Detroit Lions season already a disappointment
By J.D. Laker
Despite their inherent advantages in the NFC North, the Detroit Lions are going to struggle to make the playoffs as a wild card.
*Hello darkness my old friend….*
It was a rough week for the Detroit faithful. After losing at home to the Minnesota Vikings on Thanksgiving in a game I had all but guaranteed throughout the season (oops) and getting no help in the form of other NFC playoff contenders losing the Detroit Lions are entrenched an uphill battle to make the postseason.
According to fivethirtyeight.com Detroit has a 23% chance to make the playoffs and only a 3% chance to win the division. The Lions are chasing the Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, and the Seattle Seahawks for a wildcard spot. Detroit has already dropped games to Carolina and Atlanta and in a cruel twist of fate that infamous “10 second runoff” call may very well keep the Lions out of the playoffs this year.
No matter how you break it down this season has been a let down. On offense, the running game is as bad as ever and the offensive line has yet to gel or flash any signs of the dominance we hoped for.
On defense, the Lions have been doing more breaking than bending lately. The defensive line is a glaring issue and the defensive ends have consistently failed to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Now Detroit is relying on the likes of elder statesman Dwight Freeney to save them. Sigh..
It wasn’t supposed to be this difficult. After Green Bay lost Aaron Rodgers to injury and with Minnesota putting their season in the hands of career backup Case Keenum I truly felt like Detroit had a golden opportunity to win the division and host a home playoff game this season. But with the Lions it can never be easy.
The team has a soft remaining schedule and if they can win in Baltimore this weekend they could end up running the table and getting into the playoffs, but it would take nothing short of a total implosion on behalf of the Vikings for them to win the division now and it’s frustrating.
Everything broke right for them and they still couldn’t take advantage of the watered down NFC North. Even if they sneak in as a wild card it’s disheartening to know that this team is still so far away from true contention.
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I thought they were better than this and I doubt anything will happen the rest of the season to quell my disappointment in the 2017 campaign.