 260 yards and two scores in his 142nd straight start while showing Batch how to run an offense.

"Favre played a very good game, very few mistakes," Packers coach Mike Sherman said. "I thought he had an exceptional game."

Even working against a prevent defense in the final period, Batch was ineffective as he fumbled and threw an interception to end a pair of drives. He was sacked seven times.

"There were times where we did not have a chance because of time," Mornhinweg said. "But there were other times when he must simply get the football out (of his hands). There were too many sacks."

"I had time to make the reads but the (rainy) weather had an effect," Batch said.

Green carried 17 times, including TD runs of 31 and 83 yards in the first quarter. First, he capped a 73-yard drive with a burst up the middle. Later, on the first play after a punt, Green found the line clogged, bounced outside and ran away from the defense, giving the Packers a 21-0 advantage in the first 10 1/2 minutes.

"It was great to get back to action," said Green, who had been held out of the last three preseason games as a precaution. "I had not played in live action since the Cleveland game (on August 11)."

In between, Favre found Bill Schroeder with passes of 35 and 23 yards, the second a scoring toss. Schroeder had four catches for 104 yards.

"I didn't think we would score the first three times," said Favre, who completed 22-of-28 passes.

"They came out strong in the first quarter and outexecuted us," Lions cornerback Todd Lyght said. "We settled down later but the damage was done."

Batch hit Johnnie Morton for 42 yards to set up Jason Hanson's 49-yard field goal. Hanson added a 39-yarder in the second quarter, but the period ended with Batch being picked off in the end zone by Sharper, who led the NFL with nine interceptions last year.

"That was a good play because it kept points off the board," Sharper said. "Going into halftime, that's the last play they had to think about on offense, so it was a good play to get that interception and give us a boost as we went inside and then kind of have them on a down side as they went into the locker room."

"We moved the ball from the 20 to the 20, but in the red zone we couldn't punch it in," Batch said. "You have to match point for point."

With 3:54 left in the third quarter, Favre hit tight end Bubba Franks in the left flat with a one-yard TD pass, capping a 75-yard drive. Franks caught four passes for 45 yards.

Detroit's offensive line was awful. Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila had three sacks and Jim Flanigan and Vonnie Holliday had two each. In addition to not giving Batch enough time to throw, the line could not open holes for James Stewart, who had just 39 yards on 13 carries.

Morton caught five passes for 111 yards for the Lions, who had won season openers on the road each of the last two years.

Scott's Game Commentary:

Another visit to Green Bay, another loss. Although I thought the Lions had no chance to win this game, I was shocked to see them down 21-0 with the game still in the first quarter. The "D" could not of gotten off to a worse of a start as they yielded three TD's to start the game. Miss tackles and a depleted secondary lead to the demise. After the 1st quarter, the "D" played much better and gave the offense a chance to get back in the game. Unfortunately, their is a seven million dollar QB leading the honolulu blue and silver that is by far the most over-paid QB in history. Batch once again showed why his days are numbered in Detroit. His biggest blunder was right before the half...instead of throwing the ball away, he forced it into the endzone and it got picked off. A TD on that drive could of pulled the Lions within a TD of the Packers. All in all, it was one of the worst opening day games i've ever seen from the Lions. Just a game to forget about!!!

Grades:

Offense: --- F. Its quite obvious that Charlie Batch is turning out to be the next Scott Mitchell in Detroit. Batch had another horrific game as he misthrew countless passes and had two INT's, one which was a complete mental breakdown that left Matt Millan shaking his head. The rebuilt offensive line which was suppose to be better than last year, failed miserably! They gave up seven sacks...Stockar McDougle had a terrible game and has still much to prove that he's worthy of a 1st round pick. On a brighter note, Aaron Gibson had a decent game and didn't get injured. TE David Sloan had his typical drop balls...to think this guy made the pro bowl a few years ago is a joke! WR Johnnie Morton had a great day and Herman Moore looked like he will help the Lions more than he has the past few years. Germane Crowell was no where to be found and didn't have a single catch in the game. For someone that loves to talk how good he is, he needs to shut up and produce. James Stewart is a hard worker, but is still no where near worth the $5 million/year the Lions game him last year...the guy is just too slow and rarely gets long runs. Bottom line: its going to be one long season unless the offense can perform some miracles quickly.

Defense: --- D. After giving up three straight TD's to begin the game, the "D" played like they were suppose to. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done as Farve once again had a field day with the Lions secondary. Green Bay's RB Ahman Green had a long TD run as countless Lions couldn't bring him down. The Pack racked up 424 yards on the "D" for the day. Right before the game the Lions released James Jones in a salary cap move and allowed rookie Shaun Rogers to take his place...Rogers has been a pleasant surprise since being picked up in the 2nd round earlier this year. The "D" managed three sacks, but didn't put enough pressure on Farve, who always seems to burn them in Lambeau.

Special Teams: --- A-. Desmond Howard had some nice run backs, Hanson kicked a long FG and John Jett had some nice punts. Definitely, one of the few bright spots from the game.

Coaching: --- C. I like Marty's decision to go for it on fourth down a few times. Its not his fault that the old regime blew all their money on Batch last September. Its quite clear that Morninheig won't give Batch too many chances if he keeps on playing like he did against the Packers.

Overall: --- F. Its the same old story as the Lions once again get smothered in Lambeau field! The only difference was they played one of their worst games in years and looked flat the entire game. Its quite clear that the offense will struggle the rest of the year and the defense, if it can't stay healthy, will not be as good as advertised. Fortunately for the Lions, they are playing two of the worst teams in football in the next two weeks. Next weeks game against the Cowboys should be an easy one since the Cowboys are in the rebuilding stage. The following week should be another easy win given the Browns still look like an expansion team. If they lose either of those games, you can kiss the 2001 season good bye!

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