Stafford Has Chance To Put “Same Old Lions” Talk to Rest With a Win
By Matt Urben
Stafford Can Make Huge Statement Leading Lions to a Win Over Packers.
Those “Same Old Lions” people are popping up all around Michigan these days. Ever since the Lions lost to the New York Giants two weeks ago, and now they’ve come out in full force. They come in the forms of parents, grandparents, brothers, wives, and especially uncles.
It’s not their fault, they are just warning us of a truth they know deep in their souls. An inevitable fact that the Lions are going to let you down in the cruelest way possible. It’s not about any one game or any specific moment. It’s every moment, of every game, of every season. Every draft pick, every coaching decision, every throw the QB has ever made. It’s every good thing any other successful team ever does. It’s ” Those Same Old Lions” over and over again every year.
If you know who I’m referring to, chances are they’ve already told you the Lions are going to lose to Green Bay. That the Lions will miss the Playoffs and keep the terrible Jim Caldwell, and overrated Matthew Stafford. That they scratched out a couple lucky wins against bad teams and now the Packers will finish what the Cowboys and Giants already started doing — proving the Lions are frauds.
Of course, some of these things are true. And there certainly are fans that will see the false positives in every poor Lions move. Those that will support this team as an open defiance to everyone who has told them what the Lions can and cannot do a million times. Don’t blame them either, they are optimists. But truthfully, the Lions can’t stay bad FOREVER.
All the Lions need to do is win one game at home in Ford Field. One game to take the division for the first time since 1993. Win one game to prove this team is not a fluke. One game to show Matthew Stafford has progressed into a quarterback bordering on elite.
It’s especially true on this final day of a year in which we saw the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, the Cleveland Cavaliers win the NBA Championship, and Donald Trump win the U.S. Election (the Electoral College Anyway) that anything is possible and nothing lasts forever.
All the Lions need to do is win one game at home in Ford Field. One game to take the division for the first time since 1993. Win one game to prove this team is not a fluke. One game to show Matthew Stafford has progressed into a quarterback bordering on elite.
It’s also one game against the hottest team in the NFL. It’s one game against the best quarterback in football, who last time he was in Detroit, ripped fans’ collective hearts out with a hail mary to end the Lions’ 2015 Playoff chances.
There are plenty of valid reasons to doubt the Lions. Turn on ESPN anytime between now and tomorrow night and you’ll hear all of those reasons loud and clear. I’m not suggesting you get your hopes up for this game. Even the most optimistic of Lions fans know there is a high probability of this being one of the most painful “Same Old Lions” moments ever.
My point is that all it takes is one win and this season will be a success. It just takes one game to stand up and say “NO” to the Green Bay Packers. To say “NO” to ESPN, and Fox Sports and the NFL Network. “NO” to all those who say this team cannot win one home game, against a team with the same 9-6 record Detroit has. As Larry put it, it’s the Lions’ Final Exam.
Win one game and Stafford can put those “Same Old Lions” to bed, if only for one night.
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