ChiefsPlanet - Martz: Lions OC

Detroit News

It's finally done: Martz is hired

Lions get their man, agreeing to three-year deal with ex-Rams coach as offensive coordinator.

People in the NFL can stop wondering where former St. Louis Rams head coach Mike Martz might land and start preparing to stop his offense in Detroit.

Martz, who developed potent attacks knows as "The Fastest Show on Turf" as offensive coordinator and head coach in St. Louis, was hired Wednesday as coach Rod Marinelli's offensive coordinator.

The announcement ended almost two weeks of speculation and on-off talks between Martz and the Lions. Martz has signed a three-year contract.

Last Thursday, Martz was quoted in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch as saying he had rejected the Lions' offer, and that he was leaning toward taking a year off from football.

However, by the weekend Martz and the Lions had resumed talks. Financial terms were not immediately available, but finances appear to have played a role when negotiations ended last week. Martz reportedly was seeking a three-year deal worth more than $5 million that was heavily back-loaded.

"From our standpoint, it never really fell apart," said Tom Lewand, the Lions' chief operating officer. "I know Mike was commenting on some stuff. Rod kept going along with his process. It's been very consistent.

"There's no disputing his (Martz) success offensively in St. Louis. By all accounts, he's going to be an exciting guy to work with."

Marinelli did not comment on the hiring.

For Lions players, having Martz in charge of the offense will be a new realm. He is known for being intense, demanding and a perfectionist who insists on high-tempo practices.

The Lions have been anything but a precision, up-tempo team in practice or games, and it will be interesting to see how they adjust to Marinelli and Martz.

Martz brings impeccable credentials as an offensive mastermind. The Rams are the only franchise to score 500 or more points in three seasons -- 526 (1999) 540 (2000) and 503 (2001).

Martz was offensive coordinator of the 1999 Rams team that won the Super Bowl. He became head coach in 2000 after Dick Vermeil retired. The 2001 Rams lost to New England in the Super Bowl. A heart ailment forced Martz to step down as coach after five games in 2005. He was fired after the season with one year left on his contract.

The Rams were 8-8 in 2004, Martz' last full year as head coach, and scored 319 points. The '04 team ranked sixth overall in offense and fifth in passing.

Martz, obviously, will give Detroit's offense a new direction, but there also is one big question to be answered -- the future of quarterback Joey Harrington.

Harrington was in town last week for some appearance related to the Super Bowl. In a radio interview, he said he had not spoken to Marinelli. Marinelli has spoken highly of Harrington, and there is no proven alternative to Harrington on the roster.

The only quarterback under contract is Dan Orlovsky, a rookie in 2005 who played sparingly in two regular-season games.

The free-agent signing period begins March 3, but it is not considered to be a strong year for quarterbacks.

Martz was one of five assistants hired Wednesday by Marinelli. The others were Wilbert Montgomery (running backs), Pat Carter (tight ends), Joe Cullen (defensive line) and Shawn Jefferson (general offensive assistant).

Montgomery and Carter were Martz assistants in St. Louis. Montgomery played running back for 10 seasons in the NFL with Philadelphia and Detroit. He retired with the Lions in 1986. Carter was drafted by the Lions on the second round in 1988 but was traded to the Rams the next year when the Lions went to the Run 'n Shoot offense -- which does not use a tight end.

Jefferson was a part-time assistant with the Lions last year, and Cullen is a career college coach. He was with Illinois last year and Indiana the previous three years.

The only assistant's position open on Marinelli's staff is for the defensive backfield. Marinelli also might add a general defensive assistant.

Previously, Marinelli hired Donnie Henderson as defensive coordinator and retained Chuck Priefer as special-teams coordinator. Both are highly regarded in the NFL.

For position coaches, Martz hired Larry Beightol (offensive line) and Kippy Brown (wide receivers). Retained from last year's staff were Jason Arapoff and Malcolm Blacken (strength and conditioning), Stan Kwan (special teams assistant), Phil Snow (linebackers), Don Clemons (defensive quality control) and Adam Gase (offensive quality control).