5 Detroit Lions players fans should be most thankful for this year

The Detroit Lions are in some rare air by almost any measure you can find right now. If things go a certain way in Week 13, starting with a win over the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving Day, they can clinch a playoff spot before the calendar flips to December.

In any case, Lions fans have a lot to be thankful when it comes to their favorite team. If you were to ask how many players they're thankful for this year, some would surely scream "53!" But the point of this exercise is to narrow to a shorter list players Lions' fans are (or should be) most thankful for this year. Just players, not coaches or anyone/anything else.

Listed in no particular order, here are five Lions players fans are (or should be) most thankful for this year.

5 Lions players fans should be most thankful for this year

RB Jahmyr Gibbs

A nod can surely be given to David Montgomery here, as "Sonic" would not be "Sonic" without "Knuckles." But Gibbs has upped his game so far in his second season, and he was hardly a dud as a rookie. He's fourth in the league in rushing entering Week 13 (886 yards) with 10 touchdowns, while trailing only Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry in yards per carry.

A tentacle to being thankful for Gibbs is being thankful that Lions general manager Brad Holmes ignored the "position value" truthers to take a running back with the 12th overall pick in the 2023 draft.

QB Jared Goff

"Ja-red Goff" chants are inescapable at Lions' games (home and road) and virtually any sporting even that takes place in Detroit. Goff is a symbol of the franchise's turnaround, with his career resurrection taking place in parallel with the rise from 3-13-1 in Dan Campbell's first season to being a Super Bowl favorite now.

There will always be Goff detractors, logical or not, but he fits the Lions perfectly and that's all that matters.

OT Penei Sewell

Fortune smiled on the Lions in the first draft under the Brad Holmes/Dan Campbell regime when Sewell fell to the seventh overall pick. And the reaction in the draft war room said they knew they got their guy.

Sewell has only become the best right tackle in the NFL. He's a rare athlete for his size, and entering Week 13 he is Pro Football Focus' highest-graded offensive player over the last two seasons. Not just offensive tackle, offensive player.

Sewell is obviously a long-term piece for the Lions, just as they thought (knew) he would be back in April of 2021.

S Kerby Joseph

Joseph has been a ballhawk since he arrived as a third-round pick in 2022, but he's taken it to another level this year along with becoming a better all-around safety as he had Brian Branch have formed the best safety tandem in the league.

Joseph is tied for the league lead with seven interceptions, along with 52 total tackles and nine pass breakups. He is also PFF's highest overall-graded safety entering Week 13 (91.3), with the No. 1 coverage grade at the position (91.5).

Campbell wanted to see Joseph reach another level in his third season, and it has happened. It's a credit to him, as he moves toward earning the first Pro Bowl selection of his career.

DE Za'Darius Smith

Losing Aidan Hutchinson was a huge blow for the Lions, but since being acquired from the Cleveland Browns at the trade deadline Smith has been everything it was hoped he would be. He didn't play in his first game as a member of the team, but he made an impact due to his experience and things he passed along to those were on the field.

In two games played for the Lions, Smith has a 0.5-sack, eight quarterback pressures and six hurries (according to PFF).

There's no replacing Hutchinson, but the interest the Lions had in Smith as the trade deadline neared was impossible for them to hide. Time will tell if he's around next season to team up with Hutchinson, but Smith is off to a great start in Detroit and everyone (fans, coaches, etc.) should be thankful he's around.