The Harrington Family Foundation

By Bob Wojnowski

ALLEN PARK--You thought it. I thought it. The Lions thought it. Joey Harrington probably thought it himself.

This guy was special. Different.

As always in the NFL, the reality dawns. Harrington eventually might be special, maybe quite special, but he's not different. He needs the same elements any young quarterback needs, whether he was drafted with the third pick out of Oregon, or in the fifth round out of Rutgers.

He needs, in order of importance:
1. Time.
2. Receivers.
3. Coaching.
4. Time.
5. Protection.
6. Time.
Not unlimited time, of course. We would like to see more out of Harrington, starting with the second exhibition game against Cincinnati on Saturday, when receivers Charles Rogers and Az-Zahir Hakim are expected to return from injury.

Atlanta's amazing Michael Vick, the No. 1 pick in 2001, is an aberration.

Harrington isn't different from Houston's David Carr, the oft-sacked No. 1 pick in 2002, Cincinnati's Carson Palmer, the No. 1 pick this year, or Cleveland's Tim Couch, the No. 1 pick in 1999, now struggling to keep his job. If standard percentages prevail, half of those will become good quarterbacks, and we won't know which half for a few years.

The sooner everyone realizes that, the healthier the expectations will be. Backup Mike McMahon is too valuable to trade, too erratic to start. His scrambling intrigues some, but there is no controversy, no debate and no doubt about the identity of the Lions' starting quarterback.

There is, however, one nagging question: Shouldn't we start seeing more accuracy out of Harrington?

Steve Mariucci, who has handled a few young quarterbacks, doesn't appear concerned, although he's careful to temper praise and criticism. He knows timetables. Harrington is fine, so far.

"That (completion percentage) will get better when Joey gets more familiar with what we're doing," Mariucci said. "It'll get better when he gets more familiar with defenses, more familiar with his receivers, when his supporting cast develops. A quarterback can't do it by himself."

How can something so obvious be so frequently overlooked? The Lions were horrible last season, thin at receiver and depleted in the running game, and Marty Mornhinweg had to ride Harrington quicker and harder. By the end of the season, Harrington was sidelined by an irregular heartbeat and saddled with a 50.1 completion percentage, worst among NFL starters.

Fifty-point-one? Way too low. This is a guy who was 25-3 in college, although he completed only 55.2 percent in the defense-spotty Pac-10. Harrington doesn't have an overly strong arm or quick feet (he rushed seven times for 4 yards last season). He's smart, with a quick release, but no one is guaranteeing stardom. The point is, it's too early to know, either way.

Pro football is an inaccurate science, but accuracy matters. You figure a quarterback needs to complete about 60 percent of his passes in the West Coast offense. Harrington has completed 60 percent once in 12 starts.

Talk to him 10 minutes and you'll hear one word about 10 times -- efficiency. That's what he has to improve, not the flashy deep throws or the sideline spirals. He must complete the medium- and short-range passes to third and fourth options that keep drives alive, and drive percentages up.

"I expected to make mistakes last year, that's part of being a rookie," Harrington, 24, said. "The biggest thing I'm learning is the details of the offense, to check down (to other options). I need to get us in second-and-short instead of second-and-long."

Harrington guards negative thoughts like he protects much of his persona. He's Joey Ballgame, upbeat, ready for anything, daunted by nothing.

Well, not exactly. He admits he was burned out last season. He got nervous at times. He got confused. This is where the Mariucci-Harrington connection has to be stronger than Mornhinweg-Harrington. Harrington says Mariucci has energized him, and calmed him.

"I'm not as rushed, I don't get as flustered," Harrington said. "There were times last year, if things didn't go in the right order, I panicked a little bit. I feel a lot better this year, more comfortable."

It was just one game, but he didn't flaunt his new comfort in the exhibition opener against Pittsburgh. He completed 6 of 7 passes on a nice 80-yard touchdown drive at the end of the first half to finish 13-for-25. Before that, he was 7-for-18.

No matter where they're drafted, quarterbacks need time and circumstance to develop. It's even tougher when a team is weak, and more is demanded.

We must be careful not to dump the franchise's miserable record on Harrington. Greg Landry was the Lions' last Pro Bowl quarterback -- in 1972. So if you're a 35-year-old Lions fan, this is how many young quarterbacks you've seen develop: Zero. Can you even tell what you're watching?

It has been a long time since the Lions had one this touted, this important. Impatience is understandable. It's just not very smart, or fair.