Detroit Lions: Don’t expect Matt Patricia to work magic in year one
There’s always the possibility that Patricia has incredible success with the Detroit Lions in year one. Just don’t expect it.
It’s that time of the year again. With most training camps kicking off this week, passionate fans look to their teams to see who will step up to the plate and shine this upcoming season. Somewhere, hidden beneath the hope brimming within most fans, is the reality that only twelve teams make the playoffs, and only one can bring home the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl LIII.
That’s not to say the Detroit Lions will not be good this year. In fact, I don’t say so to even rule them out from winning the Super Bowl — in this league, anything can happen. I say so as a reminder because this is the time of year when fans set themselves up to be let down in the season.
Matt Patricia is a new head coach, and in most cases a new coach takes time to settle in, find their way with a team, and figure out what works best — if they even getting around to doing so. In recent years, NFL teams have too often put themselves in win-now situations that have left every team that searches for a coach looking for the next Sean McVay.
The Los Angeles Rams head coach came in and turned things around in a single season, taking the Rams from 4-12 and their #1 overall pick Jared Goff looking like a bust to 11-5 and plowing their way into the postseason as a three seed.
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There’s always the possibility that Patricia finds that kind of success with this team. After all, he comes in under a front office with the same background as him, a defense which was rebuilt in free agency to match his scheme, and one of the most dynamic passing offenses in the league.
Not to mention, Patricia has been a hot name as a coaching candidate for several years; only now did he get a job many assume was long overdue.
Then again, things could go the other way. Patricia has no head coaching experience under his belt, takes over a defense that has major question marks surrounding its defensive line in the present and the future, and the only facet of the offense or defense that has a semblance of continuity from last season is the passing game.
Also worth noting: Patricia’s defensive scheme is anything but easy; before Patricia’s defense in New England became the impenetrable force that carried the Patriots to Super Bowl LII, they weren’t much of a force at all. CBS Sports’ Reid Forgrave puts it best:
"On the NFL’s opening night, the Kansas City Chiefs hung 42 points on the Patriots, upsetting the defending Super Bowl champs … Four games into the season, the Patriots were sitting at 2-2 and allowing 32 points per game. To put that in perspective, the worst scoring defense in the NFL this season was the Texans, and they allowed 27.3 points per game."
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It’s common sense, but worth stating: we won’t know what kind of team the Lions really are until the regular season comes around. In the meantime, there will be overhyped training camp observations, camp darlings dubbed saviors of the team, and way, way too much hope.
That’s not to say that Matt Patricia won’t be wildly successful in his first season with the Detroit Lions; anything can happen. Just don’t expect it.