25d312961b2dc32b460f6a7067004bf8.jpg

Lions coach Jim Schwartz has the support of his players, all the way until the very end. (AP Photo)

ALLEN PARK -- Jim Schwartz faced his players just moments after he had been fired. He spoke for 15 minutes about the news, and wouldn't let anyone else talk. Wouldn't let anyone make excuses for his failed regime. He cried some.

Then he walked out, without saying another word.

And that is how the Schwartz Era will end in Detroit.

"He stood on his own 10 toes and talked to us like a man," Lions receiver Nate Burleson said. "He basically voiced his appreciation for us as a team, and just talked about the journey and enjoying the ride. He put himself and this team in a position where we were expected to win a lot of games, and rightfully so. Because we didn't, he got fired.

"It was a very heart-felt moment, and a lot of guys were shocked, but we appreciate the fact that he stood in front of us and did it like a man. It was emotional. He was holding back tears. Guys were dropping their heads, and kind of shrugging their shoulders with a look of confusion on their face. But it's a raw business, and this happens every single year."

Schwartz was fired Monday afternoon after going 29-51 in five seasons with Detroit. His teams finished with a losing record in four of five years, including a disappointing 7-9 result in 2013.

His high-water mark was a playoff bid in 2011, but stumbled to four- and seven-win seasons in the subsequent two years.

Schwartz lost a lot of games -- 17 of his final 24 -- but never his players. They backed him publicly in the weeks preceding his firing, even as it became a foregone conclusion, and again in the moments after his emotional parting.

"This is a decision I don't like. That's where I'll leave it," said rookie defensive end Ezekiel Ansah, who was selected No. 5 overall by Detroit in part because of Schwartz's belief in him.

On the other end of the rookie spectrum, the undrafted Joseph Fauria credited Schwartz for not only sparking his professional career, but developing him throughout the season.

Schwartz's firing was a "shock" to Fauria, as well as several other players who stood by him until the bitter end.

"This isn't something you can be prepared for," Fauria said. "It's not something they prepare you for in college or the combine. To hear a grown man tell us that kind of news is tough to hear.

"I already had ultimate respect for him as a coach and a person, but even more so now with how he did this."

Center Dominic Raiola started for each of Schwartz's five seasons. He knows why his coach was axed, but wants everyone to remember that Schwartz took a job no one wanted, and changed the culture to one where winning is now expected.

"He held his head up high and told the team he was proud of them. And that he'd been fired," Raiola said. "He walked with his head high, and he should. He took a job nobody wanted. He did that."

Schwartz's firing is likely just the first of several to come. Most of his assistants are expected to be fired, including coordinators Scott Linehan and Gunther Cunningham.

Players are making a case that offensive line coach Jeremiah Washburn be retained, after working wonders with a front that was expected to be a weakness this season.

Team president Tom Lewand and general manager Martin Mayhew appear to have escaped the firing squad. They are set to address the media at 2 p.m., when more should be known about Detroit's transition into 2014 and beyond.