Detroit Lions: Offense should be better, but can the defense stop anyone?

The Detroit Lions have made a big effort to improve their offense, but is the defense capable of stopping anybody?

The Detroit Lions are feeling pretty good about their offseason. The national pundits have in general been positive about the work general manager Bob Quinn has done and the fans seem to be optimistic.

In a league that has tried very hard to re-write their rule books to create offensive fireworks, the Lions seem to be finally joining the party. A very solid draft which has bolstered the offense, especially on the line and in the backfield, combined with the return of their very productive passing game has created offensive optimism in the Motor City.

While the Lions, like every other team in the NFL, have questions that won’t be answered until they actually take the field. On paper, they have made good moves that would seem to have improved the team.

Improvement is always a good thing. In professional sports, every team is always getting better or worse. If improvements aren’t made then regardless of how good your team was last season, they are getting worse by not keeping up with all their competitors who are feverishly working to become title contenders.

In the case of the Detroit Lions, last season was in general a very good opening act for offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. The scheme was diverse and until Matthew Stafford went down to injury, it was dangerous.

This despite inconsistencies on the offensive line and in rushing attack. Yet a healthy draft to improve those areas, along with the return of Matthew Stafford creates intriguing possibilities for the Lions offense.

Despite the virtual offseason, there will be much work needed to build cohesiveness on the offensive line and the Lions new offensive toys will have to perform when they finally step on the field together.

Yet the fact is that there is offensive optimism for good reason. These Lions do have the possibility of becoming one of the better units in the NFL. One of the truly exciting offenses to watch. However, before they can really become contenders, they will need some big improvement from last year’s weak spot; the defense.