Lions' Fairley says he learned a lot from Suh

Free-agent defensive tackle Nick Fairley has gotten his fair share of criticism for his weight gains with the Detroit Lions over the years. But you have to give him this much: He knows which side his bread is buttered on.

After playing next to Ndamukong Suh the past four years, Fairley knew he was headed to free agency as he packed up his locker in January and he made sure to link his name to Suh's as often as possible.

Suh flourished with the Lions while Fairley often foundered, either through injury, inconsistent performance or poor weight management. But Fairley said he learned a lot from Suh, including how to train better.

"We talked throughout the season," Fairley said. "Just seeing the things he did in the off-season, I wanted to pick up on it. I told him, 'Send me some paperwork of what you're doing and I'm going to add it to mine because I think it'll help me out.' "

Fairley's idea to copy greatness was well founded, and he said something as simple as having a clear focus during weight training paid dividends.

"It's multiple things," Fairley said. "As far as how he worked out and went about lifting weights, he don't just probably go in there and just lift a whole bunch of weights. He might do something different. It's just different things that he do."

Fairley also was selfless in his praise of Suh and wished him well in free agency.

"I'll tell you, Ndamukong deserves everything that he gets," Fairley said. "For the four years that I've been with him, I've never seen him complain, I've never seen him fuss or just get down. During the games, like he'd just come to the sidelines picking guys up.

"He's a great leader. I want to see him do great and he deserves everything he gets."

Contact Carlos Monarrez: cmonarrez@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez.