Inside the Article:
2023 could be the year that Detroit Lions fans everywhere have been waiting for, as just about everyone believes that they'll be making the leap from pretender to a contender and be a serious force in the NFC North. And that idea is supported by outspoken media personality Stephen A. Smith, who thinks that the Lions have a chance to make some serious noise this season.
Stephen A. Smith believes the Lions can make noise in 2023
In Smith's view, the Lions have a wide open window of opportunity in the NFC North thanks to the departure of former Green Bay Packers nemesis Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets, as well as the strong play on both sides of the ball from the likes of Jared Goff and Aidan Hutchinson.
“I will openly admit, it's just that prisoner of the moment because we saw how they ended last season, how they ruined Green Bay's aspirations of going to the postseason,” Smith said during today's First Take show on ESPN earlier today.
The Detroit offense should be able to stay consistent
He continued: “We saw Jared Goff throw 29 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and completed about 65% of his passes, the team believes in him. They've got an elevated level of confidence. This is a quarterback that quarterbacked in the Super Bowl a few years back. Their offense was top five last year. … I expect them to do similar things this year offensively.”
Smith also believes in coach Dan Campbell
While saying that the Detroit defense has plenty left to prove after a subpar 2022, Smith also gave a shoutout to head coach Dan Campbell.
“Defensively, let's see what they have with Aidan Hutchinson and those boys, let's see what they do defensively cause they got a lot to prove, cause they were the 28th-ranked defense last year,” he said. “I get all of that. But I'm just looking at the upside for the Detroit Lions, I like coach Campbell, let's see what they do.”
Wrapping It Up: Will Detroit make his prediction come true?
It's been a long road of suffering for fans of the Lions, especially those who are old enough to remember their last playoff victory in the early 1990s.
If the Lions did enough in the second half of last season to make a believer out of even the staunchest of cynics like Stephen A. Smith, then there's no telling what they can accomplish this year. We are certainly hoping that this is the year Detroit finally breaks down the door and prowls into contending status.
