{"id":24046,"date":"2023-07-11T18:18:17","date_gmt":"2023-07-11T22:18:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.betonline.ag\/news-room\/?p=24046"},"modified":"2023-07-11T18:18:19","modified_gmt":"2023-07-11T22:18:19","slug":"taking-stock-detroit-lions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.betonline.ag\/news-room\/nfl\/taking-stock-detroit-lions\/","title":{"rendered":"TAKING STOCK: DETROIT LIONS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BY ADAM GREENE<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the third season in a row, we actually had a team featured on HBO\u2019s Hard Knocks<\/em> that not only finished the campaign with a winning record, but also kept its head coach employed \u2014 as the Detroit Lions became everyone\u2019s favorite hard luck franchise and nearly snuck into the playoffs, only to see the referees in the Seattle Seahawks vs Los Angeles Rams game ruin it<\/a> for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dan Campbell, not only surviving his stint on Hard Knocks, but thriving, is more of an accomplishment than you think. That \u201cthree straight\u201d employed head coaches observation comes with a caveat, as the guy that started that streak, Sean McVay, was only featured on Hard Knocks<\/em> because of the COVID-19 offseason and, even then, shared the show with Anthony Lynn, then head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, who was fired at the end of that season. Mike McCarthy, the man who survived his 2021 appearance on Hard Knocks<\/em> could very well see his employment end this upcoming year. And, if you root for the Cowboys, you can only hope it happens sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Campbell, barring a catastrophe this season, should be safe. Detroit, a year after watching their former starting quarterback, Matthew Stafford, lead the Los Angeles Rams to a Super Bowl Championship, used the guy they landed in that trade, Jared Goff, to get closer to a Super Bowl championship of their own. And they did it all after opening the year 1-6, which makes the fact that they ended up 9-8 even that much more impressive. Of those six early season losses, four of them were by a score or less. In fact, five of their eight defeats were by a single score. That means, with a different bounce of the ball, the Lions could have finished 14-3. Think about that. But not too hard, because it\u2019ll probably just make you super sad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were plenty of bright spots for Detroit in 2022 as they recorded their first winning record since 2017. They swept the Green Bay Packers with Aaron Rodgers, their last chance to do so. They defeated three playoff teams \u2014 the New York Giants, Jacksonville Jaguars and Minnesota Vikings and were 4-5 points away from knocking off four more, including the eventual NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Goff had arguably his second best season as a pro in 2022, completing 65.1 percent of his passes for 4,438 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Jamaal Williams rushed for 1,066 yards and 17 touchdowns. Amon-Ra St. Brown caught 106 passes for 1,161 yards and six TDs. Aidan Hutchinson, in his first professional season, finished with 9.5 sacks and 52 tackles to go with three interceptions, three passes defended, two fumble recoveries and nine tackles for a loss. Alex Anzalone had 125 tackles and seven for a loss, with one pick, six passes defended, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Kerby Joseph led the team with four interceptions to go with his 82 tackles, eight passes defended, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DETROIT LIONS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2022-23 Record:<\/strong> 9-8<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playoffs:<\/strong> N\/A<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2023 Super Bowl Odds:<\/strong> +2500<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2023 NFC Championship Odds:<\/strong> +1100<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2023 NFC North Odds:<\/strong> +125<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NOW WHAT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, now there are real expectations and that could either land Dan Campbell in the 2023 Coach of the Year conversation or wrap up his head coaching career for good. The Lions are the hot team this preseason, after once again drafting well (and we\u2019ll talk about it) and basically doing everything right with their roster build. They\u2019re such a hot commodity that the NFL already ruined their 2023 debut by forcing them to play in the Thursday Night season opener against the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs. Now, that looks like a loss to me and everybody else, but the last time Goff faced off against that Chiefs defense, he lit them up for 413 yards, four touchdowns and no picks in a 54-51 Rams win in 2018 that remains one of the greatest NFL games of all time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking over Detroit\u2019s schedule<\/a>, that Chiefs game might be their only loss until they travel to the Baltimore Ravens on Oct. 22. It gets rockier after that, but another 9-8 finish is the worst I see it going for the Lions. This could be an 11-win team and still be stuck in a Wild Card because of a 13-win Minnesota Vikings squad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE DRAFT<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As has been the case since Brad Holmes joined forces with Campbell in Detroit, the team aced the draft once again, earning another A+ grade from me<\/a>. The thing about Goff\u2019s 2018 season, and one of the facts that made it so spectacular, is his chemistry with running back Todd Gurley. Well, Holmes and Campbell looked at Jahmyr Gibbs coming out of Alabama and made the same call that I did, that \u201cHe looks a hell of a lot like Todd Gurley\u201d so they spent their opening first round pick, from the Rams in the Stafford trade, to select him. With their second first rounder, they took one of the two best linebackers in the draft in Jack Campbell. In the second, they grabbed one of the best tight ends in Sam LaPorta and then with their \u201cother\u201d second rounder, took the best corner\/safety in the class in Brian Branch out of Alabama. To top it off, they brought in the draft\u2019s third best quarterback, Hendon Hooker, in the third to back up Goff and add some insurance if the wheels come off. Brodric Martin, a defensive tackle out of Western Kentucky, is probably the only guy they took in the first three rounds that won\u2019t factor into 2023 (outside of Hooker, who can\u2019t play until October, most likely).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FREE AGENCY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For maybe the first season in recent memory, the Lions don\u2019t have a ton of holes to fill, but that didn\u2019t keep them from being active in free agency. To help the offense, they brought in running back David Montgomery from the Chicago Bears, wide receiver Marvin Jones from the Jacksonville Jaguars and right tackle Germain Ifedi from the Atlanta Falcons. On defense, they added defensive tackle Christian Covington from the Chargers, outside linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin from the Houston Texans, cornerback Emmanuel Moseley from the San Francisco 49ers, safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson from the Philadelphia Eagles and cornerback Cameron Sutton from the Pittsburgh Steelers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NFC NORTH<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The NFC North will be an entirely different animal without Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, but the Packers were no problem for Detroit last season. It\u2019s the Vikings that will continue to be a thorn in Detroit\u2019s side, and don\u2019t discount a significant jump in talent, if not wins, from the Chicago Bears. The Lions do look like a Wild Card team to me and I\u2019m not the only one who\u2019ll be disappointed if they don\u2019t at least pull that off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Follow Adam Greene on Twitter <\/em>@TheFirstMan<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connect with us our socials on <\/em>Twitter<\/em><\/a> and <\/em>Instagram<\/em><\/a> for the latest sports news, viral moments, betting odds and the occasional memes.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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