Sports

William Clay Ford's Legacy Of Misplaced Loyalties Failed Fans

March 10, 2014, 8:39 AM

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When the Lions return to Ford Field this fall at least a few fans will arrive at games wearing jerseys of players who, well, who just didn’t pan out — Germane Crowell, Joey Harrington, Luther Ellis, etc.

Those jerseys represent fans’ seemingly endless hope in a team that has consistently failed them. Those jerseys are William Clay Ford, Sr.’s ultimate legacy.

Ford, who died Sunday at the age of 88, owned the Lions since 1964. In that time, the team has managed just one playoff win. They are the only franchise in existence before the Super Bowl to have never made it to a Super Bowl. During his tenure as owner, the Lions amassed a 310-441 record. Of the coaches Ford hired, only Joe Schmidt and Gary Moeller (an interim coach for just seven games) had winning records.

It is all too common for modern journalists to turn obituaries into celebrations, deserving or not. Gone are the days when H.L. Mencken, upon learning of William Jennings Bryan’s demise, wrote: “Bryan was a vulgar and common man, a cad undiluted. He was ignorant, bigoted, self-seeking, blatant and dishonest.”

However, if we should leave the vitriol at the door, let us have a little bit of truth about the life and work of William Clay Ford, Sr. included with the fine words about this hail-fellow scion of Henry Ford’s fortune. While one may argue ownership of a sports franchise isn't as serious as statecraft, make no mistake that Ford and his team were probably more important to more metro Detroiters than Bill Milliken, James Blanchard, John Engler, and Jennifer Granholm combined. 

The problem with Ford wasn’t simply that his teams couldn’t win. The Lions' half-century of hapless futility wasn’t bad luck. It was the result of squandered opportunities, misplaced loyalties and an organization living in the fog of its own wishful thinking.

One of the first things Ford did as owner was to direct head coach George Wilson to fire his staff. Wilson, who guided the Lions to their last championship in 1957, regretted the move and resigned. Ford named his friend Russ Thomas as general manager in 1967 and the team floundered for the next 22 years.

Thomas retired in 1989. Jerry Vainisi, who had been player personnel director from 1988-90 and was responsible for drafting legitimate stars including Barry Sanders, Chris Spielman and Benny Blades, left the team after Ford promoted Chuck Schmidt to general manager.

Schmidt was a serviceable bean counter. Jerry Vainisi had helped build the 1985 Chicago Bears, one of the greatest teams in NFL history. The mind boggles just about thinking what the Barry Sanders-era Lions could have been if a professional football man like Vainisi had been running the show.

Misplaced loyalty is also the only plausible reason Ford kept the likes of Wayne Fontes, Bobby Ross and Matt Millen around as long as he did. The loyalty to Ross ultimately led to Barry Sanders’ premature retirement. As for Millen, it’s impossible to think of a worse general manager in professional sports history. Ford not only allowed Millen to play out the string, but he renewed Millen’s contract after five embarrassingly bad seasons.

And who paid for all this incompetence? Not Ford. Had he operated a saloon as he ran the Lions, it would’ve been out of business within two years. But the NFL is such an economic juggernaut that even a franchise as futile as the Lions franchise is worth $900M, according to Forbes.

The real losers were Detroit football fans who have never surrendered their passion for the Lions, never gave up hope that next year’s draft would yield the talent to take this club to the Super Bowl, never stopped believing their time would come. They still buy the season tickets, wear the jerseys, and hold off on Thanksgiving dinner until the game is over. 

Fans deserved better for their faith as well as the millions they spent on tickets, gear, and stadium beer. They deserved an owner who would’ve valued George Wilson, Jerry Vainisi and Barry Sanders above a Russ Thomas or a Matt Millen.

So when you see that Lions fan shuffling to the game this fall with Kevin Jones’ name and number on his back, remember why — as an employer William Clay Ford, Sr. treated the wrong people well and the right people poorly.

If we are too timid to discuss that reality, then we shouldn't publicly mention his passing at all.


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