ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday at Ford Field, not that it really matters anyway. The Lions have been toast for weeks now, Matthew Stafford is among a half-dozen offensive starters who won’t play, and hey, Tampa isn’t exactly great either.

So this week’s mailbag is entirely about the state of the franchise, and thanks once again to everyone who participated despite the on-field product. It’s been a long year for everybody, beat writers included. But hey, we’re like the postal service. Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of more last-place finishes in the NFC North will stay us from the swift completion of our appointed rounds.

OK, I’ll stop nerding out now.

Q: What do you think about Hakeem Valles comments? -- @Brad_Marr

A: For those that missed it, Valles is a former Lions tight end who retired after last season. And now he’s opened up about how he thought it was a nightmare playing for Matt Patricia. During an episode of the Pride Podcast, he said there is a culture of fear and ego in Detroit, citing examples like toxic Monday meetings where Patricia would just light up players for an hour-and-a-half about their mistakes.

“He’s creating a culture based on fear, in the sense of there’s too much ego involved,” Valles said. "It’s a very alpha-beta type of room, meaning he’s the alpha, everybody else better be a beta.

“I don’t know however many meetings there were, in the time that (I) was there, there was not one meeting where he came on time. That’s wild to me. So much disrespect in that, in my opinion, in the sense of, we come late to a meeting, we get fined. And it’s almost like he did it on purpose to let you know that, ‘You’re beta, I’m alpha, you’re going to come on time, I’m going to come whenever the (bleep) I want.’”

Asked if Patricia was just coaching like Bill Belichick, Valles said: “He was Bill Belichick with his own twist. We had a lot of guys that came from the Belichick regime out in New England and all of them (said), ‘(Bleep) was not like this in New England. It’s Belichick with some steroids added onto it."

On and on and on. Give it a listen if that’s your cup, because I can assure you, Valles is not alone in these complaints. This is how many players feel.

Here’s the thing, though. It’s common for players to have grievances against a former coach or general manager, or a franchise all together. I mean, when you get fired, you don’t usually walk away happy about it, right? So it’s important to remember that context here. I’ve heard complaints from former players long before Patricia arrived. And for a guy like Valles, who sounds like he didn’t have both feet in football at the end -- he retired this year to care for his young daughter and some business dealings -- it makes sense he might not like a Patricia culture that is based entirely on eating, sleeping and breathing football.

Then again, what’s not common is for a guy to go public about his complaints, and what’s especially not common is to hear so many former players go public about it. I just haven’t experienced it. I heard a lot of stuff about Jim Schwartz back in the day, for example, especially after he was fired. He was’t exactly well-liked by all his players either. But to my mind, no one went public about it. And the sames goes for Jim Caldwell, although Jim Caldwell was basically universally beloved by his players, so that makes sense.

With that said, it’s important to remember Patricia is trying to oversee a cultural change in Detroit. And it’s a cultural change that was needed. I thought Jim Caldwell was an excellent leader and manager of people who had shortcomings as a football coach. And his football teams reflected it. They always played hard, they came together for some magical moments -- especially in 2016 -- but ultimately, they always lost the big game. Always. I think those teams maxed out what Jim Caldwell was capable of here, and I understand Bob Quinn’s decision to go for a new approach.

That approach is a tough one, no doubt about it. Matt Patricia has run those guys hard, especially in 2018, and he’s been hard on players. So of course some guys, especially those with an affinity for Caldwell -- and especially those who saw their roles change or diminish under the new regime -- didn’t like it. Again, that makes sense, and doesn’t necessarily mean Patricia is wrong. Hate to break it to you, but there have been some wildly successful coaches who were sons-of-you-know-what.

Of course, Patricia hasn’t been successful in Detroit, let alone wildly successful. I think Patricia made mistakes trying to implement his vision last year, and even he would agree. I think he’s made substantive changes to his style this year, and he’s won over more of the locker room because of it. Yet the team is still losing. Whether Patricia’s approach is the right one for Detroit remains to be seen. But given how well-liked his predecessor was, and how he’s trying to take the team to the next level, it makes total sense players who didn’t fit into the new world order are unhappy. At the same time, it’s unusual to hear from so many, and you have to wonder how many guys still in the locker room feel similarly. And if there is still not enough buy in, then maybe it’ll never work out for Patricia here.

