Every February 2, we wait with bated breath for one of nature’s most unpredictable weather forecasters: the humble groundhog. But this year we’re doing things differently at WCSX. It’s time for a head-to-head Groundhog Games showdown between Michigan’s own Woody the Woodchuck at the Howell Nature Center and the world’s most famous forecaster, Punxsutawney Phil from Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania.
Think figure skating meets meteorology. Think Winter Olympics meets Cheesehead hats. Let’s break it down by statistical and ridiculous categories.
Groundhog Games: Woody the Woodchuck vs Punxsutawney Phil
Accuracy
Who predicts an early spring more often? According to records, Woody’s got a respectable around 65–67% accuracy rate for calling spring correctly. That’s better than the “official” statistics you’ll find for Punxsutawney Phil, whose long-term accuracy is often estimated closer to a coin flip or worse: many analyses place Phil’s predictive success at roughly 36–40%. Plus, over the last 20 years, according to NOAA, Phil has been right just 30% of the time.
Shadow Dancing
It’s all about style here. Phil’s tradition of emerging at dawn in top hat pageantry is the supreme classic. Showing up in their Tuesday best with tuxedos and scrolls, the official handlers are dressed like meteorological royalty. Woody’s approach is more down-to-earth (literally): she’s judged by how long she stays outside on her ceremonial stump to “call” spring rather than by her shadow.
Crowd Appeal
Sorry, Woody, but Phil wins this one. Tens of thousands of fans still flock to Gobbler’s Knob every Groundhog Day. That national celebrity legacy is tough to beat. Phil has been calling spring for more than 100 years, and he gets his own TV time. Woody is popular and talked about in the Metro Detroit area. She’s been calling since 1999.
Timing
When winter refuses to quit, and you’re ready for warmth now, Woody’s no-nonsense 30-second stump ritual brings results fast. Phil’s sunrise spectacle? Magical, but it’s early morning, and you might need coffee… and the day off. This year’s festivities for Gobbler’s Knob begin at 3:00 in the morning, with Phil expected around 7:07. Woody’s festivities start around 7:30, with Woody’s appearance expected around 8:30.
Final Scorecard (Rodent Style) • Accuracy: Woody wins • Shadow Dancing: Phil dominates • Crowd Appeal: Phil wins • Timing: Woody pokes ahead
So where does that leave us? In the realm of folklore and seasonal hope, both groundhogs bring joy and tradition to February. But if you’re betting on accuracy and efficiency this Groundhog Day, Woody’s got the edge… and fewer crowd issues. Now if only we had a bunch of black top hats…
Donielle Flynn has two kids, two cats, two dogs, and a love of all things rock. She’s been in radio decades and held down top-rated day parts at Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington DC radio stations throughout her tenure. She enjoys writing about rock news, the Detroit community, and she has a series called “The Story Behind” where she researches the history of classic rock songs.
A Michigan lawmaker is pushing to block state-owned property from being sold or repurposed for federal detention facilities after 32 people, including children, died nationwide in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in 2025.
On Thursday, state Rep. Dylan Wegela, D-Garden City, introduced the measure, which is aimed at preventing ICE from expanding detention operations in the state. His legislation, House Bill 5494, would prohibit the state from conveying property to ICE and would require deed restrictions barring any state-sold property from being used as a detention center.
“2025 tied for the deadliest year on record when it comes to deaths in ICE detention centers,” Wegela said in a statement. “32 people died in ICE custody. 32 lives taken without dignity or due process. Some might say there’s not much we can do here in Michigan, or at the state level, to fight against this administration. That’s wrong. We can fight against ICE right here at home.”
The bill would also require private contractors operating detention facilities on formerly state-owned land to forfeit the property back to the state if it is used for immigration detention, according to Wegela’s office.
The proposal follows scrutiny of ICE detention in Michigan, including the reopening of the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, a privately owned facility that can hold up to 1,800 detainees. The center reopened in June after years of operating as a private prison.
In December, a 56-year-old man died at the facility, prompting questions from lawmakers and advocates about transparency and medical care. ICE confirmed the death only after pressure from U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who has become one of the strongest critics of ICE’s ramped-up enforcement.
Wegela said the deaths and violent encounters involving federal immigration agents were the impetus for the bill.
“We’re seeing targeted killings against those peacefully resisting ICE in their assault on Minneapolis, like the shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti,” he said. “We continue to get horrific news of how those same agents treat people out of the public eye. One of the first deaths in custody this year was Geraldo Lunas Campos. ICE deemed it a suicide. The El Paso County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed the truth: it was a homicide. Lunas Campos died due to compression on his neck and torso.”
“These detention centers should not exist,” Wegela said. “What we can do in Michigan is make it clear that ICE is not welcome here.”
He acknowledged the bill faces an uphill battle because Republicans control the state House.
“The unfortunate reality is that unless House Republicans wake up to the reality of the threat that ICE poses to law and order, this will not move in the legislature,” Wegela said. “I’m introducing this today as a rallying point for the folks actually fighting to keep us safe: the activists and organizers. I hope the House heeds their call to fight against the rising tide of fascism.”
On January 30th, 1969, The Beatles went right to the top. Top of the building and put on a historic 45 min concert, which would be their last ever. But what a concert.
Who Had The Idea to Play on the Roof?
The Beatles first choice wasn’t the rooftop in the beginning. Ideas ranged from an amphitheater to a cruise ship; the rooftop concept is often credited to Ringo Starr after a lunchtime discussion.
It was designed to be an “honest” live performance, free from studio polish, aiming to restore band unity and provide a climax for their film Let It Be. Despite reluctance from some members, John Lennon famously said, “Let’s do it,” breaking the tension.
The Cold Concert
A bitter 45 degrees and a crisp, windy Winter day in London. John wore Yoko Ono’s fur coat, Ringo wore his wife’s red raincoat. Paul McCartney dressed up in a suit, and George Harrison had on a long black fur coat
The Rooftop was the Apple Corps headquarters rooftop in London.
The four Beatles and Billy Preston arrived on the roof at around 12:30 pm.[When they began to play, there was confusion nearby among members of the public, many of whom were on their lunch break.
News of the event spread, and crowds began to congregate in the streets and on the flat rooftops of nearby buildings. Most responded positively to the concert, but the Metropolitan Police grew concerned about noise and traffic issues.
Key Details of the Rooftop Concert:
Location: 3 Savile Row, London (Apple Corps rooftop).
Songs Performed: Multiple takes of “Get Back,” “Don’t Let Me Down,” “I’ve Got a Feeling,” “One After 909,” and “Dig a Pony”.
The Crowd: Surprised commuters and office workers on the street below.
The Police: Officers arrived to stop the performance due to noise complaints.
The event marked the end of the band’s live performances and featured in the 1970 film Let It Be and the 2021 docuseries The Beatles: Get Back.
Rooftop Concert Spoofed By The Rutles
The Rutles were a British parody band created by Eric Idle and Neil Innes from Monty Python fame. In the 1970s, to satirize the career of The Beatles. Featured in the 1978 mockumentary film All You Need Is Cash, they portrayed four musicians—Ron Nasty (Innes), Dirk McQuickly (Idle), Stig O’Hara (Ricky Fataar), and Barry Wom (John Halsey)—who mirrored the Beatles’ rise to fame. George Harrison even does a cameo in the movie.
