In Mike Martz's offense the past two years, the Lions rarely ran the ball. Opponents pinned their ears back and came after Kitna, who often took seven-step drops and stood there waiting for deep routes to develop, a sitting duck.

Now that Jim Colletto has replaced Martz as offensive coordinator, the Lions plan to be more balanced to keep opponents off-balance. There will be more three-step drops and quick throws, and Kitna, Dan Orlovsky and Drew Stanton won't be stationary. They will be moving targets with roll outs and bootlegs.

"We're going to make them honor the quarterback," Colletto said. "All those guys can run good enough. They're not Michael Vicks, but they can run good enough. You leave them alone, they're going to make some yards. He isn't going to be in the same place all the time."

Kitna is all for it.

"I like to throw on the move," Kitna said. "It's something I came into the league doing. It's what I did in college. It's how I grew up playing in high school. Just kind of gym-rat type of thing."

The changes shouldn't just help Kitna avoid sacks (he took 114 of them over the past two years) and hits (he took a heck of a lot). It should help him avoid interceptions too. He threw 42 over the past two years, against 39 touchdown passes.

Fewer passing attempts should lead to fewer hits and picks, and when you're on the move, you have more options.

"When you're outside the pocket, you can always throw it away," Kitna said. "When you're inside the pocket, coachspeak says, 'Throw it away.' Well, you have to have a place to throw it to throw it away inside the pocket. When you're outside the pocket, you can just throw it. Throw it out of bounds. Throw it in the dirt. No harm. You line back up."

Kitna was close to Martz and enjoyed playing in his offense. He loved its aggressiveness and design, and he threw for 4,208 yards in 2007 and 4,068 last year. Those are the second- and third-highest totals in team history.

But he said he feels comfortable in Colletto's offense. It is more like what he did earlier in his career with the Seahawks and Bengals.

"It's different because the last two years," Kitna said. "But prior to that, this is what I've been in. This is what we were when I was in Cincinnati. This is what we were when I was in Seattle.

"I love what we did the last two years. Everybody knows my feelings about Coach Martz and all that stuff, and I had a great time playing.

"But I've done this. This is nothing new for me. I'm excited about it. I understand it. Their concern is, 'Will you understand the running game?' I know all that stuff. So we'll be fine."

CAMP CALENDAR: Controlled scrimmage Aug. 2. Camp breaks Aug. 18.

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