Ailing Detroit Lions poised to make a run after the bye week
By J.D. Laker
The Detroit Lions have the rest of the NFC North right where they want them despite losing back-to-back games.
What if I told you before the season started that the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers would be starting backup quarterbacks for most of the season while the Chicago Bears would be starting a rookie quarterback? You would think the Detroit Lions would be sitting in the proverbial catbird seat in the NFC North.
The Lions recent struggles and injuries pale in comparison to the problems facing the rest of the division.
Minnesota touts one of the league’s best defenses, but they’ve already dropped a crucial home game to Detroit and are depending on glass quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater as well as a career backup in Case Keenum to lead them.
The Vikings come to town on Thanksgiving and I just cannot see them stealing one from the Lions who’ve become Turkey Day juggernauts.
Despite my severe distaste for Aaron Rodgers, there is no denying he is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. With Rodgers under center the Packers are always a threat to win. This was the year I thought Detroit could go toe to toe with Rodgers and come out on top.
I truly believed we had a deeper and more talented squad than GB for the first time in many years. But, alas it looks like the Packers have been significantly handicapped by losing Rodgers.
Now we’ve seen Packer’s backups light up the Lions before so I’m not going to write Brett Hundley and company off yet. Sometimes when I close my eyes I still see the ghost of Matt Flynn throwing for a thousand yards and 20 touchdowns against us. But the task of slaying the Packers has been facilitated by the unfortunate injury to Rodgers.
Rodgers missed seven weeks last time he injured his collarbone so we may get our final showdown with him after all as Detroit will try and take the North and defend the den in the regular season finale at Ford Field. The question is can the Pack tread water long enough and continue to win while Rodgers is sidelined? I don’t know if they can as his greatness has been the main thing keeping them afloat this season.
The Monsters of the Midway invested heavily in the quarterback position this offseason. For some reason they paid Mike Glennon a fortune only to move up a spot in the draft at a hefty price to select quarterback Mitchell “don’t call me Mitch” Trubisky, or as my friends in Chicago call him “Truthbisky”.
Trubisky flashed in the preseason while Glennon struggled. Now the Bears have benched Glennon in favor of the rookie and have been playing some decent ball. Trubisky brings mobility to the position and hope to the fan base.
The issue with the Bears is that outside of their talented stable of running backs they are devoid of offensive weapons. Quickly, name a Bears wide receiver…. Anyone? Buehler??. The Bears are simply not a threat to win the division this season.
Next: Will the Detroit Lions overcome the injury bug?
Now I know everyone is feeling a bit down on the Lions after such a hot start, but with everything that has unfolded within the division Detroit truly is in an incredible position to take the NFC North. The bye week could not have come at a more opportune time and the Lions are poised to get healthy and make a run in search of their first playoff win in decades.
Everything is in front of them. Positive vibes only! Forward down the fiiiiield.