Born in Mt Clemens, Screamin’ Scott has been a part of the Detroit airwaves for 30-plus years. With 40 years of experience in radio. When he’s not out on the streets for WCSX, you can find him devoting time to local charities with his, “Screamin Angels”; and for 16 years with Rock 4 Tots charity. And last 10 years with his local band, “Chit!.” Screamin Scott likes to write about nostalgic Detroit area memories, classic rock, and local metro Detroit topics.
The Detroit artist Tyree Guyton, whose colorful and controversial Heidelberg Project transformed entire blocks on the city’s east side into works of art, drawing both praise and critics, has earned the prestigious Kresge Eminent Artist award.
A panel of five local arts professionals chose Guyton, 70, for the honors, which comes with a $100,000 cash prize. A short film and a monograph about Guyton and his work has also been commissioned, set for release this spring.
In a statement, Guyton called the news “surreal,” adding, “I felt like Moses. All I heard clearly was, ‘eminent’ and ‘you’ve been chosen.’ I got real quiet. […] It still feels crazy, after all this time. Me, chosen.”
Kresge Foundation president and CEO Rip Rapson heaped praise.
“Tyree Guyton exemplifies the spirit of a city whose Latin motto – ‘Speramus meliora; resurget cineribus’ – translates to ‘We hope for better things; it shall arise from the ashes,’” Rapson said. “In a 1980s Detroit widely and unjustly disparaged as nothing more than a locus of decline and crime, Guyton garnered international headlines by controversially turning vacant houses into canvases and empty lots into frames for striking assemblages of urban detritus transformed into a kind of gritty beauty.”
He added, “For more than four decades, on the streets of his neighborhood and on gallery walls, Guyton has continued to exemplify ground truth and soaring aspirations, the blues and the abstractions, that are integral to so much of the great art for which this city is known.”
Guyton launched the Heidelberg Project in 1986 in response to the blight that had taken over his childhood neighborhood.
“Art is my medicine; it’s how I make sense, make meaning of the world around me,” he said. “That day, I felt like the street, the city, needed my medicine. I started and I never let anything stop me. I still believe art is the answer.”
The result is a strange tourist destination made by covering abandoned houses with colorful polka dots, discarded toys, and other flotsam and jetsam. Initially, the city deemed it an eyesore, and tried to demolish it twice in the 1990s. And in the early 2010s, other Heidelberg Project structures were damaged by fires in a string of apparent arson attacks.
But Guyton kept creating, and now, he’s considered a fine artist whose work is featured in the permanent collections of the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, and the University of Michigan Museum of Art, among others.
“As an artist, you want people to recognize you,” he said in a statement. “But you get to a point, especially someone like me, with all the criticism, the trials, tribulations, the fires … you stop caring. You stop thinking about any kind of validation. You keep moving, for yourself.”
The Heidelberg Project, which has since become a nonprofit organization, says it is working on renovating some of its houses into permanent structures, including a welcome center, a community space, and a museum.
Guyton previously won a Kresge Artist Fellowship in 2009.
Rumors have been circulating on social media that the Detroit Lions may have quietly built protection into Kerby Joseph’s contract because of concerns about his knee, and that those concerns could date back even to before he was drafted.
While NFL contracts never explicitly list medical conditions, the way a deal is structured can often tell a story. And in Joseph’s case, the fine print suggests the Lions were careful to protect themselves against long-term health risk.
A Massive Deal With Carefully Limited Guarantees
Joseph signed a four-year, $85 million extension in 2025, a contract that placed him among the highest-paid safeties in the league. On the surface, it looked like a full commitment to a franchise cornerstone.
But the guarantee structure tells a more nuanced story.
Only about $24 million of the deal is fully guaranteed, which is relatively modest compared to other top-of-market safety contracts. Instead of locking in massive, unconditional guarantees, Detroit shifted much of the financial weight to future option bonuses and conditional triggers, giving the team flexibility if health or performance became an issue.
The Injury Protection Clause That Stands Out
The most telling piece of the contract is the $13 million in injury protection tied to the 2027 season.
“Kerby Joseph signed a 4 year contract extension with the Detroit Lions worth $85.0 million with $36.121 million in total guarantees. The contract is fully guaranteed at $24.38 million. Joseph received a $10.011 million signing bonus, and has 4 option bonuses ($9.625 million in 2026, $16.58 million in 2027, $19.035 million in 2028, and $23.905 million in 2029). Joseph has $13 million in injury protection for 2027 that will become fully guaranteed (partially in 2026, and remaining in 2027).”
That money becomes fully guaranteed only if Joseph is unable to play due to injury. This is different from standard guarantees, which are owed regardless of health. Injury guarantees protect the player if his body breaks down, but they also protect the team if the player is healthy and they decide to move on.
This type of structure is often used when a team wants elite talent but also wants insulation against long-term medical uncertainty.
Why This Aligns With His Knee Situation
Joseph’s knee issue has since been described as a chronic, wear-and-tear condition involving cartilage and bone-related stress, not a clean, one-time ligament injury. Those are the kinds of injuries that can linger, flare up unpredictably, and shorten prime years.
Teams are far more cautious with long-term guarantees when cartilage or degenerative concerns appear in medical evaluations, even if a player is currently playing at an elite level.
The Lions’ choice to limit full guarantees and rely on rolling option bonuses and injury triggers fits that exact risk-management model.
Do the Lions Have a Built-In “Out”?
There is no simple escape clause, and Detroit still committed significant money to Joseph. This was not a prove-it deal.
However, the combination of:
Modest full guarantees for a top-tier safety
Heavy reliance on future option bonuses
A large injury-only guarantee window
strongly suggests the Lions protected themselves against the possibility that his knee could become a long-term issue.
VERDICT
Joseph’s contract language does not prove the team knew the exact severity of his condition when he was drafted or when the extension was signed. But it does show that the front office and medical staff took the risk seriously enough to structure the deal with flexibility, just in case.
A man testified on Wednesday that he loved his wife and did not want to end his marriage, despite having an affair with his family’s au pair in what would become a sprawling double homicide case centered around the two of them.
Wearing a gray suit and a plaid tie, Brendan Banfield testified in a Fairfax, Virginia, court under oath about what happened the day he began cheating on his late wife, Christine Banfield, with Juliana Peres Magalhães in what he said was a casual affair. He described Magalhães scooting her chair closer to his while eating dinner one night, while his wife was out of town. He testified that she followed him into his room at bedtime, and he didn’t stop her.
But Banfield testified he and Magalhães did not plot to kill his wife and another man in the months that followed, despite what prosecutors suggest.
“I think that it’s an absurd line of questioning for something that is not serious, that a plan was made to get rid of my wife,” he testified. “That is absolutely crazy.”
Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the killings of his wife and Joe Ryan. His testimony will be a key piece of evidence that a northern Virginia jury will be tasked with weighing this month. Banfield, who has pleaded not guilty, could face life in prison if convicted by his peers.
Brendan Banfield looks on during his double murder trial in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va.
Tom Brenner / AP
Prosecutors say Banfield and Magalhães lured Ryan to their house. According to officials, the two then shot him, and Banfield stabbed his wife, staging the scene to look as though Ryan had been a predator stabbing Christine Banfield.
One of the witnesses who corroborates prosecutors’ theory is Magalhães herself.
Earlier in January, Magalhães testified that she and Banfield had created an account in Christine Banfield’s name on a social media platform for people interested in sexual fetishes. There, Ryan connected with the account, and the users made plans to meet for a sexual encounter involving a knife.
She testified to Banfield’s plan to kill his wife and live his life with Magalhães after they began their affair, plotting for months their ruse.
