Lions to Part Ways With Leigh Bodden

When the Detroit Lions acquired Leigh Bodden from the Cleveland Browns this past offseason, it was supposed to help strengthen a secondary that, for the most part, couldn't cover itself with a blanket. Of course, it should have been a bad omen for Lions fans when Matt Millen, the man who made the trade, predicted that Shaun Rogers, the player he gave up to acquire Bodden, would take home the NFL defensive player of the year award if he was healthy. How's that for a confidence builder?

As it turns out, Bodden, a highly-touted player in Cleveland, never really lived up to expectations and was a pretty big disappointment during the '08 season -- which probably explains why will be released by the Lions after just one season in the Motor City.

Tom Kowalski, Lions beat writer for MLive, speculates on why Bodden was such a disappointment, pointing the finger squarely at former head coach Rod Marinelli and defensive coordinator Joe Barry.

Former coach Rod Marinelli and defensive coordinator Joe Barry, though, completely mishandled the situation. Bodden is a brash and confident young player who thrives on success, but the Lions messed with his head from the very beginning. Marinelli's custom of having new players "earn'' starting positions was ridiculous -- and that's been pointed out many times in this blog. It was especially foolish in the case of Bodden, who was a three-year starter with the Browns and had six interceptions the previous season. Still, Bodden was delegated as a No. 2 cornerback behind Travis Fisher for the entire training camp and preseason. It was embarrassing to Bodden.

As a result, Bodden is out after one season, which was statistically one of the worst of his six-year career.

Meanwhile, in Cleveland, Rogers finally played like the 350-pound monster he is, proving that even when it looked like Millen made a solid move, it was still likely to go all wrong in the end (wide receiver Calvin Johnson is excluded from this rule, that guy is the real deal).

I admit, when the trade went down I thought it was a major win for the Lions. After all, my opinion of Rogers was that he was an underachieving player, wasting his massive size and raw physical talents.

After seeing him play in Cleveland this season, I can admit I was wrong. The guy was unblockable at times, constantly drawing double teams. Perhaps he just needed to get out of Detroit to light a fire under him, while Bodden suffered the reverse effect, losing all of his ability once he put on the blue and silver.