It happened again.
On Sunday, the Detroit Lions once again managed to find a way to lose a game that they absolutely should have won.
With a 23-6 lead heading into the fourth quarter, the Lions, according to the stat gurus out there, had a 98% chance of winning the game.
http://gty.im/1228499398
But, not surprisingly, the Lions fell into the 2% and managed to allow Mitchell Trubisky and the Bears to score three fourth-quarter touchdowns to steal the game 27-23.
Following the game, Lions head coach Matt Patricia spoke to the media, and when he was asked if there’s something about his coaching “that isn’t happening enough in the fourth quarter.”
Patricia’s response was shocking and embarrassing at the same time.
“Yeah, I don’t think so,” Patricia said. “I think I got probably one of the biggest plays in the fourth quarter in the history of the NFL.”
Lions head coach Matt Patricia was asked if there's something in his coaching "that isn't happening enough in the fourth quarter."
"Yeah, I don't think so," Patricia said. "I think I got probably one of the biggest plays in the fourth quarter in the history of the NFL." pic.twitter.com/chcqBLXF6U
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) September 13, 2020
Patricia, if you are wondering, was referring to the Malcolm Butler interception that happened at the end of Super Bowl XLIX, sealing the game for the New England Patriots.
Well, one local blogger, Mike Payton from Pride of Detroit, is already calling for the Lions to move on from Patricia, even though we are just one game into the season.
http://gty.im/1228504019
Here is what Payton had to say in his piece.
The fact that this is the response after an embarrassing loss where the team suffered the same fate they’ve suffered numerous times under Patricia is solid proof they haven’t learned anything and have no intention of changing. It’s as if they have an idea of how things are supposed to work in their minds and refuse to deviate from that even when the feedback on the field is consistently saying, “CHANGE YOUR WAYS.”
Is this the type of attitude you want at the helm of your football team if you’re the Ford family? Your head coach, in a season where he’s supposed to be on the hot seat, is out here using whataboutism’s to defend his shortcomings instead of fixing them.
The Lions should really be evaluating Patricia’s performance as a head coach and think about what moving on from him immediately would look like. Because at this point, it’s not working and the Lions have become predictable once again. There’s still a season to salvage, and perhaps under new leadership, they can do just that.
I know it’s overreaction Monday, but it’s hard not to overreact at this point. The Lions have so much talent and a chance to be good. But they have someone running the team who can’t admit he’s wrong—outside of classic coach speak—and continues to run the same formula over and over again.
Nation, do you agree with Payton that the Lions should be thinking about moving on from Matt Patricia after just one game?
Personally, I think that it was an absolute joke for Patricia to bring up a single play that happened a long time ago to justify himself as a head coach in 2020. That being said, though I have serious doubts that Patricia will ever lead this team to the playoffs, I also believe that the players lost the game on Sunday. Dropped interceptions, thrown interceptions, taking a sack to force your kicker to attempt a long field goal, and dropping a game-winning touchdown. Those plays are why the Lions lost.
