Martin Mayhew took over the Lions general manager post before the 2009 season with a detailed plan to reshape a 0-16 roster.
Now three years into that strategy, Mayhew says he's right about on schedule.
"I think we got to the point where I think we're certainly better than (the) average football team," he said. "Going back to 2009 when we started off, I think we're on schedule."
The Lions won 10 games this season and made the playoffs for the first time in 12 years. Most people would view that as being ahead of schedule, especially considering the starting line.
The framework and heavy lifting part of the roster makeover is over. The cosmetic work now begins for Mayhew: to take a good roster and make it better.
"It is a totally different scenario this offseason," he said. "In the past we have only been trying to acquire good players.
"Now that we have good players on our roster, we have decisions to make on those good players: which one we are able to keep, which ones we are not able to keep and can we replace those players with the same talent level at a better price, at the same price. What does it cost to replace those guys?
"It will be one of the most challenging offseasons - probably the most challenging offseason - so far, because of where we are as a football team."
Whether to re-sign defensive end 
Those are good problems to have, though, according to him. They show the blueprint he laid out in 2009 is working.
It's now his job to push the right buttons this offseason to make the Lions better equipped to beat and not just compete against the NFC's best teams.
"When you look at the six teams in the NFC (playoffs), we lost to four of them (Packers, Saints, 49ers and Falcons)," Mayhew said. "So we've got some work to do to make that next step, but it was a big step for us this year. I think to compete with the top teams out there, we still need to make some improvement."
Mayhew will do that by building through the draft, counting on players under contract to mature and get better and re-signing or adding the right mix of free agents to fill in the gaps.
Essentially, Mayhew will continue to stick with his plan.
