Inside the Article:
This past Sunday, the Detroit Lions entered the day with a chance of earning a berth in the 2022 NFL Playoffs. Unfortunately, they needed some help along the way but they did not get that help as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the Los Angeles Rams in overtime to eliminate the Lions from playoff contention. The fact that the Lions came up just one game short of making the playoffs is a real bummer, especially considering they were one of the top teams in the entire NFL for the final 10 weeks of the season.
Which 10 NFL Playoff teams would the Detroit Lions beat?
14 NFL teams qualified for the 2022 NFL Playoffs and the Detroit Lions are not one of those teams. That being said, in my opinion, I believe the Lions would beat 10 of those teams at home, or on the road, and the advanced stats back up my beliefs.
The chart below ranks all 32 NFL teams by Total DVOA over the past 10 weeks of the regular season.
DVOA is a method of evaluating teams, units, or players. It takes every single play during the NFL season and compares each one to a league-average baseline based on situation. Click here for a more detailed explanation of DVOA.
| Team | Total DVOA | Offense DVOA | Pass Offense | Rush Offense | Defense DVOA | Pass Defense | Rush Defense | Special Teams DVOA | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SF | 50.4% | 1 | 25.6% | 2 | 55.1% | 1 | 11.4% | 2 | -22.0% | 1 | -15.1% | 2 | -23.5% | 6 | 2.8% | 11 |
| KC | 30.7% | 2 | 26.9% | 1 | 41.9% | 2 | 1.2% | 10 | -4.3% | 13 | -5.5% | 8 | -6.8% | 19 | -0.5% | 21 |
| BUF | 30.2% | 3 | 17.6% | 4 | 29.8% | 6 | 7.0% | 6 | -6.3% | 9 | 3.5% | 16 | -19.0% | 9 | 6.3% | 2 |
| CIN | 27.3% | 4 | 20.3% | 3 | 29.7% | 7 | 11.4% | 3 | -5.4% | 12 | -0.4% | 14 | -15.3% | 10 | 1.6% | 19 |
| DET | 22.4% | 5 | 17.0% | 5 | 40.0% | 3 | -11.5% | 19 | -1.6% | 17 | 6.4% | 18 | -7.2% | 18 | 3.8% | 6 |
| PIT | 17.8% | 6 | 6.8% | 9 | 20.7% | 9 | 3.2% | 8 | -14.6% | 4 | -2.1% | 12 | -31.9% | 1 | -3.6% | 29 |
| PHI | 16.5% | 7 | 10.4% | 8 | 14.4% | 15 | 16.8% | 1 | -3.1% | 14 | -0.8% | 13 | -7.3% | 17 | 3.1% | 10 |
| BAL | 13.6% | 8 | -5.1% | 19 | -7.3% | 27 | 5.0% | 7 | -16.5% | 3 | -4.7% | 10 | -30.6% | 2 | 2.2% | 16 |
| GB | 11.5% | 9 | 4.8% | 10 | 15.9% | 10 | -0.8% | 11 | -2.3% | 16 | -8.2% | 7 | 3.7% | 26 | 4.4% | 5 |
| JAX | 10.6% | 10 | 11.1% | 7 | 35.7% | 4 | -14.5% | 23 | 3.1% | 21 | 17.9% | 26 | -15.2% | 11 | 2.6% | 13 |
| DAL | 10.2% | 11 | 1.9% | 13 | 15.8% | 12 | -6.8% | 13 | -7.7% | 8 | 7.4% | 20 | -19.3% | 8 | 0.6% | 20 |
| MIA | 8.0% | 12 | 2.4% | 12 | 23.5% | 8 | -10.9% | 18 | -6.1% | 10 | 9.8% | 22 | -26.0% | 5 | -0.5% | 22 |
| LAC | 4.1% | 13 | -2.3% | 18 | 5.9% | 20 | -9.2% | 17 | -2.9% | 15 | -9.5% | 5 | 5.3% | 28 | 3.5% | 8 |
| NO | 4.0% | 14 | -11.7% | 27 | 11.6% | 17 | -30.2% | 31 | -13.3% | 6 | -20.4% | 1 | -7.4% | 16 | 2.4% | 14 |
| CLE | 3.8% | 15 | 0.6% | 14 | 8.0% | 18 | -7.9% | 14 | 0.5% | 19 | -4.7% | 9 | 5.9% | 30 | 3.7% | 7 |
