ESPN NFL

Let’s catch up after another busy day in the NFC North:

Minnesota defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier will interview Thursday to become Buffalo’s head coach, his sixth opportunity to do so in the past three years. He interviewed with Miami and Atlanta after the 2007 season. Last winter, he spoke with Denver, Detroit and St. Louis.

My AFC East colleague Tim Graham makes the important point that the Bills don’t consider this a token interview because Frazier is black; they’ve already interviewed interim head coach Perry Fewell for the job and therefore aren’t required to interview any further minorities.

My feeling about Frazier remains the same. He won’t blow you away with a sales pitch during an interview, but he is a classy and intense coach who will appeal to teams looking for substance over style. Look for his name to surface in Cleveland if new Browns president Mike Holmgren fires coach Eric Mangini.

Chicago will interview Fewell for its defensive coordinator job next week, after he speaks with the New York Giants. My ESPN Chicago colleague Jeff Dickerson considers Fewell a good fit for the job, and I agree. With Lovie Smith unwilling to change his defensive scheme, he might as well hire someone with extensive experience in the system.

All Green Bay players except safety Derrick Martin (ankle) participated in at least a portion of practice Wednesday. That includes nose tackle Ryan Pickett, who has been inactive for three of the past four games because of a hamstring injury. In Arizona, receiver Anquan Boldin (ankle), cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (toe/knee) and safety Antrel Rolle (thigh) all sat out practice. My NFC West colleague Mike Sando has more on Rodgers-Cromartie here.

Packers coach Mike McCarthy said he hadn’t heard that Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt was apparently miffed by the way Green Bay approached the two games between the teams this season. And even if he had, McCarthy said: “I am worried about my own football team. His feelings toward my team or my feelings toward his team, it's a non-topic with me.”

Speaking during a conference call with Wisconsin reporters, Whisenhunt clarified his original comments. “The only thing I was chafing about was the approach of my football team and how we handled it. I was disappointed with some of the things we did in the ball game as far as how we played. It was obvious to me that Green Bay was more physical than us. That’s what was very disappointing to me. I could see where [reporters] would think that I was irritated, and I was, but it certainly wasn't at coach McCarthy or the Packers. It was more about how we performed.”

I guess all’s well that ends well.

Posted by ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert

Martin Mayhew seemed prepared for the question. Detroit's new general manager was more than ready to address concerns about his apprenticeship in the failed tenure of predecessor Matt Millen.

"I would say this: Judge me by what I do," Mayhew said, "and don't judge me by who my friends are or how I got here. Judge me by my actions. To me, at the end of the day, that's what it's about. It's what happens here."

	AP Photo/Carlos Osorio
	There is a lot riding on who Martin Mayhew and the Lions select with their No. 1 pick.

Mayhew spoke those words in January. Three months later, Judgment Day has arrived. Mayhew's clean slate, assuming you gave him one, is about to receive its most significant etch. He has directed the Lions to an internal decision on whom to select with the No. 1 overall pick in Saturday's draft, and while the choice has yet to be revealed publicly, it will forever define his career in Detroit.

A good decision will jumpstart the Lions' resurgence. A poor choice, or even one that goes awry for reasons unforeseen today, will cement his connection to Millen and dig an even greater hole for the franchise.

Consider the shining moment in the career of Indianapolis general manager Bill Polian: Choosing quarterback Peyton Manning over Ryan Leaf with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 draft. Polian already had built a strong reputation by then, but the success of his decision catapulted him to at least 11 more years of employment with the Colts.

On the other hand, can you even name the general manager who selected quarterback Alex Smith with the top pick in 2005? (San Francisco coach Mike Nolan made the final decision.) What about the man who drafted defensive end Courtney Brown in 2000? (Cleveland general manager Dwight Clark.)

Such polarity prompted Polian to offer some sobering advice earlier this winter. Asked what he would say to Mayhew as the Lions contemplate their options at No. 1, Polian said: "Pray a lot. And recognize that you can't be right [all the time]. You're going to be wrong 50 percent of the time."

(Read full post)