Magalhaes testified that she crouched behind the bed and covered her eyes and ears while Brendan Banfield repeatedly stabbed his wife, CBS affiliate WUSA-TV reported.
Brendan Banfield appeared to cry in court while listening to the 911 call from the day his wife was killed in their bed, the station reported.
Banfield testified that the au pair’s omission to officials was a lie, saying “there was no plan.” He also said that both he and his wife had affairs throughout the course of their 19-year relationship, but decided through couples therapy to continue their marriage.
His testimony comes as John Carroll, Banfield’s attorney, spent much of the trial scrutinizing Magalhães’ motives in the case. The former au pair was initially charged with second-degree murder in Ryan’s killing, but has since pleaded guilty to a downgraded manslaughter charge.
For instance, Magalhães didn’t remember who created the email address connected to the social media account and where she and Brendan Banfield were on the day it had been procured. She testified that she did not remember who wrote what messages to Ryan. And she admitted under oath to negotiating with a true-crime author and producers to share her story for money.
Juliana Peres Magalhães testifies during the double murder trial for Brendan Banfield in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va.
Tom Brenner / AP
On the stand, Banfield spoke of his relationship with his wife, describing them as inseparable despite the affair. “We were together the entire time. We didn’t break up at any point,” Banfield said.
“Did you love your wife?” Carroll asked at one point.
“Very much,” he said.
“Did you want to continue your marriage with your wife?” his attorney said.
“Yes.”
WUSA-TV reported that at an April 2024 hearing for Magalhães, prosecutors showed records that two months before the shooting, Magalhaes and Brendan Banfield visited the Silver Eagle Group Shooting Range. A few weeks later, Brendan Banfield also purchased a gun, which was eventually used to shoot Ryan, Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Eric Clingan said.
Before the trial, Ryan’s mother, Deirdre Fisher, told WUSA-TV that her son had talked to her about consensual role play but said he was not a violent person. Fisher told the station she remembers every detail of learning about her son’s death.
“I remember when I got the call from the detective … I could hear my own voice screaming,” she said. “It was almost like it was outside of my body hearing that he had been killed.”
Are you ready for your daily dose of rock history trivia? Rock and roll breakthrough hits, recordings, performances, challenges, and cultural changes that happened on Jan. 29 throughout its long history. Let’s dive into some of the most interesting facts from this day in rock history to test your knowledge.
Breakthrough Hits and Milestones
Breakthrough hits and important milestones in the rock music industry from past Jan. 29 include:
1965: The Who made their television debut, on one of the UK’s most popular music shows at the time, Ready Steady Go! They were promoting their hit single, “I Can’t Explain. 1969: Fleetwood Mac’s single “Albatross,” composed by guitarist Peter Green, hit No. 1 in the U.K. The song inspired John Lennon to write “Sun King,” a song from their popular Abbey Road album that came out the same year.
1972: The triple live album The Concert for Bangladesh reached the top spot on the UK albums chart less than a month after its release. The show was organized by George Harrison and took place on the 1st of August 1971 to help the victims of war and famine in Bangladesh and included performances by Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, and many others.
Cultural Milestones
The rock music culture has seen many significant shifts occur on Jan. 29 over the years, such as:
1947: David Byron, Uriah Heep’s original frontman, was born in Epping, Essex, England. He sang on 10 of the band’s albums and also recorded three solo albums.
1949: Ramones drummer Tommy Ramone was born in Budapest, Hungary. Despite initially being the band’s manager, he was recruited by the other band members to be their drummer, even though he had never played drums before.
1967: At the Mantra-Rock Dance music event held at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco, California, prominent bands like Grateful Dead, Big Brother, and Holding Company performed for free. Proceeds from the event went to the Hare Krishna temple, bringing positive media attention to the spiritual movement.
1992: Blues pioneer Willie Dixon passed away at 76. He’s widely considered one of the most important blues performers and songwriters of all time, creating some of the most famous blues songs in history, such as “Little Red Rooster,” “Hoochie Coochie Man,” and “I Just Want to Make Love to You.”
Notable Recordings and Performances
These notable Jan. 29 recordings and performances in rock music left a lasting impression on the genre:
1967: The Who and Jimi Hendrix performed together at the Saville Theatre in London, England. Jimi opened for The Who, with the most memorable moment of the evening being him holding Pete Townshend’s Rickenbacker guitar.
1998: A musical titled The Capeman featuring lyrics by Paul Simon opened on Broadway. The show only had 68 performances before closing due to poor reception and negative reviews.
2002: Linkin Park held the first Projekt Revolution Festival in Colorado Springs. The festival ran every year until 2004 and then returned in 2007, 2008, and 2011. The festival has seen performances from big names like My Chemical Romance and Placebo over the years.
Industry Changes and Challenges
Changes and challenges in rock music are always pushing the industry to innovate, and these are some that made their mark on Jan. 29:
2016: Just three weeks after his death, David Bowie had 12 of his albums make the U.K. Top 40, which beat the record previously held by Elvis Presley, who set it in 1977.
From legendary duets to famous debuts, Jan. 29 had its share of important rock moments. Visit this page again tomorrow to find out what happened on that day in rock history.
Bitter cold temperatures have wreaked havoc on Detroit’s water infrastructure, with city crews working around the clock to repair 51 water main breaks that have turned neighborhood streets into treacherous sheets of ice and left some vehicles frozen in place.
Gary Brown, director of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, described the situation Tuesday as “historic” for the region, with the deep freeze expected to continue for another week to 10 days.
The breaks have transformed city streets into what officials describe as “frozen rivers,” creating dangerous conditions for residents and drivers across Detroit’s east side and other areas.
Most breaks are minor, but impact is widespread
While DWSD officials said most of the 51 breaks are minor, the frigid temperatures have caused the flowing water to immediately freeze on contact with pavement, creating hazardous ice sheets. Brown said crews are aiming to repair at least 20 breaks each day, with workers from the Department of Public Works called in to clear drains before repairs can begin.
“We’re asking people to be patient. We can’t get to everyone at the same time, but we’re going to make sure people have water and that we get the streets cleared and that everybody’s safe,” Brown said.
Brown emphasized that there have been no reports of homes losing water service, and residents without water will be the priority for repairs throughout the process.
Residents trapped by ice sheets
According to WXYZ, residents on Detroit’s east side were left dealing with dangerous, ice-covered streets after water from broken mains flooded roadways and quickly froze amid subzero temperatures. On Laing Street near Britain Avenue, water poured into the street overnight, surrounding multiple vehicles and turning the block into a sheet of ice.
WXYZ reported that a nurse identified as Brandy became stuck in her vehicle during her 2:30 a.m. lunch break after turning onto the street and not initially seeing the water or ice. Water rose to her tires, leaving her trapped for more than an hour as she kept her car running to stay warm.
“I’m just frustrated — just frustrated. It’s late. I’m trying to get back to work, and I’m just a little frustrated,” Brandy told WXYZ.
Other residents also described being iced in by the flooding. Tyrese Jordan, who moved to the neighborhood last year, told WXYZ the conditions made it difficult to leave home or travel safely.
“It’s crazy because you can’t get out of your house. You can’t even drive your car,” Jordan said.
Longtime resident Aaron Passmore, who has lived in the area for nearly 40 years, told WXYZ that while flooding and water main breaks are not uncommon, the severity of this incident stood out. He said residents stayed awake monitoring their basements as water continued to flow into the street.
“We’re surprised that it was to this extent,” Passmore said. “We seem ignored.”
