Pride of Detroit
With just seven games left in the regular season, the margin of error for the Detroit Lions is shrinking.
After a hot start to the season, the Lions have faltered over the last month. In Week 6, the Lions were outmatched by the Kansas City Chiefs (a team that has since fallen to 5-5 on the season). They rebounded with a one-sided win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but Detroit fell flat against the Minnesota Vikings after the bye week. A play calling change against the struggling Washington Commanders appeared to breathe life into the Lions, but that was just as quickly snuffed out in their loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The roller coaster of wins and losses has Detroit sitting at 6-4 on the season and third among the NFC North. Not only have the Lions doubled their loss total from last season, they are suddenly not in the driver seat with regards to their playoff fate. Detroit has fallen behind the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers in the division and out of the Wild Card picture entirely. The Packers are joined by the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers as the three Wild Card teams and, after a wild overtime win, even the Carolina Panthers are nipping at Detroit’s heel.
While the season is far from over, some panic is setting in. At this point, the Lions do not look like a team capable of winning a Super Bowl. For as good as the defense has been this season, the lifeblood of the Lions is their offense, and they are in a funk. At their best, the Lions are on-par with their 2024 selves, but those dominant, complete performances have been few and far between in 2025. Is there still some untapped potential in these final months of the season? Detroit better hope so.
Today’s Question of the Day is:
My answer: Yes.
Gone is any discussion about the top seed in the NFC. This loss to Philadelphia gives them a head-to-head advantage in the tiebreaker, so even if Detroit kept pace with the 8-2 Eagles, they would still lose out on the top spot. Given that the Eagles still have the Dallas Cowboys, Las Vegas Raiders, and two dates with the Washington Commanders, they should at least have four more wins on tap.
The two questions for the Lions are whether they can win the NFC North or whether they can claim a Wild Card spot. The truth of the matter is that the Lions need to be in contention for both routes come season’s end—if they fall behind in the NFC North race, that will likely mean falling behind in the Wild Card race, and vice versa.
Of the current division leaders, I think the Los Angeles Rams and the aforementioned Eagles are strong bets to remain that way. The NFC South is between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and, somehow, the Panthers, but I...
