Detroit Lions Ready to Become Contenders in NFC, Which Reflects a Culture Change That Began With 2008 Firing of Matt Millen

"We're learning how to win."

Lions wide receiver Nate Burleson offered those words after Detroit overcame a 24-point third-quarter deficit to take down the Cowboys in Dallas on Sunday, marking the second consecutive week that they've overcome a deficit of 20 or more points on the road.

The scary thing for the rest of the NFL? He's right.

If someone was to say the Green Bay Packers would sit at 4-0 after four weeks of the 2011 season, you'd probably consider him to be a level-headed person. The Packers are reigning Super Bowl champions and feature one of the league's premier quarterbacks, as well as a talented supporting cast.

If that same person were to say the Packers would be tied with the Lions, who would also sit at 4-0, atop the NFC North, you'd likely ask him to urinate into a cup for fear that he's in the midst of some drug-induced stupor.

Yet here we are, nearly a quarter of the way through the regular season, discussing whether the Lions are for real. They've already won half as many games this season as they have the past three seasons combined, and look poised to make a bid at their first winning season since 2000 and first playoff berth since 1999.

Sure, the sample size is small and Detroit will have to exorcise some demons along the way if it wants to keep up its frenetic pace. But it's clear the Lions have already undergone a culture change. It seems sudden, but in fact it's an alteration that's been in the works since Sept. 24, 2008.

It's often difficult to point to one specific day or event as being responsible for a franchise's complete turnaround, but with the Lions, it's quite simple. It was that day that they fired then-general manager Matt Millen, who led the Lions to the worst eight-year record in the history of the modern NFL (31-97).

Detroit would fail to pick up a win in 2008 after ousting Millen, but it was already clear at that point that the team was tired of being disregarded by nearly everyone across football — even their own fan base.

When Millen took over in Detroit, he lacked front office and player development experience and it showed, as he often drafted players like you would when starting a "Madden" franchise. Rather than making intelligent decisions based on team needs and carefully crafted research, it looked as though Millen was always swinging for the fences, immediately going for big-name players at skill positions — particularly at wide receiver.

In his eight years as GM, Millen's Lions frequently had high first-round picks because of their poor performance. Yet this is what he came up with in the way of first-rounders:

2001: Jeff Backus, OT, 18th overall
2002: Joey Harrington, QB, third overall
2003: Charles Rogers, WR, second overall
2004: Roy Williams, WR, seventh overall; Kevin Jones, RB, 30th overall
2005: Mike Williams, WR, 10th overall
2006: Ernie Sims, LB, ninth overall
2007: Calvin Johnson, WR, second overall
2008: Gosder Cherilus, OT, 17th overall

Calvin Johnson has blossomed into one of the best wide receivers in football, but he's living proof that even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once and awhile. In addition to Megatron, only Backus and Cherilus remain with the organization. Roy Williams, now with the Bears, is the only player other than Johnson to be selected to a Pro Bowl — which occurred just once (2006).

Hindsight is always 20/20, especially when it comes to drafting players. But when you have a top-10 pick six times in eight seasons and continue to show the incompetency that Millen did, it's inexcusable and sets your franchise back further and further until it is the doormat of the NFL — which was the result. And not only did the Lions become the laughingstock of the NFL, but their own fan base continued to call for changes throughout Millen's reign of terror, until he was finally run out of the front office and into the television studio.

Under the new Martin Mayhew–Jim Schwartz regime, the Lions have gained a swagger that was once unimaginable when referring to the boys from Motown. And it's for good reason.

Detroit is far from the down-and-out franchise it once was, and it all starts with good decision-making from the team's personnel.

When it comes to drafting in the first round, the Lions seemed to have hit on Matthew Stafford and Ndamukong Suh with the first and second overall picks in 2009 and 2010, respectively. Since taking over, Mayhew has also drafted an offensive threat in Jahvid Best, a formidable tight end in Brandon Pettigrew and a potentially physically-imposing force in Nick Fairley (once the Auburn product gets healthy).

The Lions are also suddenly making an impact via free agency, acquiring the likes of Stephen Tulloch, Justin Durant, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Burleson and Chris Houston under the new ringleaders.

But as much as these moves are paying off throughout their fast start in 2011, it's clear that this team has more than just talent. It seems to have a sense of trust in its head coach, as well as its GM, that it will be put into the best position possible to win — something the Lions have lacked the past decade.

Schwartz was the mastermind behind a Tennessee Titans defense that helped the team go 13-3 in 2008, and his unit in Detroit should continue to improve over time, which is a scary thought given the potency of his offense.

Following Sunday's win over Dallas, Schwartz said, "Indulge me for a second. I'm just glad that the third-best receiver on their team is on our team," in reference to Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's comments regarding Johnson throughout the week.

It was a not-so-subtle jab. But, then again, the Lions' success is becoming not-so-subtle, either.

And to think, they're just now "learning" how to win. Pretty good students thus far.