Coming off a 9-8 season, a draft that was both controversial and exciting, the Detroit Lions have become one of the hottest teams and topics in the NFL.
The Lions, who, we hate to remind you, haven’t won a playoff game since 1991, are rising among the prominent sports betting providers in Michigan, ranking among the Top 10 favorites to win the Super Bowl.
That’s right, there’s Super Bowl chatter… for the Detroit Lions.
True Lion fans know the franchise’s last NFL title was in 1957. We’re still months from kickoff, but the Lions have serious buzz.
Here’s looking at why the Lions have become one of the hottest topics in the NFL.
The Draft Was Big
During the recent NFL Draft, the Lions did not just sit back and watch. They were bold. Lions GM Brad Holmes seemed to know what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to go get it.
The Lions took running back Jahmyr Gibbs out of Alabama with the 12th overall pick. The selection was panned by critics, who said you don’t take a running back that high, but Gibbs fits a need in the Lions' backfield, especially after losing Jamaal Williams in free agency.
He could be a sensational runner/pass catcher in the mold of Niners star Christian McCaffrey.
With their next first-round pick, the Lions took 2022 Butkus Award winner Jack Campbell out of Iowa, again filling a need to boost the linebacker corp.
The Lions' confident decisions during the NFL Draft showed a franchise that was looking to build on last year and take the next forward. Will it work? Only time will tell.
The Lions Are Getting the Spotlight
If you needed any more proof that curiosity and interest in the Lions are at an all-time high, just check out the Lions 2023 schedule released last week.
The Lions drew the marquee spot as the Kansas City Chiefs opponent in the first game of the 2023 NFL season, the so-called NFL Kickoff game on Thursday, Sept. 7.
The NFL always gives the defending Super Bowl champions the spotlight of hosting the first game of the season and usually gives them a tough opponent to test them. The Chiefs feature superstar QB Patrick Mahomes but people in the NFL who make the schedule must think that the Lions can stand up to them. It would be quite a way to start the season for the Lions with a win over the defending Super Bowl champs.
Time to Rise
The Lions are poised to step into the void left in the NFC North. They ended Aaron Rodgers Green Bay Packers career with a win at Lambeau Field in the last game of the 2022 regular season. Rodgers has now taken his skills to the New York Jets.
So the Packers seem vulnerable for the first time in decades.
The Minnesota Vikings were paper champions last year, exposed in the playoffs by the New York Giants, and the other team in the NFC North, the Chicago Bears, are rebuilding.
Enter the Lions with Pro Bowl quarterback Jared Goff, stud wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, and tackle Penei Sewell. The Lions have the pieces to be a contender in 2023 and the NFL is taking notice.