The water main breaks come as Southeast Michigan battles a brutal cold snap, with wind chills well below zero prompting a cold weather advisory across the region. The extreme temperatures have forced hundreds of schools to close in recent days.
“This is historic” freeze challenges infrastructure
Brown described the prolonged cold snap affecting the Detroit metro area as unprecedented, saying the region is experiencing a deep freeze expected to last another week to 10 days.
“This is historic, regionally, to have this deep of a freeze for this long of a time because it looks like it’s going to go on another week, maybe 10 days,” Brown said.
Detroit’s water system spans more than 2,700 miles of water mains, and city officials have long acknowledged the challenges of maintaining and upgrading aging infrastructure across the system. Extreme cold places additional strain on pipes, increasing the likelihood of breaks as temperatures remain well below normal.
Recent winters have demonstrated how vulnerable water infrastructure can be during prolonged cold spells. In February 2025, a large transmission main built in the 1930s ruptured in southwest Detroit, flooding multiple blocks and impacting hundreds of residents.
Repair work continues across the city
For the time being, repair efforts are expected to continue as crews work through the existing water main breaks. City officials said crews will prioritize repairs that affect residential water service, urging residents to report any loss of water so those cases can be addressed as quickly as possible.
With wind chills expected to stay well below zero across Southeast Michigan for at least another week, officials warned that the prolonged cold will continue to place stress on the system, increasing the likelihood of additional breaks in the days ahead. Crews are monitoring conditions closely and, as needed, are standing by to respond as new problems are reported.
President Trump on Wednesday nominated federal prosecutor Colin McDonald to serve as assistant attorney general for a new Justice Department division tasked with rooting out fraud.
McDonald currently serves as associate deputy attorney general in Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s office, where his primary responsibility is to oversee issues pertaining to the Justice Department’s law enforcement components, including the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
CBS News was the first to report that McDonald was the lead candidate for the job.
In a statement on social media, Mr. Trump said McDonald had “successfully delivered Justice in some of the most difficult and high stakes cases our Country has ever seen.”
McDonald previously served for about a decade as a federal prosecutor in California’s Southern District.
In a statement, Blanche said McDonald has been a “key part” of the administration’s success.
“He is an experienced prosecutor who loves family, God and country,” Blanche said.
McDonald, whose nomination will require Senate approval, will be tasked with overseeing a new division dedicated to rooting out fraud against the government.
Many questions still remain about how the division will work, and many legal experts and lawmakers have questioned whether its creation is duplicative and unnecessary.
Multiple offices across the Justice Department in Washington and in the country’s U.S. Attorney’s offices already investigate both criminal and civil fraud cases, from healthcare fraud to violations of the False Claims Act.
The creation of a new fraud-focused division at the Justice Department comes as Minnesota and its officials have come under nationwide scrutiny over a growing fraud scandal in the state, which prosecutors estimate could top $9 billion.
Most of the career federal prosecutors who were working on those cases, however, resigned this month, in part amid concerns over the Justice Department’s handling of the investigation into the fatal shooting death of Renee Good by an ICE agent.
The Justice Department is surging prosecutorial resources from other offices to Minnesota to handle the workflow, and it has also sought assistance from the Pentagon for assistance from its military attorneys and forensic auditors.
The Cleveland Browns’ head coaching search has created an interesting ripple effect that could once again put former Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz on the NFL carousel.
According to multiple reports, Cleveland is set to hire former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken as its next head coach, passing over current defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz in the process. And that decision has reportedly left Schwartz frustrated.
NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported that Schwartz was “upset at being passed over” and told coaches he does not plan on returning to Cleveland, even though he remains under contract for the 2026 season.
Ever since that report surfaced, many Lions fans have jumped on social message to ask the following question:
Should the Lions consider bringing Jim Schwartz back?
Schwartz’s History in Detroit
Lions fans remember Schwartz well. He served as Detroit’s head coach from 2009 to 2013, guiding the franchise through one of its most dramatic turnarounds in modern history.
Took over after the 0–16 season in 2008
Led Detroit to a 10–6 record and playoff berth in 2011
Finished with a 29–51 regular season record
Coached one postseason game (2011 Wild Card loss)
While his tenure ended in 2013, Schwartz helped restore toughness and credibility to a franchise that desperately needed it.
Why He Could Make Sense Now
Detroit’s defense under new coordinator Kelvin Sheppard showed flashes in 2025 but struggled against elite offenses late in the season. While Sheppard is not on the hot seat, the Lions clearly need another jump to become a true Super Bowl-caliber defense.
Schwartz, who recently won AP Assistant Coach of the Year and coordinated one of the NFL’s top-ranked defenses in Cleveland, brings:
Proven elite pass rush design
Championship experience (Super Bowl LII with Eagles)
Veteran leadership in high-pressure playoff environments
Familiarity with Detroit’s culture and expectations
The idea wouldn’t necessarily be replacing Sheppard — but rather exploring a senior defensive role similar to how Dan Campbell brought in Mike Kafka to elevate the offense.
The Complication: Dan Campbell Fit
This is where things get tricky.
Schwartz is intense. Campbell is intense. Sometimes that works beautifully. Sometimes it clashes.
Campbell has built a staff around collaboration, emotional intelligence, and modern leadership. Schwartz’s old-school, fiery style might not mesh seamlessly with the current locker room tone — especially after the Lions worked so hard to build unity and stability.
There’s also the reality that Cleveland can block a lateral move. As ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler noted, Schwartz remains under contract, and the Browns can prevent coordinator-level departures unless it’s a head coaching job.
The Big Question
Would Dan Campbell consider bringing back a former Lions head coach to help elevate a championship defense?
Would Schwartz even want a supporting role after being passed over for another head coaching opportunity?
And most importantly…
Would it make the Lions better?
From a pure football standpoint, it’s hard to argue against Schwartz’s defensive acumen. From a culture and chemistry standpoint, the fit is far more complex.
One thing is certain: Jim Schwartz’s name will be connected to Detroit again as long as the Lions are chasing that final leap from contender to champion.
Mike Rogers, the Michigan Republican running for U.S. Senate, is again facing accusations that he’s more of a Florida resident than a Michigan one, after resuming campaign activity from his Cape Coral home for more than a week in November and recently joking on a right-wing radio show that he would rather be “on the beach in Florida” as Michigan braced for a winter storm.
Rogers, a former FBI agent and congressman, launched his Senate campaign in April 2025 after narrowly losing the 2024 Senate race to Democrat Elissa Slotkin.
This year’s race is expected to be one of the country’s most closely watched, with Democratic Sen. Gary Peters retiring and Michigan again shaping up as a battleground.
On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, and public health expert Abdul El-Sayed are vying for the seat.
On the Republican side, campaign finance reports show Rogers raised about $3.4 million through October and had roughly $2.7 million cash on hand. Additionally, a super political action committee backing his run reported receiving $5 million from Texas oil billionaire Tim Dunn, a major GOP donor with ties to Christian nationalist causes.
The only other GOP candidate, former Michigan Republican Party co-chair Bernadette Smith, entered the race in November.
Metro Times found that Rogers spent more than a week in November 2025 campaigning from his Florida mansion, beginning with a fundraiser in Naples on Nov. 19 and followed by a series of media interviews that appear to have been recorded from inside his Cape Coral home. Those included a virtual interview on Nov. 20, a social media video the next day, and another virtual interview on Nov. 26. In between, Rogers told a Michigan-focused audience in a Nov. 24 interview on Wood Radio that “my whole life is here [in Michigan],” despite being in Florida at the time.
