Lions Owner & Chair Martha Ford "cuts an unassuming figure," but if the past few weeks "have made anything clear, it’s that the 90-year-old ... is not to be overlooked," according to a profile by Jenny Vrentas of THE MMQB. The recent decisions about the direction of the franchise "rest on her shoulders." The moves she made last month, firing GM Martin Mayhew and President Tom Lewand, who had "been with the Lions for a combined 35 years, left no doubt about how seriously she is taking that responsibility." The team and city "are taking notice." Lions WR Calvin Johnson: "It’s the look of an owner who wants to win." Vrentas wrote Ford is "impatient -- and perhaps that’s what this franchise needs." She "wants to be the answer" for the Lions. Ford has "tried to stay out of the spotlight." A team spokesperson said that she is "declining all one-on-one interviews." But Vrentas wrote "by standing behind her moves, publicly and privately, she earned credibility." It helps that the Lions "rattled off three straight wins following Ford’s bye-week shakeups," but fans in Detroit, which has not seen a football championship since '57, are "hanging on to their skepticism." All four Ford children have the title of Lions Vice Chair, but sources said that daughter Sheila Ford Hamp, her second child, "bears the strongest influence on her mother’s decision-making." Vrentas wrote Ford also is "known for her personal touches." Lions WR Golden Tate was "stunned to receive a letter from Ford in the mail this offseason, congratulating him on making the Pro Bowl in his first year with the team." No one except Ford "has a clear idea of what’s coming next," but at "least so far, her actions have spoken louder than her words" (MMQB.SI.com, 12/2). CBS’ Jim Nantz said Ford is "out to make changes and finally produce a winner here for the first time in years.” The Lions “put together a whole search committee for their next GM,” with former Giants GM Ernie Accorsi leading the search (“Packers-Lions,” CBS, 12/3).