| WAS | 3.7% | 16 | -9.3% | 22 | 4.3% | 21 | -14.3% | 22 | -9.8% | 7 | -8.7% | 6 | -12.3% | 12 | 3.2% | 9 |
| SEA | -0.6% | 17 | -2.2% | 17 | 14.5% | 14 | -21.9% | 27 | 5.0% | 26 | 5.3% | 17 | 5.8% | 29 | 6.6% | 1 |
| NE | -1.1% | 18 | -9.5% | 23 | 0.1% | 22 | -14.8% | 24 | -17.8% | 2 | -9.6% | 4 | -27.6% | 4 | -9.3% | 32 |
| NYG | -1.5% | 19 | 11.7% | 6 | 34.5% | 5 | 7.5% | 5 | 11.8% | 30 | 7.0% | 19 | 15.2% | 32 | -1.3% | 23 |
| ATL | -2.8% | 20 | 2.9% | 11 | -2.8% | 25 | 9.1% | 4 | 8.4% | 28 | 23.0% | 31 | -1.0% | 24 | 2.7% | 12 |
| NYJ | -7.4% | 21 | -18.9% | 29 | -0.8% | 23 | -28.3% | 29 | -14.0% | 5 | -14.2% | 3 | -11.5% | 13 | -2.4% | 27 |
| TB | -7.5% | 22 | -0.8% | 16 | 15.9% | 11 | -19.7% | 25 | 1.8% | 20 | 18.1% | 27 | -23.2% | 7 | -4.9% | 31 |
| LV | -10.0% | 23 | -0.4% | 15 | 7.0% | 19 | -2.1% | 12 | 11.8% | 31 | 19.9% | 29 | 2.6% | 25 | 2.3% | 15 |
| CAR | -11.0% | 24 | -10.6% | 25 | 15.1% | 13 | -20.5% | 26 | 5.0% | 25 | 14.4% | 24 | -11.1% | 14 | 4.6% | 4 |
| TEN | -11.8% | 25 | -6.9% | 20 | -1.0% | 24 | -13.2% | 21 | 3.3% | 22 | 21.1% | 30 | -28.6% | 3 | -1.7% | 25 |
| LAR | -14.3% | 26 | -11.4% | 26 | -6.7% | 26 | -8.1% | 15 | 4.4% | 23 | 9.4% | 21 | -6.5% | 20 | 1.6% | 17 |
| HOU | -19.8% | 27 | -31.3% | 31 | -16.5% | 31 | -35.8% | 32 | -6.1% | 11 | -4.5% | 11 | -5.7% | 22 | 5.5% | 3 |
| DEN | -20.7% | 28 | -14.9% | 28 | -8.9% | 29 | -11.6% | 20 | 4.5% | 24 | 19.6% | 28 | -9.2% | 15 | -1.4% | 24 |
| MIN | -22.6% | 29 | -9.6% | 24 | 13.9% | 16 | -30.1% | 30 | 9.0% | 29 | 17.7% | 25 | -2.4% | 23 | -3.9% | 30 |
| ARI | -25.9% | 30 | -19.3% | 30 | -15.3% | 30 | -8.8% | 16 | 8.2% | 27 | 11.4% | 23 | 5.0% | 27 | 1.6% | 18 |
| CHI | -37.0% | 31 | -7.2% | 21 | -7.6% | 28 | 1.9% | 9 | 27.6% | 32 | 43.9% | 32 | 10.5% | 31 | -2.2% | 26 |
| IND | -41.4% | 32 | -39.4% | 32 | -42.7% | 32 | -24.5% | 28 | -0.9% | 18 | 0.6% | 15 | -6.1% | 21 | -2.8% | 28 |
As you can see above, the Detroit Lions ranked No. 5 in the NFL (only behind San Francisco, Kansas City, Buffalo, and Cincinnati) over the final 10 weeks of the 2022 regular season.
Not ironically at all, the four teams listed above are the only four teams I believe would beat the Lions if they were to play right now.
In other words, I think the Lions would beat the following 10 NFL playoff teams if they were to take the field today.
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Seattle Seahawks
- Miami Dolphins
- Baltimore Ravens
- New York Giants
- Minnesota Vikings
- Dallas Cowboys
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Philadelphia Eagles
Which NFL Playoff teams do you think the Detroit Lions would beat?
Of the teams listed above, the ONLY team that I think could give the Detroit Lions a problem is the Philadelphia Eagles. That being said, those teams met in Week 1 and the Lions, who were not a good football team at that point, nearly beat the Eagles.
Nation, how many NFL Playoff teams do you think the Lions would beat if they played today?