During that same period, Rogers’s Cape Coral property listing was removed from the market on Nov. 22 after he had listed the home soon after launching his campaign. The listing has remained marked “removed” as of Jan. 26.
The Florida backdrop also surfaced publicly this month. On Jan. 17, Rogers appeared on “Breitbart News Saturday,” when the host introduced him from Michigan, and Rogers cracked, “Wouldn’t we all like to be with Matt right now on the beach in Florida. It’s even colder in Michigan,” prompting laughter.
Rogers was referring to Matthew Boyle, the regular host of the right-wing show who was in Florida at the time.
Rogers’s campaign spokeswoman Alyssa Brouillet tried to deflect criticism of the Republican by pointing out that McMorrow was born in New Jersey and Stevens spent time as a Bloomberg Philanthropies fellow in Louisville, Kentucky. She falsely claimed El-Sayed is an Egyptian citizen. He was born in the U.S. to parents who immigrated from Egypt.
“Unlike the New Jersey girl, ‘lady from Kentucky,’ and Egyptian citizen in this race, Mike is a born and raised Michigander who went to college here, spent his adult working life here, and brought up his own family here for the same reason he’s running for office: Michigan is his home,” Brouillet said in a statement. “Mike will never stop fighting to Get Michigan Working Again and help working families achieve the American Dream. And if The Left is worked up over a joke about an interviewer dodging a snowstorm, they must have a really tough time squaring away their own candidates’ records of fleeing the state to cozy up to coastal elites in Hollywood and NAPA wine caves.”
Those doubts have lingered into his second run, giving Democrats and outside groups an opening to portray the race as one between candidates rooted in Michigan and a wealthy Republican who built a life elsewhere and now wants back in.
The renewed focus on residency also comes as Rogers is trying to consolidate the Republican base with a campaign infrastructure built around hard-right activists and clergy. In a recent Metro Times story, I reported that Rogers formed a “Faith Coalition Leadership Team” that includes figures who have attacked LGBTQ+ rights and promoted false claims about election fraud, aligning with Rogers’s own record in Congress of opposing LGBTQ+ protections.
Western Oakland Transportation Authority (WOTA) delivered 101,500 rides in 2025. That’s 27% more than 2024. The service operates seven days each week across a dozen towns in Oakland County.
The group launched in 2020 with under 30 workers and 11 vehicles. At first, four towns received scheduled transportation for older adults and people with disabilities.
County voters approved a transit millage during fall 2020. This funding allowed the group to extend service to anyone 18 or older.
WOTA covers 12 areas today: Groveland Township, Highland Township, Holly Township, Rose Township, Waterford Township, White Lake Township, Keego Harbor, Lake Angelus, Orchard Lake, Sylvan Lake, Village of Holly, and Walled Lake. Veterans receive free rides through a county partnership.
“The demand is still increasing. 2025 was the first year we began taking general public (anyone over 18) and they make up 12% of our rides,” said Deputy Director Amy Grzymkowski, according to Oakland County Times.
Work trips account for 37% of rides. Medical appointments make up 30%. Grocery shopping, leisure activities, DHS visits, and school comprise the rest.
The group hired over 20 drivers in 2025 and added more vehicles. Passengers can link up with NOTA, OPC, PEX, and SMART to travel throughout the county and distant locations.
Highland Township Supervisor Rick Hamill serves on the board. “WOTA started as a way to help seniors and adults with disabilities go to medical or work, but it has become a lifeline for our entire community,” he said.
The service has over 80 drivers on staff and seeks additional hires. Open slots include part-time drivers, a dispatcher, and a receptionist.
“All WOTA employees must have a strong customer service ethic, focus on safety, and motivation that goes beyond a job description—people who care about people,” Grzymkowski said. More information is available at ridewota.org.
Dealing with debt and having no paycheck to cover it can leave you with big questions about what your relief options actually are.
Tatiana Lavrova/Getty Images
Bankruptcy filings have been climbing as Americans continue to grapple with several looming economic issues, including persistent inflation and high interest rates on borrowing options. When you factor in that household debt is sitting at its latest record high, and that credit card debt, in particular, has now reached a total of over $1.21 trillion, the increase in bankruptcies makes even more sense. After all, Chapter 7 bankruptcy offers the promise of a fresh financial start for those who are facing overwhelming amounts of debt.
But what happens when you’re not just struggling with debt, but also have no income? Whether you’ve recently lost your job, are unable to work due to disability or are living on unemployment benefits that have run out, facing serious issues with debt but having no paycheck to cover what you owe can leave you with real questions about what your options actually are. After all, Chapter 7 is often described as “income-based,” which can lead to the reasonable assumption that if you don’t earn anything, you must not qualify.
Is that true, though? Or do you still have the option to pursue a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, even without a steady income and paycheck to help cover your debts? That’s what we’ll examine below.
The short answer is yes, you can file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy with no income, and in many cases, having little to no income can actually make you more likely to qualify. Here’s why: Chapter 7 uses what’s called the means test to determine whether you’re eligible to discharge your debts through this route. This test compares your income to the median income in your state. If your income is below that median, you automatically pass the means test and can proceed with Chapter 7.
When you have no income or very little income, you’re almost certainly going to fall below your state’s median income threshold. This means you bypass the more complicated calculations that higher earners have to go through. The bankruptcy court understands that people file for Chapter 7 precisely because they’re in dire financial straits, and having no income is often the ultimate demonstration of that reality.
However, there’s an important caveat: While you can file with no income, you’ll still need to pay the court filing fee and potentially cover your attorney fees if you hire a lawyer. Some courts will allow you to pay the filing fee in installments, though, and in cases of extreme hardship, you may be able to get the fee waived entirely. You’ll also need to complete credit counseling before filing, which typically comes with more out-of-pocket costs, though fee waivers are sometimes available.
Additionally, the court will look at your overall financial picture beyond your income. They’ll examine any assets you have, your household size and your reasonable monthly expenses. If you have significant assets that aren’t protected by bankruptcy exemptions, the trustee could sell those assets to pay your creditors, even with no income.
What other debt relief options should you consider with no income?
If you’re considering Chapter 7 but are worried about the costs involved or are uncertain about the process, it’s generally worth exploring other debt relief options that might be more accessible. Many creditors would prefer to work out a payment arrangement rather than get nothing through bankruptcy, so reaching out directly to negotiate can sometimes yield results, especially if you can document your financial hardship.
Debt relief companies can also help negotiate settlements with creditors on your behalf, potentially reducing your total debt owed. However, these programs come with fees and will typically require you to make monthly payments into a dedicated account, which can be challenging without any income. Your settled debts may also have tax implications, as forgiven debt over $600 is often considered taxable income.
Credit counseling is another option. These experts offer debt management plans that can consolidate your monthly payments and reduce your interest rates and fees, but again, these require you to make regular monthly payments. However, the fees for this type of debt relief tend to be nominal, especially compared to those of a debt relief company. If you have no income currently but expect to be employed soon, this route might be worth revisiting once you’re earning again.
For those with absolutely no income and no prospect of income in the near future, though, Chapter 7 bankruptcy could remain the most practical solution. It provides immediate relief through the automatic stay (which stops collection actions) and can eliminate most unsecured debts. And, unlike Chapter 13 bankruptcy, which requires a repayment plan over three to five years, Chapter 7 doesn’t require ongoing payments to creditors.
