Lions-Open O.

[Guttpuppy]

Tom Kowalski, Booth Newspapers

Every new coach talks about opening up the offense, but Mariucci might pull it off. With rookie speedster Charles Rogers starting at receiver, Mariucci will take his shots downfield. For the first time in years, the team has the speed at receiver to draw respect from defenses.

[moochman]

Rogers, until his finger dislocation today, was catching everything thrown at him in camp. With his size and speed he could be a franchise type receiver. I just hope that he will be more consistent in the pros. At MSU I felt that he took a lot of plays off and dropped too many passes. Mariucci says he plans to throw a lot at Rogers early. It sounds like he wants him to be a big part of the offense. And you should know that here in Detroit, Tom ‘the killer’ Kowalski is a respected Lion’s insider, albeit a hopeless homer. He usually has an optimistic, yet insightful point of view. According to Tom ‘the killer’ Kowalski, Mariucci has the players attention and respect, something that Mornhinweg never seemed to have. I like the sound of that!

[Homeless]

I really think Rogers will excel for the Lions this year, he's high on my sleeper list.