In 2018, the Detroit Lions finished with a 6-10 record in Matt Patricia‘s first season as head coach. The hope was that 2019 would be the year the Lions would make a big leap and contend for a playoff spot but that did not happen as they finished 3-12-1, which, earned them the No. 3 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
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Yet, for some reason, Lions owner Martha Ford and her minions made the decision to keep GM Bob Quinn and Patricia around for another season with the ultimatum that the team has to contend for the playoffs in 2020, whatever that means.
So, what exactly did Quinn and Patricia present to Martha to convince her that they were on the right path?
Well, if you are into advanced stats, the 2019 Lions were not only better than the 2018 Lions but they improved in two of three areas (Offense, defense, special teams)
According to the DVOA ratings on Football Outsiders, the 2019 Lions ranked No. 18 (-2.9%) offensively, which is up from No. 23 (-5.2%) a year ago. Defensively speaking, the 2019 Lions were horrendous as they ranked No. 28 (10.7%), which was down from the 2018 team that ranked No. 27 (9%). As far as special teams go, the Lions showed improvement in 2019 as they ranked No. 8 (1.5%) in the NFL compared to 2018 where they ranked No. 19 (-0.9%).
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So, though the Lions finished with a worse record in 2019 than they did in 2018, advanced stats say this year’s team actually improved on the offensive side of the ball (despite Matthew Stafford being injured for 8 games) and on special teams.
Nation, what do you think? Could this be what Quinn and Patricia presented to Marth Ford to help them to keep their jobs? Were the 2019 Lions better than the 2018 Lions?
