For decades, the Detroit Lions were seen as a sad, underachieving underdog that could never quite find their stride. In 2008, the Lions impressively boasted a 0-16 record: the first team in history to do so with the new 16-game schedule. Bad coaching, bad drafting, and a little bit of bad luck seemed to follow the team wherever they went. Then came Dan Campbell…and the Pride returned.
Campbell, who played on that 2008 team, joined the Lions as head coach in January 2021. His first press conference went viral the moment he promised that when his players were knocked down “[They were] going to bite a kneecap off on [their] way up.” He was not joking. And in my house, the Lions are no joking matter.
People may complain about the Jets and the Giants, but at least they’ve had your day in the sun. The Lions are one of four teams to never make it to the Super Bowl. Their last championship was in 1957 before the game was even called the Super Bowl. My dad likes to say we’ve been rebuilding since then. Growing up, my dad, a Detroit native and sports fanatic, did not make football enticing in the way that other families rallied around the TV with snacks and foam fingers. I learned to love football not from the celebratory cheers and victory laps, but from watching the disbelief in my dad’s face as we watched the Lions reinvent new ways to lose. In fact, there was a phrase muttered by every Lions fan year after year as the team would snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in impossible fashion: “S.O.L: Same Old Lions.” I think my dad liked watching football with me because my innocence represented hope for the team. I had no idea in my early years how long the losing had been going on.
But pass forward to today, the Lions were actually a Super Bowl favorite for the past two seasons. Last year they were one game away from the Super Bowl before falling to the 49ers in the NFC Championship (which my dad is still not over) and this season started off equally promising. After years of hard work, grit and “kneecap biting,” the team was finally at its peak. Sadly, the injuries were too. Aiden Hutchinson. Marcus Davenport. Alim NcNeill. Derrick Barnes. Malcom Rodriguez. Ifeatu Melifonwu. Carlton Davis. The list goes on. Never has a team had such bad luck. But what we lost in defense we made up for in the offensive. If the Lions feed on anything, it’s GRIT. Despite the injuries, the Lions’ incredible running game, Jared Goff’s play-action passing, and Campbell’s aggressive play calling on 4th downs, propelled the Pride to the best record in the NFC: 15-2
In these last two years I have gotten to witness a perennial loser become one of the best teams in the NFL. While we may have not made it to the Super Bowl, the Lions’ story captivated the country. For the first time, everyone seemed to be rooting for the Lions – the new America’s team.
But let it be known (as my dad’s favorite T-shirt will tell you) I liked the Lions before they were cool.