Q: Does Bob Quinn have the guts to fire his friend if he’s given green light? Also could Bob Quinn be let go and Patricia retained? Or Bevell promoted to HC? Sorry 3 questions in 1 there! -- @LionsFan4Everr

A: Is it possible that Bob Quinn stays and Matt Patricia goes? Yes. But I don’t see it happening. These guys are joined at the hip, contractually and otherwise. They see the game the same way. They want to win the same way. So if that vision isn’t working with one coach, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to leave a general manager in place to continue that vision. Again, it could happen, but I just don’t see it.

As for firing Quinn but keeping Patricia, that makes even less sense.

Bevell as the head coach is an interesting notion, and can’t be entirely ruled out. He’s smart as hell. Players love him, and unlike most of the staff this season, he’s gotten results. And hiring him as head coach would ensure continuity with the offense, which was performing so well before Matthew Stafford got hurt. But I do wonder whether Bevell has the personality to be an NFL head coach. He’s more of a cerebral, Xs and Os kind of guy. I don’t know if he has the temperament to lead an entire franchise. Those guys tend to be alphas in one way or another, and I haven’t seen that side of Bevell. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t have it, but just based on the information available, I think he’s best cast as a playcaller. There’s a lot to like about what he’s done in that capacity for Detroit.

Q: Would the perception of the 2019 Lions be any different if BQ and MP had admitted in 2018 their “process” was a rebuild? -- Todd Hager

A: The greatest mistake of the Matt Patricia era, besides losing games by the fistful, was failing to warn people they’d be losing games by the fistful. Bob Quinn said 9-7 was no longer good enough, meaning he thought the Lions had the talent to go 10-6 or better, and Patricia would be the man to take them over the top. And it was a huge mistake not to set fans’ expectations more appropriately.

I get that you don’t want to go out there after making your first big head coaching hire and say, “Hey guys, I know we just had back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1994-95, but now we’re going to lose a crap-ton of games for a couple years. Just hang with me.” That doesn’t exactly get the base fired up, you know? But it was also a mistake to never sell this as a rebuild in the first place.

Of course, there is always the possibility they didn’t know it was going to be this bad. Either way, you don’t undergo a cultural change as dramatic as this without incurring some bumps along the way, and the Lions should have set expectations accordingly. Yet I don’t recall anyone using the word “rebuild,” or to borrow from Matt Patricia, “process,” when this hire was made.

I’m willing to bet if these guys would have gone out there on Day 1 and just told the people, “Look, it was OK for a while, but 9-7 is no longer good enough and we know how to take the next step. But it requires a long-term process to rebuild the foundation of this organization. Times might be tough for a while, but we know what we’re doing and it will payoff” -- you go out and say some version of that, and it warns people of the hard days to come. Instead, they pretended like they were going to contend from Day 1, and when that didn’t happen, they lost credibility because it looked like they didn’t know what they were doing.

I believe that factors significantly into the public disappointment with this administration, and the mounting pressure to move on just two years into a considerable rebuild that no one saw coming.

Q: What will MP need to do this offseason to gain back respect from the rabid fan base? -- @ForrestJPage86

A: Win. That’s all, baby. There’s nothing else he can say or do in the offseason to sway public opinion. He can only win at this point, or else.

Q: What players on an expiring contract do you see coming back for next year? I.e. Glasgow, Scarbrough, etc., and also what players do you anticipate being let go, via cut, not re-signing, or trade? -- Andrew Martin

A: Notable players on expiring contracts who I expect to see come back: Receiver Danny Amendola is a pretty good bet, because this staff loves everything he does on an off the field (as does Matthew Stafford). Obviously, running back Bo Scarbrough sure as hell looks like a fit for this offense. I think he’ll get a new deal and return to compete for the primary complementary job to Kerryon Johnson. After that, it’s mostly question marks in this free-agent class.

The big iffies are Graham Glasgow and A’Shawn Robinson. Both are good enough to bring back, but both were good enough to take care of last offseason and it didn’t happen. Glasgow might be Detroit’s best offensive lineman -- he’s right there with Frank Ragnow anyway -- but he’s been the same guy for a long time, and the Lions could have extended him last summer. And the fact it hasn’t happened leads me to think there’s a possibility either A) The club doesn’t think he’s worth the kind of pay bump he’ll surely command, or B) Glasgow doesn’t want to come back.

