Kitna says Vikings might have league's best D

Detroit Lions quarterback Jon Kitna has been connected to some bold statements, even if, as he suggested today, they were taken out of context.

But Kitna applauded the Vikings' defense during a teleconference today.

"You can try to spread them out," Kitna said. "That’s all well and good. But then you’re putting your offensive linemen on an island, and that presents challenges in and of itself.

"The Vikings' defense is obviously one of the best defenses in this league, if not the best, and they’re going to be a team that’s going to be tough to move the ball on all year long for everybody, and Atlanta certainly struggled."

On his 10-win goal: "I said that it would be a disappointment if we don’t win 10 games a football team. Then it became a prediction. Then last week I heard it became a guarantee. But all it is, is an expectation for us."

On his six interceptions against the Vikings last season: "Those interceptions, they came late in the game, when we were in desperate situations."

On the Lions' 10 consecutive losses to the Vikings: "I don’t know how many guys have been here that long. I know we only have 23 guys on this team that were here at the end of last year. This is a new day and age for us, and we could care less about what happened in the past. That doesn’t mean anything to us. The only thing that matters is how we handle ourselves this week."