Even the biggest Honolulu blue Kool-Aid drinkers will admit that wins are going to be very difficult to come by for the 2021 Detroit Lions.
That being said, with a new regime in town, specifically head coach Dan Campbell and GM Brad Holmes, there is a feeling of optimism in the Motor City that there has not been in a long time. That optimism is not necessarily for the 2021 season but for the future.
One person who agrees with that is NFL insider, Peter King.
In his most recent column, King ranked the 32 NFL teams heading into the 2021 season, and not surprisingly, the Lions come in at No. 30.
Here is what King has to say about the 2021 Detroit Lions.
30. Detroit (5-11)
The new kneecap-biting attitude of coach Dan Campbell is great, and the Lions need it desperately after the roster tuned out Matt Patricia. These players won’t tune out Campbell. He’s a fire-and-brimstone preacher who will not stand for losing. He is to coaching what Chris Spielman was to playing, and isn’t it fitting that Spielman was part of the Lions management team that hired Campbell? (I say “part,” because I am not positive it was “most,” but that would not surprise me.) Early reviews on Campbell have been sensational, but the NFL offseason is a time of raging hope for even a team like Detroit, which hasn’t won a playoff game since 1991. The reality of games will likely bring some pain, particularly when the quarterback has been downgraded from Matthew Stafford to Jared Goff and the receiving corps is minus Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones. Add the fact that there isn’t a defensive presence that will scare any offensive coordinator, and you understand that this could be a lean year in Detroit. I do like the fact that Aaron Glenn, the new defensive coordinator, is a fiery and smart tactician whose players will love playing for him. It’s going to be a lean year, but at least the Lions have a coach the team and the city can rally around, for what that’s worth.
Nation, how many wins do you believe the Lions will get in 2021?
It’s been a lean year all of my life and I am 63. You would think they would win something just by accident in that time. I am tired of rebuilding and asking fans to be patient. We have been patient for a long time and have gotten nothing out of it. I especially think the Ford family has really dropped the ball here. They are the only common denominator here and it has gotten any better. To say that the new one is trying and be patient is also saying that the others didn’t care as long as they made money. If you have an owner that wants to win you won’t go as long as the Lions have without being competitive.
I love the new direction Sheila H. Ford has taken the Lions. She turned over an awful staff for a staff that already is changing the culture and outlook for the future. Yes, it may take a couple of years but the direction is promising. Smart spending for a change in free agency, solid drafting, great player responses to how they are treated now…..loving it. Ragging on how it used to be is getting old. Sheila rocks.