The bottom line
Filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy with no income is not only possible but may actually improve your chances of qualifying under the means test. While you’ll need to handle some upfront costs and navigate the court system, having little or no income demonstrates the financial hardship that Chapter 7 is designed to address. If you’re drowning in debt without any way to pay, consulting with a bankruptcy attorney or a debt relief expert can help you understand whether Chapter 7 is your best path forward or whether other debt relief strategies might work better for your situation.
The New York Jets are once again dipping into Detroit’s coaching tree.
According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the Jets are hiring Brian Duker as their new defensive coordinator. Duker, 36, most recently served as the Miami Dolphins’ pass game coordinator and secondary coach and now reunites with Jets head coach Aaron Glenn, a coach he has deep history with dating back to their time in both Cleveland and Detroit.
Duker’s path to an NFL coordinator role has been rapid and well-earned.
He was originally hired by Dan Campbell in 2021 as a defensive assistant with the Detroit Lions, working closely with the secondary. His ties to Glenn go back even further, to 2015, when Duker was an intern with the Cleveland Browns while Glenn served as an assistant secondary coach.
In 2022, Duker was promoted to safeties coach and quickly took on expanded responsibility when Aubrey Pleasant was dismissed midseason, effectively overseeing Detroit’s entire secondary. The following year, in 2023, he was elevated again, this time to defensive backs coach, with former Pro Bowl corner Dre Bly added to help coach the cornerbacks under Duker’s direction.
That steady climb continued in Miami, where Duker became the Dolphins’ pass game coordinator and secondary coach, helping develop one of the league’s more aggressive and detail-oriented coverage units.
Now, the Jets are handing him the biggest opportunity of his career: running the entire defense.
For Glenn, the hire brings in a trusted lieutenant who knows his system, his terminology, and his expectations. For Duker, it’s the culmination of a rise that began under Dan Campbell in Detroit and now places him in charge of an NFL defense at just 36 years old.
Tenants at the historic Leland House in downtown Detroit are asking a federal bankruptcy judge to intervene as the troubled 20-story building heads toward a potential auction in early March.
Housing advocates filed emergency motions in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Tuesday in hopes of preserving their leases and preventing their belongings from being removed without their consent.
Tenant advocates say the auction timeline, along with a Jan. 13 court order authorizing the removal of residents’ possessions, created an urgent need to act.
“We realized very quickly that if nothing was done, tenants were going to miss the window to be heard,” Donovan McCarty, director of the Housing Justice Clinic at Michigan State University’s College of Law, which is representing residents alongside private attorneys, Thornbladh Legal Group PLLC and Goodman Hurwitz & James, P.C. tells Metro Times.
McCarty says tenants fear they are being pushed out permanently under the guise of emergency cleanup.
Residents were forced to evacuate the Leland House, at 400 Bagley St., in December after an electrical failure knocked out power, heat, and elevators. Many left believing the displacement would be temporary and that they would retain access to their apartments. Instead, tenants say they were locked out, with personal belongings left behind inside the building.
The city’s fire marshal made the decision to block access to residents, and so far Mayor Mary Sheffield, who took office on Jan. 1, is not taking a different approach than her predecessor Mike Duggan, who has received tens of thousands of dollars in political donations from DTE Energy executives. Residents and advocates worry DTE is trying to gobble up the property on a block where the utility already owns most of the land and buildings.
In one filing, tenants object to any sale of the property that would wipe out existing leases, arguing that residents still hold valid, unexpired rental agreements that must transfer to a new owner. In a second motion, they ask the court to reconsider its Jan. 13 order allowing tenant belongings to be removed, saying residents were never notified or given an opportunity to be heard.
The consent order allows up to $70,000 in bankruptcy funds to be used to hire movers to remove tenants’ possessions without the residents present. McCarty says that approach raises serious concerns about privacy, due process, and the potential loss of irreplaceable items.
“Under the current order, the idea is that a moving company would go in and move their stuff out, but that is an invasion of privacy,” McCarty says. “That’s a big concern.”
Tenants are asking the court to pause enforcement of the order, allow residents back into their units under supervised conditions to retrieve belongings themselves, and block any sale that does not protect their right to return if the building is made safe again.
Tenants and advocacy groups were hoping that Sheffield, who ran on a progressive platform that included prioritizing housing rights, would side with residents, but that does not appear to be the case. Instead, the administration is emphasizing safety concerns and ongoing relocation assistance.
“The Mayor understands that this has been a terrible and unfortunate situation for the tenants whose lives have been greatly disrupted and inconvenienced due to failure of the Leland to perform maintenance and repairs,” Deputy Mayor Brian White said in a statement to Metro Times. “Ultimately, this is a matter of resident safety as the building has been deemed unsafe to enter by the Fire Marshall, aside from building ownership, property management and their contractors, all of which are covered by liability insurance. There is currently no electricity, heat or working elevators in the Leland.”
The filings come as the Leland House ownership seeks approval to auction the property, with a Delaware-based entity serving as a $3.5 million stalking-horse bidder, which sets a floor price for an asset being sold through bankruptcy. If approved, the online auction would be conducted by Ten-X and brokered by Savills, with the sale expected to close in early April.
Housing advocates say they worry the quick push for an auction is designed to clear the building of residents and belongings so a future developer can start from scratch, rather than addressing long-standing issues tied to long-ignored maintenance and unpaid utilities.
In a statement, Julie Schneider, director of the Detroit Housing & Revitalization Department (HRD), said the city continues to provide hotel accommodations and wraparound services, including transportation, employment support, and housing navigation to the Leland’s displaced residents.
“The Mayor has been supportive of the wraparound services being provided residents by HRD, including transportation to jobs, employment support, resources for clothing, food, and other immediate necessities,” Schneider said. “HRD has supported 30 households in total, 27 households using hotel accommodations and three households staying with friends and family members. Nine households, with the assistance of the City’s housing navigation service as well as first month rent and security deposit support, have already relocated to new, permanent housing. As additional households receive housing approvals, HRD will support move-in costs for eligible households.”
Tenants, however, say relocation is not a substitute for due process or for their right to return home if conditions improve. McCarty says residents and advocates are also urging the city to rethink its approach to distressed housing, including whether long-term tenants should have a pathway to ownership or cooperative control rather than displacement.
If you’re looking for a date that’s jam-packed with unbelievable highlights, Jan. 28 tops the list. Events from every sport, from football to tennis, showcase groundbreaking achievements. Cultural shifts and game-changing events all happened on this day, which reminds us that Jan. 28 reflects the enduring power of athletic competition.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
Great moments in sports history from Jan. 28 included:
1929: Tennis player Colin Gregory won his only Grand Slam title at the Australian Championships.
1939: Tennis player John Bromwich won his first Australian title.
1943: The Chicago Blackhawks beat the New York Rangers 10-1. Max Bentley scored four goals.
1952: Tennis player Ken McGregor won his first and only Grand Slam event.
1968: Boxer Chartchai Chionoi got a 13-round technical knockout on Efren Torres and retained his world flyweight title.
1969: With the first pick in the NFL Draft, the Buffalo Bills selected USC running back O.J. Simpson.
1974: Sam Thompson, Jim Bottomley, and Jocko Conlan got into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1976: The Atlanta Hawks began a 28-game road losing streak.
1980: New York coach Red Holzman won his 600th NBA game and at the time, he was only the second coach ever to hit that mark.
1984: Hockey center Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record point streak came to an end at 51 games.
1988: Denver Nuggets point guard Michael Adams got his record to 79 games straight with at least one made 3-pointer.
1990: Tennis star Ivan Lendl won his eighth and last career Grand Slam title.