I’ve long wondered whether the guard rotation, which hurts Glasgow’s playing time and perhaps deflates his earning potential, would weigh negatively on Detroit’s ability to bring him back. And I mean, all the losing can’t help either.

Guys who I think are out include defensive tackle Mike Daniels (what a waste of $8.1 million that was) and cornerback Rashaan Melvin (hello, Amani Oruwariye).

Others who are in their contract years and face uncertain futures: Kenny Wiggins (who this staff seems to love), Jermaine Kearse (remember him?), Oday Aboushi, Tavon Wilson, Don “Death and Taxes” Muhlbach, Logan Thomas (who has some nice upside), Miles Killebrew, J.D. McKissic, Darius Kilgo, Jeff Driskel, Mike Ford, Dee Virgin and Frank Herron.

As for others who are under contract but might not be back, there are two obvious candidates. One is Darius Slay, who has already publicly beefed with the team over the Quandre Diggs trade. We’ve seen repeated examples of Detroit offloading players who aren’t willing to shut up and play the game their way, and I think Slay, for all his talents, is another candidate for getting served his walking papers. Of course, he’s also a terrific player, even if he’s off his A-game this year. And I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the Lions could use more good players, not fewer. That’s especially true on defense, where Slay remains Detroit’s best player along with Trey Flowers.

Another possible exit is punter Sam Martin. He agreed to take a paycut before the season, and while he technically remains under contract through 2020, the deal can be voided. He’s been fine this year, but nothing special, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Detroit entertain its options.

Of course, all this presumes the current decision makers remain in place. If Bob Quinn and/or Matt Patricia do not return, there’s no telling what will happen.

Q: How much, if any proof do we have that this staff is actively getting rid of strong personalities that speak their mind? Ebron, Diggs and even Tate can fall into those categories. Are they willing to lose talent in order to mold the locker room into what they want? -- @Sandman7773

A: The idea that the Lions are purging strong personalities isn’t just an idea. It’s a fact. I was told directly from team decision makers that Glover Quin’s culture-clashing with the new regime factored into his exit. Of course his play also dropped off, and that matters more than anything, but Quin had two feet still in the Jim Caldwell era and the Lions weren’t having it.

The same goes for Quandre Diggs. Again, he wasn’t making plays anymore (here, anyway), and that matters more than anything. But I was also told Diggs’ personality on the field and in the locker room factored into the decision as well. He wasn’t the type of leader this regime wanted, and the team was concerned he would negatively impact young players like Tracy Walker.

Eric Ebron is the best example of all. He just wasn’t a culture fit in so many ways, and his up-and-down production made him all the more expendable.

Golden Tate’s case is a little different. OK, the Lions weren’t exactly thrilled with how he carried himself either, but his departure had more to do with the finances than anything else. The Lions made him a generous offer during his contract year, and I don’t think you do that if the guy has a personality with which you’re not willing to live. But Tate turned it down, Detroit believed it would be unable to re-sign Tate and the decision was made to at least get something of value in return.

Still, there’s no doubt the Lions are trying to reshape the voice of the locker room. The team’s point of view is they’re trying to build the foundation for a consistent winner, and you can’t win consistently without a certain team-first culture. If that means offloading individual talent along the way, so be it.

Q: How much do these practice squad guys make for being on the team for days/weeks? -- @mdriddlen

A: The minimum salary for practice squad players is $8,000 per week, which works out to $136,000 for a full 17-week season. (Yes, players get a game check for the bye week, even practice squad players.) But it’s not uncommon for priority practice squad players to receive more.

Q: Is Ragnow gonna get a pro bowl? Be the first BQ pick to get one -- @JacobMusic88

A: Probably not. He’s been good this year -- in fact, he’s been the No. 1 center in the league according to ProFootballFocus -- but the Pro Bowl is largely a popularity contest and Ragnow is playing in football obscurity right now. But he is building a resume that, if his play holds up, could pay off with some postseason recognition in future years. That’s how it often happens for players, and especially non-skill players like offensive linemen.

Q: First off I just want to say thank you for your continued hard work and coverage. It has not been a fun year to watch, but as always, great work and insight. Hey at least you get paid to watch it... right? Right? Maybe? Is there a price for being forced to watch bad football? Do you feel like there’s a level of Hell dedicated to watching the Lions? Ok I digress... -- Andrew Martin

A: