Is It the Same Old Lions?

 Without a doubt, the Detroit Lions have an illustrious history of poor play and bad luck.  After Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks, many are wondering if these issues will continue into this season. Though the Lions appeared to play well enough to win this past weekend, a mixture of poor play and unfortunate occurrences, once again factored into another Lions loss.  Do the Lions have the ability to overcome such instances to parlay it into success on the field.  We shall see.

Needless to say, luck has not exactly been on the Lions side in recent history.  Several bizarre plays have went against this team that added up to several last second and heartbreaking losses.  There’s been the last second loss to Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in 2015, when he threw a 63 yard pass to beat the Lions 27-23.  Next, we have Justin Tucker for the Baltimore Ravens nailing an NFL record 66 yard field goal that bounced off the cross bar and through the uprights to win the game.  Hopefully, the team can tighten up their play to avoid such activities having such great influence over game outcomes.

It is incumbent on the Detroit to acquire a killer instinct during games, and take advantage of every opportunity the opponent gives them.  If they fail to do so, they will continue to be defeated in unusual ways.  With a casual analysis of Sunday’s game against the Seahawks, it was apparent that the Lions were unable to take advantage of the opportunities they were given.  For example, the Lions should have been able to obliterate the Seahawks second string offensive line.  Instead, they were unable to put any pressure on Geno Smith, and he was able to drive down the field at will.  If the Lions want to win championships, they must be able to capitalize on the opponent’s weaknesses.

Though it didn’t get a lot of play, the Lions were once again bitten by the curse of bad calls going against them, which resulted in the Lions going down in defeat.  On the final drive of the game in overtime by the Seahawks, a Lions player was held on a touchdown pass by Geno Smith.  Not only have the Lions had to endure the issue of impossible plays sealing their fate, they’ve also had to deal with some outrageous officiating dooming them.  We have quite a menu of those as well, including, “the complete the process of the catch” rule coming into being.  This came about because Calvin Johnson caught a pass in 2010 in the end zone, but the pass was ruled incomplete because Johnson failed to maintain possession of the ball after hitting the ground.  Clearly, officiating has played much more of a role in Lions games than many would like.

Is the 2023 season destined for the usual fate of a Lions season?  That seems doubtful by all indications.  For one, when the Lions got behind, they weren’t phased and continued to play well and score.  With a few adjustments, they should be able to eliminate the issues exhibited Sunday.  When they have an opportunity to win a game.  Take it.  The offense should have been in hurry up mode on the final drive of the game to give themselves an opportunity to score a touchdown instead of simply getting a field goal.  With a touchdown, you take the lead, give the ball back to other team, and take your chances.  At least you did everything possible to win the game.  That is what good teams do.