1990: The San Francisco 49ers beat the Denver Broncos 55-10 to win Super Bowl XXIV. The Super Bowl MVP was quarterback Joe Montana.
1992: Right winger Brett Hull became the second player in NHL history to get back-to-back seasons of 50 goals in 50 games.
1996: The Dallas Cowboys beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-17 to win Super Bowl XXX.
2001: The Baltimore Ravens beat the New York Giants 34-7 to win Super Bowl XXXV. The Super Bowl MVP was Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis.
2007: Tennis star Roger Federer defended his Australian Open title.
2017: Serena Williams beat her older sister Venus Williams. She won her seventh Australian title and a record 23rd Grand Slam event singles win.
2018: Drivers Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia won their sixth Monte Carlo Rally.
2023: Tennis player Aryna Sabalenka won the Australian Open. It was her first major title.
Three athletes who stood out on Jan. 28 were Max Bentley, Ivan Lendl, and Ray Lewis.
Bentley was celebrated for his speed, skill, and three Stanley Cup wins with the Leafs. He was also famous as part of hockey’s first all-brother line with his brothers Doug and Reg. Lendl is known for his powerful baseline game, heavy topspin, and incredible work ethic, winning eight Grand Slam singles titles and holding the World No. 1 ranking for 270 weeks. Lewis is known for his dominant play with the Baltimore Ravens and recognized for his intensity, leadership, and iconic pre-game dances.
Top Justice Department officials said Tuesday they expect to finish reviewing and publishing files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein soon, but cannot provide a specific timeline.
A federal law required the Justice Department to release its massive trove of records on Epstein by mid-December. The department has released over 100,000 pages so far, but it has acknowledged that the vast majority of documents that may relate to Epstein still haven’t been made public, arguing more time is needed to ensure the files are properly redacted to protect the identities of survivors of Epstein’s abuse.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and other top Justice Department officials updated the judges in Epstein and his convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell’s cases on their efforts to scour through the documents in a letter sent Tuesday.
They said they have made “substantial progress,” with hundreds of department employees manually reviewing millions of pages of records and, in some cases, conducting electronic name searches to find and redact hundreds of potential victims’ identities.
“The Department currently expects that it will complete these processes with respect to substantially all of the potentially responsive documents, including publication to the Epstein Library website, in the near term,” said the letter.
The Justice Department said it “is not able to provide a specific date at this time,” and warned it may need to make “additional efforts to ensure the protection of victim identifying information.”
Earlier this month, the Justice Department told a judge it had released 12,285 documents so far, totaling 125,575 pages, but more than 2 million documents were still “in various stages of review” — meaning it had reviewed less than 1% of its total possible records on Epstein. Some of those still-unreviewed documents may be duplicates, the department cautioned.
The Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed in mid-November, gave the Justice Department 30 days to release files on Epstein and Maxwell. That includes decades-old records from the earliest investigations into Epstein, documents from Epstein and Maxwell’s 2019 and 2020 sex trafficking cases and files related to Epstein’s death by suicide while in pre-trial custody.
The law allows the government to redact the files under limited circumstances, including to take out victims’ names. The judge in Maxwell’s case has also required the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan to “personally certify” that any grand jury materials that are released have been “rigorously reviewed” to take out victims’ identities.
Some lawmakers have sharply criticized the Justice Department for the pace of its review, given that Congress required the files to be made public by Dec. 12.
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who cosponsored the Epstein Files Transparency Act, suggested this month that the judge in Maxwell’s case appoint an independent “special master” to ensure the files are made public.
“The Department of Justice is openly defying the law by refusing to release the full Epstein files,” Khanna said in a statement. “Millions of files are being kept from the public.”
Massie argued the Justice Department “has shown it cannot be trusted with making the disclosures required by law.”
The Justice Department pushed back, arguing the law does not give Khanna and Massie the right to seek relief in court. The department has defended its handling of the files, saying “careful, manual review” is needed to protect victims.
The judge overseeing Maxwell’s case ruled last week that he didn’t have authority to oversee the Justice Department’s compliance with the law. He added that nothing is stopping Khanna and Massie from filing a separate lawsuit against the government, and said the two lawmakers raised “legitimate concerns about whether DOJ is faithfully complying with federal law.”
The Detroit Lions have been around since 1930, and while quarterback stability has often been elusive, a handful of signal-callers stand above the rest when it comes to shaping the franchise’s identity. A true Mount Rushmore isn’t just about talent — it’s about impact, longevity, era-defining moments, and statistical dominance.
Using career production and legacy through the 2025 season, these are the four quarterbacks who deserve to be carved into stone.
1. Matthew Stafford
No quarterback in Detroit history combined elite arm talent, durability, and long-term production like Matthew Stafford.
From 2009–2020, Stafford carried the Lions through multiple coaching staffs, roster overhauls, and rebuilds, yet still rewrote the franchise record book:
45,109 passing yards (1st all-time in Lions history)
282 passing touchdowns (1st all-time)
Multiple 4,000-yard seasons
Led Detroit to three playoff appearances
Famous for countless fourth-quarter comebacks and game-winning drives
Stafford’s era wasn’t defined by championships, but by credibility. He made the Lions relevant in prime-time games, Thanksgiving showcases, and playoff races. Every major passing record in franchise history runs through him. No Mount Rushmore can exist without Stafford as the centerpiece.
2. Bobby Layne
Bobby Layne represents the golden age of Lions football.
Playing in Detroit from 1950–1958, Layne quarterbacked the Lions to:
Three NFL Championships (1952, 1953, 1957)
Four Pro Bowl selections with Detroit
Over 118 touchdown passes in a run-heavy era
Layne wasn’t just productive — he was a winner. His toughness, leadership, and swagger defined a championship culture that the franchise has chased for decades. Even the infamous “curse” mythology surrounding his departure only reinforces how central he was to the Lions’ identity. When it comes to winning at the highest level in Detroit, no quarterback compares.
3. Jared Goff
Jared Goff earns his place by transforming the modern Lions from hopeful rebuild to legitimate contender.
Since arriving in 2021, Goff has:
Thrown for over 21,000 yards and 149 touchdowns in Detroit colors
Led the Lions to division titles, deep playoff runs, and sustained national relevance
Operated one of the NFL’s most efficient offenses
Earned Pro Bowl recognition while posting career-best efficiency numbers
More than stats, Goff stabilized the franchise. For the first time in decades, Detroit entered seasons expecting to win, not hoping to surprise. He became the quarterback who changed the perception of the Lions across the league — from rebuilding project to Super Bowl window.
4. Greg Landry
Greg Landry represents longevity and consistency across a full era.
Serving as Detroit’s primary quarterback from 1968–1978, Landry:
Threw for 12,451 passing yards and 80 touchdowns
Ranks top five in franchise history in career passing
Was one of the earliest dual-threat quarterbacks, adding rushing value before it was common
Led the Lions to multiple winning seasons and playoff contention
Landry may not have the statistical explosion of Stafford or the championships of Layne, but he anchored the franchise for over a decade. His blend of durability, leadership, and production earns him the final spot on the mountain.
Final Mount Rushmore
Quarterback
Era
Why He’s On the Mountain
Matthew Stafford
2009–2020
All-time franchise leader in yards and touchdowns
Bobby Layne
1950–1958
Championship quarterback and historical icon
Jared Goff
2021–2026
Architect of the modern Lions’ resurgence
Greg Landry
1968–1978
Longest-tenured elite starter of his era
Bottom Line
Detroit’s quarterback history is a story of eras:
Layne brought championships.
