How much of the Detroit Lions disappointing season is Matt Patricia’s fault?
By Robert Jones
The Detroit Lions are not living up to expectations for the second straight year. Is it Matt Patricia’s fault or is there enough blame to go around?
The Detroit Lions are stuck in third place in the highly competitive NFC North. Back to back losses to the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings put them in a big hole to climb out of. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears, who have struggled themselves, are only a half a game behind the Lions.
Including today’s match-up, four of the Lions’ next five games are against teams with a record of .500 or below. Any and all of their meager playoff hopes rest on taking advantage of this stretch.
But just as the Lions are eyeing this stretch as an opportunity to get back in the playoff race, their opponents are eyeing them as a chance for themselves to get right as well.
As the old saying goes; ‘the more things change the more they stay the same.’ Despite everything pointing towards this Lions team being improved and possibly on the road to becoming a good team, a three-game losing streak, one which was a shoot-out they couldn’t finish, the next which can be legitimately argued that the officials cheated Detroit out of a win, and then the final which was just a case of the Lions being whipped, before last weeks win over the Giants, deflated the city as well as their playoff hopes.
The offense is better under new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, but the rushing game has still been grounded. Meanwhile, the defense which was so good down the stretch last season seems to be progressively getting worse each week.
One of my friends even said it might be more interesting to watch the struggling Pistons who desperately need to re-build instead of the forever floundering Lions.
I am a man for Detroit and do love the Pistons, but that’s pretty close to rock-bottom if you ask me and closer than that choice should ever be at this particular time.
So as we look at the standings wondering how we could be cursed with a passion for a team that is so allergic to success, who should shoulder the Lions’ share of the blame for this disappointing season so far?