How the Detroit Lions became NFC North contenders
Only until a few seasons ago, the Detroit Lions were the butt of jokes in the NFL as one of the worst teams in the league. The team last made the playoffs in the 2016 season and hasn't won a playoff game since the early '90s.
When Matt Patricia was fired in the 2020 season, it seemed like Detroit had hit a new low point and needed a miracle. Boy, did that miracle happen.
HC Dan Campbell has emerged as one of the strongest minds in football and has almost single-handedly changed the fortunes of the franchise one step at a time. After a poor 3-13-1 2021 season, Campbell had his team motivated to prove a point.
The 2022 season saw the Lions miss the playoffs by the skin of their teeth. Looking to better their 2022 finish, they have exploded on the NFL scene this season, holding the NFC's second-best record at 7-2.
Jared Goff has gone from draft bust to one of the league's best quarterbacks, while Aidan Hutchinson looks to be delivering on his hype as a second overall pick. He has emerged as one of the best defensive players in the NFC.
It might be too early to say so, but for once, all looks up in America's Motor City. But how did this come to be? Let's go back to the end of the 2020 season.
2020 was the low point for the Detroit Lions
In 2020 the Detroit Lions were almost synonymous with sadness. The team had found success hard to come by and even with Matthew Stafford and Calvin "Megatron" Johnson, the best result they could muster was a single Wild Card appearance.
When Matt Patricia was hired as the club's head coach at the beginning of the 2018 season, he was expected to bring the defensive prowess he was known for at the New England Patriots. However, the results only spiraled further and heading into the 2020 season, he had only won nine games in two years.
Losing to the Houston Texans in Detroit's Thanksgiving game would seal Patricia's fate. He was fired and has one of the worst winning percentages as a head coach in Detroit.
2021 Detroit Lions see progress without reward
Dan Campbell certainly wouldn't be the man you could foresee turning around a team's fortunes. He hadn't been the head coach of an NFL team before (although he was the interim coach for the Miami Dolphins in 2015). He was also older than most new head coaching hires are.
With all of this, expectations for the Lions were low heading into the 2021 season and they were largely expected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. However, Campbell didn't get the memo.
In his first press conference as head coach of the Detroit Lions, he produced several noteworthy quotes.
"This place has been kicked, it's been battered, it's been bruised. I can give you coach speak all day long, none of that matters — you've had enough of that sh*t.
"This team is going to take on the identity of this city, and this city's been down and it's found a way to get up. This team's going to be built on, we're going to kick you in the teeth."
His high energy and clear love for Detroit almost immediately resonated with the city's sports fans. After a very long time, it seemed as if the Lions finally had the right man and it finally seemed like they were going places.
With the Lions being the worst team in the NFL for many years on end, and simply having a winning percentage greater than .500 being viewed as progress, there was little to no pressure on Campbell to do wonders from the get-go.
This was just as well, as the Lions lost several close games in the dying seconds and finished the season 3-13-1 and didn't win a game until Week 11.
However, this was misleading. Six of their losses were one-score games and there was a lot to like about the plucky Lions, who were a good draft away from seeing results on the field. The 2021 season allowed Campbell to train his players in the Dan Campbell way: aggressive play-calling and high energy.
The Detroit Lions have found their steel
Despite a slow start to the 2022 season, the Lions won eight of their final 10 games, which put them in playoff contention until the very last week of the season.
Looking to build on a promising base, Detroit has certainly surpassed expectations this season, with their 5-2 record good enough to secure the second seed in the NFC as of Week 8.
How have the Lions done this? Over the seven weeks of the 2023 NFL season, their offense has been prolific, averaging 24.8 points per game. Campbell's personality has installed a level of healthy confidence in this squad and it shows on the field.
They have won some close games as underdogs, such as the Week 1 win against the Kansas City Chiefs. No one expected the Lions to go toe-to-toe with the defending champions Chiefs and QB Patrick Mahomes, but that's exactly what they did.
Goff has blossomed into a top-10 QB under center this season, distancing himself from his time with the Los Angeles Rams. Sam LaPorta has emerged as a very promising TE prospect in just his rookie season, while Amon-Ra St. Brown is a proven top WR.
On the other side of the ball, Aidan Hutchinson looks like one of the most complete defensive players in the league, putting up formidable numbers. Jerry Jacobs has proved to be a formidable CB, with his 3 interceptions joint second in the NFC this season.
Detroit's rookies, RB Jahmyr Gibbs, LB Jack Campbell, TE Sam LaPorta and S Brian Branch, have shown great promise this season They also have a young core and with an average age of just 25.7 years, their roster is one of the youngest in the league.
Are the Detroit Lions playoff-bound?
Judging by their schedule, you would certainly expect the Detroit Lions to at least win the NFC North. Even winning in the Wild Card round doesn't sound too far-fetched.
With their stellar offense, and a defense with potential, who knows what could happen? Only a few years ago, we saw the Cincinnati Bengals sneak into the playoffs, before ultimately falling short in the Super Bowl.
Dan Campbell does have the mental toughness that defines a team, combined with equally strong play-calling abilities. We will see if that translates to success in the 2023 season.