Stafford brought records.
Goff brought belief.
Landry brought stability.
Together, they form the true Mount Rushmore of Detroit Lions quarterbacks — a monument to how the position has evolved in Motown from leather helmets to Super Bowl contention.
National Transportation Safety Board members were deeply troubled Tuesday over years of ignored warnings about helicopter traffic dangers and other problems, long before last year’s collision between an American Airlines jet and an Army Black Hawk, which killed 67 people.
The board listened to hours of testimony from investigators who outlined their findings in the collision and subsequent crash near Reagan National Airport nearly a year ago. Key factors emerged, including “overwhelmed” air traffic controllers, a failure to alert the jet’s pilot about the other aircraft and a history of missed opportunities to reroute helicopter traffic.
“We know people were raising the concerns, people were saying this was dangerous five, 10 years ago, and nobody was really listening,” NTSB member Todd Inman said of staffing.
In her opening remarks, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said it was a series of “deep, underlying systemic failures” that “aligned to create the conditions that led to the crash.”
Homendy also called the “similarities” between the D.C. crash and previous such disasters — including a 1969 midair collision that killed 83 people near Shelbyville, Indiana, and a 2019 midair collision that killed six people in Ketchikan, Alaska — “chilling.”
“We could have blamed flight crews, individual pilots, maintenance personnel or controllers, but we didn’t because we have long, long recognized that human error is a symptom of a system that needs to be redesigned,” Homedy said of the three crashes.
At one point during the hearing, Inman said he had responded to 91 aviation fatality incidents in 2025.
“I did 13 family briefings, and I am tired of doing them,” Inman said to the families of the victims at the hearing. “And I am sorry for you, because the pages of these reports are written in your family members’ blood. So with that again, I am sorry that we have to be here.”
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy and other board members Todd Inman and Michael Graham listen to testimony during a board meeting on Jan. 27, 2026, in Washington, D.C.
Bonnie Cash-Pool / Getty Images
Family members in the room listened intently during the hearing. Some were escorted out, including two in tears, as an animation of the flights began. Others entered the auditorium wearing black shirts bearing the names of crash victims.
“The negligence of not fixing things that needed to be fixed killed my brother and 66 other people. So, I’m not very happy,” Kristen Miller-Zahn, who watched from the front row, said during a break.
The NTSB’s job at this point is to determine the biggest factors in the crash and make recommendations. Victims’ families say they hope there’s meaningful change.
Everyone aboard the jet, flying from Wichita, Kansas, and the helicopter died when the two aircraft collided and plummeted into the icy Potomac River. It was the deadliest plane crash on U.S. soil since 2001, and the victims included 28 members of the figure skating community.
The Federal Aviation Administration last week made a permanent change to ensure helicopters and planes no longer share the same airspace around the airport.
Recommendations to move the helicopter routing away from the airport after a near midair collision in 2013 were rejected by the FAA.
“We should be angry, because for years no one listened,” Homendy told reporters prior to the hearing. “This was preventable, this was 100% preventable.”
Homendy said she couldn’t believe the FAA didn’t realize the helicopter route in use during the crash didn’t provide adequate separation from planes landing on Reagan’s secondary runway. She noted that the FAA had refused to add detailed information about helicopter routes to pilots’ charts so they could better understand the risks.
“We know over time concerns were raised repeatedly, went unheard, squashed — however you want to put it — stuck in red tape and bureaucracy of a very large organization,” Homendy said. “Repeated recommendations over the years.”
NTSB investigator Katherine Wilson said an air traffic controller felt a “little overwhelmed” when traffic volume increased to 10 aircraft about 10 to 15 minutes before the collision, but then “felt the volume was manageable when one or two helicopters left the airspace.”
Yet about 90 seconds before the collision, Wilson said, “traffic volume increased to a maximum of 12 aircraft consisting of seven airplanes and five helicopters. Radio communication showed that the local controller was shifting focus between airborne, ground and transiting aircraft.”
The workload “reduced his situational awareness,” Wilson said.
Wilson also noted that their investigation found that the Reagan controllers working during the midair crash had not undergone a specific training workshop that may have helped them be more prepared for the situation.
NTSB investigator Brice Banning said the pilots of both aircraft were qualified, had adequate rest and no medical conditions that would have barred them from flying. He also said both aircraft had been properly equipped and maintained.
They also reiterated previous findings that the helicopter pilots were likely flying at a higher altitude than the chopper’s altimeter was reading. The collision occurred at about 300 feet, while the maximum altitude for helicopters on that route near the airport is 200 feet.
NTSB investigator Dr. Jana Price said interviews with current and former Reagan tower staff found that morale at the tower “had been low for years” prior to the crash. She said that appeared to be due to a 2018 decision by the FAA to downgrade the DCA tower from a level 10 to a level 9 facility, which is a metric based on the volume of air traffic an airport receives.
NTSB investigator Brian Soper explained that downgrading the facility meant it “cannot attract the experience or get the talent” that is needed “to run a very complex air traffic control operation.”
NTSB investigators also showed a video animation to demonstrate how difficult it would have been for the pilots in both aircraft to spot the other amid the lights of Washington. The animation also showed how the windshields of both aircraft and the helicopter crew’s night vision goggles restricted views.
NTSB investigators believe the helicopter pilots never saw the airliner, and they said it appears the airline pilots may not have spotted the chopper until about two seconds before the collision.
The Reagan controller received a conflict alert when the two aircraft were still 1.6 miles apart, the NTSB investigators testified, and said an urgent safety alert that they were on a collision course should have been given at that point.
“The controller should have issued a safety, would have been the most appropriate thing at that time,” Soper said.
Doug Lane, whose wife and son — Christine Lane and Spencer Lane — were killed in the crash, told CBS News outside the hearing that “100%, I feel like the FAA failed me and my family.”
Rachel Feres, who lost her cousin Peter Livingston and his wife and two young daughters, told the Associated Press she was hoping for “clarity and urgency” from the NTSB process.
“I hope that we see a clear path through the recommendations they offer to ensure that this never happens again,” Feres said. “That nobody else has to wake up to hear that an entire branch of their family tree is gone, or their wife is gone or the child is gone.”
Whether that happens depends on how Congress, the Army and the Trump administration respond after the hearing. A pending bill would require all aircraft to have advanced locator systems to help avoid collisions.
Price said NTSB investigators also found the FAA is not using a standardized approach for how it defines near-miss events between aircraft.
“It’s something that we think is necessary, to have more of a standard definition of what constitutes a close proximity event, so that there can be a way of comparing one airport to another, or looking at trends over time, rather than what is kind of a hodgepodge, if you will, right now, of different ways of measuring this,” Price said.
Even before Tuesday, the NTSB had already spelled out many key factors that contributed to the crash. Investigators said controllers in the Reagan tower had been overly reliant on asking pilots to spot other aircraft and maintain visual separation.
The night of the crash, the controller approved the Black Hawk’s request to do that twice. However, the investigation has shown that the helicopter pilots likely never spotted the American Airlines plane as the jet circled to land on the little-used secondary runway.
In a statement Tuesday, the FAA said it has reduced hourly plane arrivals at Reagan airport from 36 to 30 and increased staff. The agency said it has 22 certified controllers in the tower and eight more in training.
“We will diligently consider any additional recommendations” from the NTSB, the FAA said.
Several high-profile crashes and close calls followed the D.C. collision, alarming the flying public. But NTSB statistics show that the total number of crashes last year was the lowest since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, with 1,405 nationwide.
