Cunningham, defensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs last season, covered a wide range of topics, including the fact he is evaluating all of Detroit's defensive players. He was asked a couple times which players stood out, but he did not offer any names.

For the second consecutive year, the Lions finished last in the league's defensive rankings. Last season, Detroit became the only team in NFL history to finish 0-16.

"We're looking at all of them one at a time," Cunningham said of his game evaluations of the players. "One guy will stand out and then he won't make such a good play."

He said he is not trying to run down the Lions players, or that he doesn't believe they can succeed.

"It's really important that these players understand we're not coming in with hatred in our heart. It's quite the opposite," Cunningham said. "We're coming in to help them any way we can, to make them players they want to be."

Lions players and Cunningham did things last year both were ill-suited to do: participate in the Tampa Two defensive scheme. The Lions ran the system under former head coach Rod Marinelli, while Cunningham ran it under former Kansas City Chiefs head coach Herm Edwards.

"What Rod did in Tampa Bay was great, and he tried to do that here and maybe it didn't work so great," Cunningham said. "You have to have the players fit the schemes you're trying to implement. What we have to do is look at the players and make sure we have the right scheme. We have to play fast and close on the ball and separate the ball from the offense."

Cunningham's defense in Kansas City was not much better than Detroit's -- the Chiefs were ranked 31st in the NFL. Cunningham said the Tampa Two can be an effective tool, but only if the front four gets consistent pressure on the quarterback. Last year, the Chiefs traded Jared Allen to the Minnesota Vikings and could not replace his pass pressure.

"When we lost Jared Allen, that made a big difference," said Cunningham, whose defense went to a youth movement. "The oldest guy we had was 25. We started seven new players, it was improbable for us to be any good."

It is possible the Lions could start seven new starters next year.

"It's decision-making time in March and April to see what type of team we're going to field," said Cunningham, adding he wants to get away from the bend-but-don't-break defensive style the Lions have used in recent seasons.

"I'm sure you've heard all the war stories about me, there are a lot of them. One of the things that I really believe in is being aggressive," Cunningham said. "Energy is really important to me. How good we can be is an evaluation process right now. We're looking at every tape and evaluating every player.

"If I speak from my heart, I want to go through this league -- like anybody else -- and leave my name on something. Be aggressive. I've always been that way. I'd certainly like to put that mark on the Lions."