Oh No,”Same Old Lions”, The Detroit Lions’ Season Is Over! Or is it?
The Detroit Lions are only two games into the 2013 season and here come the boos! “Same old Lions!” “The season is over!” “We’ll be lucky to match four wins from a season ago!” “Lions stink!” “You’re a Lions fan? Awe man sucks to be you.” “The season is over!”
Sep 15, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Detroit Lions quarterback
(9) looks to pass during the second half against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
Yeah, I hear everyone. In fact, I’ve heard nothing but crap since Sunday’s disappointing defeat in Arizona. The worst part about it is that most of that garbage is from our very own fan base.
Last week, the Lions managed zero offensive touchdowns in the second half after Reggie Bush sustained a knee injury as the Lions weakness at the wide receiver position became even more apparent. They looked like the same 4-12 team from a season ago that self imploded just about every week.
How does a mega-talented team perform so poorly and find ways to lose games? You would think the Lions would learn from their mistakes as these are the same mistakes that have plagued them for years. Fans are sick of it and rightfully so.
So where do we go from here?
We do the unthinkable, we have faith that this is a different team that is ready to rectify their mistakes. Anyone who watched the post-game press conference on detroitlions.com could tell Matthew Stafford was frustrated, fed up, and sickened. He played a great game, shoot, he’s been stellar through the first two games, completing about 66% of his passes with just one interception, which was off a deflection. He has shown that he is much deserving of the mega deal the Lions gave him over the offseason. But what is most impressive about Stafford is not just is play on the field, but what he said at the end of the game in his press conference,
“What it boils down to is two-minute offense and defense and we didn’t get it done.”
That’s right, no blaming the defense, no blaming missed field goals, no blaming the dropped passes, no blaming the fumble inside their own ten by Reggie Bush in the third quarter, he puts it on himself.
Folks, the penalties have gotten old, the special teams has been frustrating the last two seasons, but when you have leadership at the most important position in the NFL and a guy with Stafford’s ability you have a chance to be really good.
The Lions have a really good opportunity to start from scratch next week and beat the 0-2 Redskins in Washington for the first time ever. To do that they have to play a clean game and be effective in all three phases, although they haven’t shown the ability to do that yet.
It may be frustrating to watch the Lions beat themselves, trust me, no one gets more upset about a Lions loss then me. In fact, you’ll here me shouting out the same frustrations during games on my twitter page, especially when the ball is thrown anywhere near Brandon Pettigrew, but the big picture is that this team has a bright future as long as Matthew Stafford is playing quarterback in Detroit. Also, it’s just week three.