Lions DT Shaun Cody wants more sacks, less weight, new contract

BY NICHOLAS J. COTSONIKA • FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER • June 4, 2008

It was late one night in February. Shaun Cody was home in southern California, out to dinner with his girlfriend at a nice restaurant, enjoying his time away from work when he received a call.


He looked at his cell phone. It was his boss, Lions coach Rod Marinelli. Again.

"Just when they were putting on the candles," Cody said, laughing. "No."

Marinelli likes to put pressure on his players, and he has been putting pressure on Cody, a defensive tackle who has only 1 1/2 sacks in three seasons -- none since his rookie year.

Marinelli called him about once a week earlier this off-season. Sometimes it was a quick chat. Sometimes it was just a voice mail.

" 'You know, Shaun, you don't need to call me back. I just want to leave you with this,' " Cody said. "Then he'll drop you some jewel or nugget of pass-rushing wisdom. ...

"It was different every week. But he's always trying to remind you -- football, football, football."

The Lions are celebrating their 75th season in Detroit. Tuesday they brought four players who have worn No. 75 to the Detroit Lions Invitational, their annual charity golf tournament at TPC of Michigan in Dearborn.

Cody was included because he wears the number, but his Lions credentials don't quite match the others'.

Right guard John Gordy, a second-round pick in 1957, won an NFL title and went to three Pro Bowls in 10 seasons. Left tackle Jim Yarbrough, a second-round pick in 1969, played nine seasons. Left tackle Lomas Brown, a first-round pick in 1985, went to seven Pro Bowls in 10 seasons.

"You want guys to do well that wear that number," Brown said. "You want them to try to live up to that number. Hopefully, Shaun will get a chance this year to show what he can really do out there."

Cody, a second-round pick in 2005, played all 16 games as a rookie. But he played only six the following year. He dislocated the big toe on his left foot.

The thing stuck straight up. He sat out four games. He tried to come back, taping down the toe and taking a pain-killing injection, but he lasted only two or three snaps and went on injured reserve.

He played 15 games last season and said the toe was "OK."

"I think any time you have a severe injury like that, to come back it takes a whole year," said Cody, who recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament at Southern Cal. "When I did my ACL in college, it took about a year to come back. I figure this year I've had a chance to play on it for a year and get used to it and rehab it to its fullest. It feels great now."

Cody has been solid against the run, but he has struggled to penetrate into the backfield. That's why Marinelli's phone calls have focused on the pass rush.

"I think what's happened here is, I've been playing cautious," Cody said. "I know that my reps were limited last year. When you get in there, you really don't want to make a mistake. And that's the wrong way to play football. You don't want to worry about making a mistake. You just want to go out there and play."

Cody said he has been trying to trim his weight from about 305 to about 295. Wide receiver Mike Furrey picked up a plate of pastries at the golf outing and offered them to Cody, but Cody waved them away.

"I've got to lose 10 pounds, Mike," Cody said.

Cody, in the final year of his contract, is fighting for playing time -- and perhaps a roster spot -- even though the Lions traded Shaun Rogers. The Lions signed free agent Chuck Darby and drafted Andre Fluellen in the third round, with Cory Redding and Langston Moore on the roster.

"Last year I had no sacks, and that was disappointing for me," Cody said. "This year coming into a contract year and wanting to be a part of the Lions a long time, it's important for me to have a big year. I know that."

NOTEBOOK: Brown said he plans to work with the Lions' first-round pick, right tackle Gosder Cherilus. ... The Stanley Cup visited Lions headquarters in Allen Park on Tuesday before heading to Pittsburgh for Game 6 of the finals between the Red Wings and Penguins.




MY THOUGHTS
This is good news to me. He is trying to lose weight and is using his contract year as motivation to get better. Now on the flip side, will he go back to not working hard after getting a new contract? That is the big question. I like the idea of Marinelli calling and reminding him of football constantly.