A Cliche' title about Lions

Every year in the NFL there are teams that are expected to “blow up”. This year is no different. Most peoples hot ticket teams. Meaning teams that will greatly surpass last season’s results are the Chargers, Eagles, Texans and the Lions. Huh? The Lions? You heard me, the Lions. Now here’s my beef. I have a go big or go home attitude with sports predictions which means, if you think the Lions are truly going to break out this year, back it up. I am hearing analysts drool over this Lions team, and in the next breath, predict 7 or 8 wins for them. Really? Do people forget that this was a 6-10 football team without their star QB and starting running back who was on fire to start the year. Something’s not adding up. This is a team that scored more touchdowns last year then the Bears and Jets, two teams that were in their respective conference championship games. The ground work is there.




Which brings me back to my point; if you think a team can break out, back it up! Don’t waffle when challenged and resort to chalking the lonely Lions up to another sub-500 season. I believe this team is heading towards a double digit win season, for the first time since, well, any Barry Sanders fans out there? That’s right, 10 WINS. This is a team that literally has only one hole left, that being the defensive secondary. Everywhere else, this is how I see the Lions.

Quarterback – Just like his Lions, this is Stafford’s year. Don’t give me the injury story. The kid got rocked a few times; he’s not made of glass. His touchdown total should be in the 27-30 range and will pass for 3500+ yards. Yes please. I expect his completion percentage to still float around 58-59% and to probably throw 14-16 interceptions, room for improvement. But most are conservatively forecast a less eye opening year for Matty Stafford, usually because of his injury risk. I don’t buy that, any player in this league could go down for an extended period of time taking the shots he did the last few years.



Runningback – Javid Best is in a similar situation to Stafford. Needs to stay on the field. If he does however, he could have a Brian Westbrook like impact on the Lions offense. One of the leagues best pass catching running backs has yet to truly showcase his abilities. Jerome Harrison and Maurice Morris are also manning this back field, which I believe should be enough to maintain decent balance in what will surely be a pass first offense.



Wide Receiver/Tight End – Stacked. That’s all there is too it. Calvin Johnson will be considered the leagues best WR by years end, and he is complimented nicely by Nate Burelson and rookie Titus Young, both of which are being slept on to the nth degree this year. Throw in Brandon Pettigrew who I believe could enter top 5 TE discussions this year and Stafford has all the pieces he needs to excel.

Finally, you’ve got the defense. Which won’t be ranked in the top 5, or even 10, but should be just good enough for the Lions to get by. I believe they’re going to turn the ball over a ton! Especially with the pass rush they’re going to field. Ndamukong Suh is the leagues best defensive player, sorry Ware, Polumalu and Julius Peppers. No one changes the game on defense like Suh does. When you put Kyle Vanden Bosch and Nick Fairly on that line with him, you might as well turn out the lights and go home. The Lions are here to stay and a legitimate playoff team.