The Detroit Lions had the power to avoid their fate Monday

Fans should expect more

The Lions have now reached a critical junction in their schedule and they will respond one way or another as their mental toughness and determination are tested. This loss will either galvanize them as a team and they will be a better team for it and play like it by making a run at the playoffs or it will overcome them and they will start the usual mid-season fade to oblivion.

As I mentioned earlier, the mindset of moving on after they failed to take matters in their own hands and capitalize on their opportunities to get the ball in the end zone so they could control their own fate instead of having to suffer through the whole world watching them get cheated out of victory by the officials, is the only way they can survive this one.

The bitter taste in their mouth isn’t going to go away and it can either be used as motivation and create a unified locker room that pushes themselves to new heights and overcomes this huge setback or they can wallow in self-pity and watch the season go down the drain.

That game isn’t something the Lions should forget. It should be seething in them every time they take the field for the rest of the season. Don’t let the officials determine the outcome when they are quite capable of doing so themselves.

Despite that loss, these aren’t the ‘same old Lions’ as some have decided to label them. This is a talented team that still is not firing on all cylinders, but has the talent needed to be a contender in the toughest division in the NFL this year.

A team that has been turned around by general manager Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia, but experiencing some severe growing pains at the moment. To dismiss what we have witnessed so far this season is very short-sighted.

Now has it been good enough? No, because Bob Quinn himself said the expectations are much higher simply by letting Jim Caldwell go and bringing in his own hand-picked choice from his old stomping grounds in New England, Matt Patricia, to coach this team over the hump and into championship status.

Which means that if the standard they believe in is that high, then the fans have every right to expect more of this team. Especially given the talent they have been able to add to the roster. The Lions, outside of the egregious penalties called on them, were the better team on Monday Night. Now it’s time to prove it against Minnesota and launch themselves back into the playoff mix.

Because anything less should be unacceptable now. Not only for Bob Quinn, Matt Patricia and every player in that locker room but for the fans as well.