My Ryan Grant Blog

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — The Detroit Lions needed a lot to go right for them to have success this season.

So far, everything has gone wrong.

The winless Lions have been hit hard by injuries to Matthew Stafford, Nate Burleson and Jahvid Best — three key players on offense — and their best shot at a victory in Week 1 at Chicago was foiled when officials ruled Calvin Johnson didn't catch a potential game-winning touchdown.

"It's been like a domino effect," banged-up running back Aaron Brown said. "We started off with the dumb call and Matt getting hurt, then Nate, and (Best) and me. We keep churning for that break."

Stafford will miss a third straight game — Sunday in Green Bay — with an injured right shoulder that makes Shaun Hill a starter. Stafford didn't practice Wednesday and had plenty of teammates to watch practice with because Best (toe), Burleson (ankle) Brown (hand) and linebacker DeAndre Levy (groin) were among the players not healthy enough to participate.

Detroit didn't have a big margin for error this season after winning just twice in two years and injuries to several players have led to an 0-3 record, sinking the franchise to another low.

The Lions are 3-40 since midway through the 2007 season, giving them the worst 43-game record in NFL history, and they're 2-33 since 2008 for the lowest winning percentage over 35 games according to STATS LLC.

"The worse is over because we bottomed out somewhere in that span," kicker Jason Hanson said. "Everyone can see and feel that we're a better team and there's a reason to have expectations. But it wasn't good to go 0-3 in our situation because the longer you go without getting it done, the more you start to doubt."

Seeds of doubt were planted when the Lions gave Super Bowl-winning linebacker and TV analyst Matt Millen his first job in an NFL front office in 2001, when he drafted current center Dominic Raiola, and they've bloomed into a 33-114 record over the past nine-plus seasons.

Millen was fired two years ago, but his many misses in the draft and free agency left a mess behind for a franchise that already had problems with only one playoff victory since winning the 1957 NFL title.

"You can't get caught up in thinking we're cursed," Raiola said. "I don't even believe in witches."

Stafford didn't throw any passes Wednesday during the part of practice open to the media, then flashed a thumbs-up when a reporter asked him if he threw with his right arm when reporters didn't have access. The No. 1 pick in the 2009 draft then declined comment and wasn't in the locker room when it was open for the media.

Detroit coach Jim Schwartz was only slightly more forthcoming.

"Matt's making good progress and is doing a good job in his rehab," Schwartz said. "He won't be ready this week. I'm not going to get into his daily rehab, but he's doing more and more every day as you would expect. ... Matt is continuing in his rehab and throwing is in that rehab."

The Lions are left to hope Hill can help them end an 18-game, regular-season losing streak on the road against the Packers.

"I've never won in Green Bay — that's mind-boggling," Hanson, whom Detroit drafted in 1992. "I used to joke about it, but it's not funny anymore. The streak started the year I came in the league. It seems impossible."

Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, the No. 2 pick overall this season, insists it is possible for the Lions to turn it around this season and it's easy for him to stay optimistic.

"For me, it's simple," Suh said. "I know how great we are when we're playing as a unit, and I don't think we've played our best game. Until we play our best game and we're still losing, then it becomes a problem."

The Detroit Lions' 0-3 start isn't the only reason this season isn't going as planned.

The continuing development of second-year quarterback Matthew Stafford was supposed to be a major element of coach Jim Schwartz's rebuilding plan -- you could argue that developing Stafford is more important to the long-term health of the franchise than the team's won-loss record this season. But Stafford suffered a shoulder injury in Week 1, and he won't be back any time soon.

Tom Kowalski of MLive.com reported that the Lions have already determined that Stafford won't be ready to play Sunday against the Packers and backup Shaun Hill will receive his third straight start -- Hill also got the nod in Week 2 against Philadelphia and Week 3 at Minnesota. It's now looking increasingly likely that Stafford will sit out through the Lions' Week 7 bye and not get back on the field until Week 8 against the Redskins, on October 31.

By that point the Lions are likely to be 0-6 or, at best, 1-5. And, again, Stafford will have missed a lot of game time when he could have been getting some valuable on-field experience.

Shaun Hill will make his second straight start at quarterback for the Detroit Lions on Sunday at Green Bay while Matthew Stafford continues to recover from a shoulder injury.

Stafford was knocked out of the season opener by the Bears' Julius Peppers, putting him on the sideline with a banged-up right shoulder -- his third injury in two seasons. Meanwhile, Detroit is 0-3 this season and 3-40 since midway through 2007, giving the Lions the worst 43-game mark in NFL history, according to STATS LLC.

Singletary, Niners not rattled

Mike Singletary is not wavering in the slightest from his offensive philosophy for the San Francisco 49ers. He wants a physical, balanced attack -- and Singletary still expects his 0-3 Niners to bounce back and win the NFC West as everybody thought they would.

Two days after he fired offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye, Singletary and his players expressed their enthusiasm for a fresh start heading into Sunday's game at Atlanta (2-1).

Promoted quarterbacks coach Mike Johnson is expected to bring a more creative offensive approach as coordinator. Singletary, who is standing by quarterback Alex Smith, said he has no plans to switch his starting lineup on either side of the ball even though the Niners have been outscored 87-38 so far.

Dallas receiver Dez Bryant knew there would be payback for having refused to do the rookie training-camp rite of carrying teammates' shoulder pads. The check came due this week at the traditional rookie-picks-up-the-tab dinner.

The damage: $54,896.

''People had goooood meals,'' Bryant's adviser, David Wells, said, laughing. ''If you'd never had lobster before, you had it that night.''

Bryant's salary with the Cowboys this season is $2.8 million.

Arizona Cardinals receiver Steve Breaston will miss at least one game after having arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

• Buffalo Bills linebacker Chris Kelsay said he had signed a four-year contract extension worth about $24 million a day earlier.

• The annual report card by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida gave the NFL its first ''A'' on racial hiring practices in 18 years. The league also received a ''C'' for gender hiring and an overall grade of ''B.'' Those were the same marks as last year, tying the league's best.