ARLINGTON, Texas -- Long after the final streams of confetti had trickled down from Cowboys Stadium, acknowledging the Packers' 31-25 Super Bowl XLV victory over the Steelers, MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers gave a terrifying take-notice to the rest of the NFL.

"We got one so far," Rodgers said. "We're going to make a run next year. But tonight, we're going to enjoy this."

Even in the Not For Long league, the Packers have pieced together a roster good enough and young enough to contend for the foreseeable future.

Rodgers was playing like the best quarterback in football even before he led three pristine touchdown drives against Pittsburgh's top-ranked scoring defense. Clay Matthews is one of the game's top pass rushers, with 23 1/2 sacks in his first two seasons.

And B.J. Raji, A.J. Hawk, Tramon Williams and Greg Jennings also are members of Green Bay's under-28 core locked up through next season, at least.

The Packers are a model organization in how they have built and who they have built with.

So what can the Lions learn from the Super Bowl champs? And more important, what must the playoff-starved franchise do to surpass its rivals in the treacherous NFC North?

The Green Bay way

ARLINGTON, Texas -- In the NFL, building through the draft is the only sustainable, efficient way to go.

Lions general manager Martin Mayhew said as much when he ascended to power after 2008's winless season, and the Green Bay Packers proved that again Sunday with a 31-25 victory over Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV.

Of the 22 Packers who started in the Super Bowl, 17 were drafted by Green Bay. Linebacker Frank Zombo signed as an undrafted rookie out of Central Michigan. Cornerback Tramon Williams was developed through the practice squad after a brief stint with Houston. Defensive end Howard Green was claimed off waivers. And cornerback Charles Woodson and defensive end Ryan Pickett came as free agents, although only Woodson would qualify as a big-name signing.

By acquiring and nurturing most of their talent, the Packers have kept costs down and a steady stream of hungry, well-schooled replacements available. Cornerback Sam Shields, another undrafted rookie, played most of the fourth quarter in Woodson's place.

Under Mayhew, the Lions' desire is to avoid high-priced free-agents, although last off-season they splurged on Kyle Vanden Bosch and Nate Burleson.

Those additions were meant to plug holes left by years of draft neglect. The Lions have nothing to show from 2002 to 2005, when they took a quarterback (Joey Harrington) and three receivers (Charles Rogers, Roy Williams and Mike Williams) in the first round.

In the same drafts, the Packers unearthed starters Nick Collins, Scott Wells and Nick Barnett (who's on injured reserve and missed the Super Bowl), and found maybe the game's best quarterback in Aaron Rodgers.

As the Lions enter this off-season with sincere hopes of breaking an 11-year playoff drought, there are lessons to be learned from those picks and the Packers.


Best Player Available is the way to go: Green Bay did not need Rodgers in 2005. Brett Favre was still playing at a high level -- he had a revival of sorts a year earlier, throwing for 4,088 yards and 30 touchdowns -- but when Rodgers, a potential No. 1 overall pick, slid to 24, the Packers had done enough homework to know he was their man.

The Lions' drafts have been ready-made the past two years. Matthew Stafford was the obvious choice with the first pick in 2009, and last year there were some who thought Ndamukong Suh was a steal at No. 2.

Things won't be quite as clear this year, when the Lions draft 13th. That's still high enough to get a cornerstone playmaker, but it might not be at one of their two neediest positions (linebacker and cornerback).

The draft is stacked on the defensive line this year, the Lions' deepest position. Still, there's merit to taking a pass rusher or run clogger if that's the best player on your board. Rogers sat for three years and at 27 is a star. Three years from now, there's no guarantee anyone but Suh still will be on the Lions' front.

Hesitation can hurt: The Packers drafted Brian Brohm in the second round in 2008, and Brohm looked like a bust from the moment he stepped on the field. Rather than for wait him to develop, Green Bay cut Brohm before he ever appeared in a game.

General manager Ted Thompson made similarly tough (and unpopular) decisions to trade disgruntled receiver Javon Walker and the legendary Favre.

Mayhew is a ruthless GM who's approaching his own hard decisions. It's easy to hold on to unproductive third-round pick Derrick Williams when the playoffs are a pipe dream, and difficult sometimes to admit your mistakes the minute they become clear. But tough choices can pay big dividends. For Favre, the Packers got a third-round pick from the Jets they used to trade up to draft Clay Matthews.

Stick with him: No one in the organization is trying to move on from Stafford, and doing so now despite two injury-riddled seasons would be silly. Stafford turned 23 on Monday, has been paid most of his money, and as good as the Packers and Steelers were defensively, the NFL is still a quarterback's game.

Rodgers passed for 304 yards and three touchdowns in the Super Bowl and is the biggest reason the Packers are NFL champs.

Stafford doesn't have anywhere near Rodgers' pocket presence, and his ability to take a hit is a question. But he has as good an arm as there is in the NFL.

If Stafford makes good on his promise, there's a good chance the Lions will, too.

Detroit Free Press wrote: