The Detroit Lions suffered two consecutive embarrassing losses, which proved to be the final straw for principal owner Sheila Ford Hamp, who relieved both coach Matt Patricia and GM Bob Quinn of their duties on Saturday afternoon.
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Currently sitting at 4-7 on the 2020 season, the Lions are last in the NFC North, and have all but officially seen their playoff hopes evaporate.
Not surprisingly, their recent woes are reflected in the latest edition of NFL Power Rankings.
Sports Illustrated: No. 25
“The Matt Patricia era is over, and it feels like a small percentage of my lasting memories from his run took place on the field. Detroit now has some work to do to rebound from an underwhelming stretch of football.” – Mitch Goldich
ESPN: No. 27
“This is the most important game only because it’s Darrell Bevell’s debut as a head coach and it might begin to answer the question of whether it was the talent on the roster or the coaching of Matt Patricia that caused many of Detroit’s problems this season. So it’s intriguing from that aspect to see how the players respond to a regime change. Otherwise, the most important game for Detroit is the last one because it can really push forward on its plan for the future once it concludes. — Michael Rothstein
NBC Sports: No. 27
“The streak of years without a playoff win will stretch to 30. Congratulations?” – Mike Florio
MLive: No. 28
“From a football perspective, it’s clear this offense doesn’t have much to offer without star receiver Kenny Golladay or rookie running back D’Andre Swift. Matthew Stafford hasn’t pushed the ball downfield without the pair, while playing through a hand injury of his own.
“While there doesn’t feel like much hope exists for 2020, the offense could let her rip and open it up more down the stretch with Bevell calling the shots.” – Ben Raven
USA Today: No. 28
“New principal owner Sheila Ford Hamp asserted herself by cleaning out the front office,” writes Nate Davis. “Now, can she find a brain trust to take Detroit to its first Super Bowl?” – Nate Davis
