As the slumping Lions sunk toward overtime on Sunday against the Giants, Ford Field fans let their displeasure with the performance be known.
Coach Jim Schwartz heard the boos. And he reacted to them. After the game, Schwartz denied that he was communicating anything to the fans in attendance.
“I wasn’t addressing the crowd, I was just trying to get our team fired up,” Schwartz said, via Justin Rogers of MLive.com. “I think the psyche of the team at that point, we needed to have that spark. We needed to feel like we’re going out here and overtime and we’re going to go win it. That’s the only thing I was doing there.”
Some have argued that Schwartz was directing a profanity-laced tirade at the fans. The video, in our view, is inconclusive. Regardless, Schwartz wasn’t happy about the reaction.
“I was disappointed to hear boos. We’re getting ready to go to overtime right there and our crowd is great for us and they support us,” Schwartz said, via ESPN.com. “The team needed a lift right there. We didn’t need to feel bad at that point.”
Maybe the fans believed the players needed a little negative reinforcement. Given that running back Reggie Bush has called the team undisciplined and linebacker DeAndre Levy has said veteran leaders are partially to blame for a lack of focus on Sunday, the fans may have been right.