Harrington starting against Vikings Sunday
Free Press article by Curt Sylvester
Joey Harrington, who has started the Lions first 13 games of the season, will be their starter again Sunday in the game against the Minnesota Vikings.
Coach Steve Mariucci, who indicated Monday he wanted to give the quarterback position some thought, said Wednesday he would stick with Harrington.
“He’s fighting through some adversity, as well all know, and - yeah - you want to see how he handles that,” Mariucci said. “He’s done that before. He did it last year, he’s done it at times this year so - yeah - I guess part of the evaluation that takes place on him or anybody is to see how he handles this.”
Harrington has struggled after a fast start in which he was near the top of the NFL’s quarterback ratings with a 94.9 passer rating six games into the season. After completing five of 22 passes at Green Bay, he hit a season-low 77.2 passer rating and his completion percentage slipped to 54.9.
My view: He is the best quarterback on the roster, so might as well stick with him. Mike McMahon isn’t the long-term answer and most likely won’t be with the team next season anyway. What the Lions need to do is sign a veteran quarterback to compete for the starting job with Joey next season. Harrington knows there isn’t anyone any better on this team, and isn’t being pushed because of it. We still owe Harrington alot of money so the Lions need to do anything they can to get the most out of him.
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