After just one game, the Detroit Lions have been eliminated from the 2025 playoffs.
At least, that's how it feels after reading so many of the reactions from pundits about their Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Forget growing pains and adjustments needed thanks to a new offensive line, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator - the fact that the Lions didn't piece it all together in one game means they're back to their haunting 2021-2022 days.
Thankfully for Detroit and for Lions fans, though, that's not at all how the team is feeling as they head into Week 2 against the Chicago Bears. They're ready to clean things up with their communication and missed assignments from Week 1, and are hopeful for a bounce back at home against Ben Johnson.
However, the situation is being described as far more dire than that by ESPN's Jeff Saturday and Louis Riddick, who have Detroit penciled in for a change at playcaller if they lose their first 2025 match against the Bears.
Lions receiving ridiculous calls for change at OC after just one game
"I think it's panic time because of what [Peter Schrager] is saying about the internal portion of the offensive line, and the mentality, right? How long does Dan Campbell go with John Morton calling plays if you’re averaging 2 yards running and 3 yards passing, and last year was the antithesis?," asked Saturday on Get Up! Thursday morning.
Riddick added, "They've gotta get [Jahmyr Gibbs] going, they've gotta get Jameson Williams going, they've gotta get Amon-Ra going, because I'll tell you this: if John Morton doesn't get them going, Dan Campbell will be calling plays very soon, or someone else."
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Let's just take a step back for a moment. Detroit came into Lambeau Field and looked like a shell of themselves against a tightly run Packers defense, to be sure. But, to expect their offense or their line to come into Week 1 fully gelled with one another with so many key personnel changes having taken place in the offseason would've been maddening.
Pundits and analysts like Riddick and Saturday are clearly surprised that they didn't witness the high octane offense of the 2024 Lions in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.
However, losing an All-Pro at center, placing an average guard at center in his place, and then relying on two young offensive linemen to anchor the interior against a Packers D-line that features Micah Parsons, Rashan Gary, and Edgerrin Cooper, and expecting that to all click, is just setting yourself up for failure.
Detroit is still going to have to leave Ford Field with a win, as ridiculous as that sounds, just to quell this talk quickly.