The Detroit Lions took a punch to the gut on Sunday, losing to the Seattle Seahawks at home. Now, Motown is in last place in the NFC North and spiraling.
The Detroit Lions were riding high coming into Sunday’s matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. The Lions were playing at Ford Field, returning home after an impressive road victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week Seven. Detroit had won three of their last four games prior to facing the Seahawks and their arrow was pointing upwards.
Unfortunately, the Seahawks were experiencing a very similar resurgence, having also won three out of this last four games after starting the season 0-2. And on Sunday, Seattle ran straight through the Lions in Detroit, to the tune of 28-14.
In the victory, the Seahawks didn’t necessarily prove they were the better team as much as the Lions were facing two enemies on the field. Seattle being one. The other? Themselves.
Detroit simply didn’t give themselves a fighting chance against the Seahawks as they were plagued by penalties, fumbles, drops, an interception, and more mental mistakes. The loss suddenly places the Lions in the basement of the NFC North with a 3-4 record.
A win against Seattle could have helped to elevate Detroit to the top of their division, as they are scheduled to face off against the 4-2-1 Minnesota Vikings next weekend, the current NFC North leaders. Instead, the Lions now have a much tougher road to the playoffs.
As the division currently stands, the Vikings sit atop the NFC North with a matchup with the 5-1 New Orleans Saints on Sunday night. The 3-2-1 Green Bay Packers are in second place, facing the 7-0 Los Angeles Rams this afternoon. Finally, the Chicago Bears defeated the New York Jets earlier today to move to 4-3.
The Detroit Lions have suddenly gone from a surging franchise to one now scrambling for answers and spiraling down the NFC North standings. The Motor City will need to find more consistency before being considered legitimate playoff candidates.