For many years, the Detroit Lions have been looked at as one of the most disappointing and unsuccessful teams in the NFL. The team hadn’t won a playoff game since 1991 before this year, and that was the only other time the team had ever been in an NFC Championship Game.
There have been a lot of bad times for the Lions, but never has there been a worse time than the infamous 0-16 team in 2008.
The Lions’ 2008 Season, a Year To Forget
Ask any Detroit Lions fan about the 2008 season, and I am not sure they will even take the time to respond to you. That season, the team went 0-16, and they weren’t very close to winning many of those games.
Of the 16 losses, 10 of them were by more than double-digits. They had just as many games losing by at least 18 points (six), as they did losing by less than 10 points.
The timing of the 0-16 season is a little ironic for Lions fans. In 1958, quarterback Bobby Layne was traded from the team. Stories have been passed down through the decades that Layne said the team wouldn’t win for 50 years after trading him. There is no actual evidence that he said that quote, and Layne came out and denied that he ever said that quote.
However, the fact that on the 50th anniversary of the trade the Lions didn’t even win a single game only adds to the absurdity of the 2008 season. If there was one positive during the season for the Lions, it was the fact a second-year receiver named Calvin Johnson showed that he had the potential to become a superstar.
Post-2008, Pre-Dan Campbell Era
While 2008 was the lowest point in the history of the franchise, there hadn’t been a ton of positive moments until Dan Campbell came back.
In 2009, won two games, and the team was starting to make a move in the right direction. Just two years later, the team went 10-6 and made the playoffs. Quarterback Matthew Stafford won the Comeback Player of the Year Award. They lost their first playoff game to the New Orleans Saints, 45-28.
From 2012-2021, the team had three winning seasons. They made the playoffs in 2014 and 2016, losing both of their first-round playoff games.
In 2021, Dan Campbell became the coach of the Lions, and things have only gone up since then.
Dan Campbell Brings Winning to Detroit
Things didn’t get rolling for Campbell overnight, as the team started his first year 0-10-1. However, they were more competitive during that stretch and remained competitive in many games. In Week 3 of that season, they were up 17-16 on the Baltimore Ravens, but Justin Tucker set an NFL record by kicking a 66-yard field goal as time expired.
They had a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers to move to 0-8-1 but were finally able to break through in Week 13 against the Minnesota Vikings. Jared Goff threw a touchdown pass on the last play of the game to Amon-Ra St. Brown to get the 29-27 win.
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They finished that year 3-13-1 but showed they were beginning to make a run in the right direction.
Last season, the team again started slow, losing six of their first seven games. However, the team ended the season on a tear, going 8-2 in their final 10 games. In the season finale, the Lions went to Lambeau Field and defeated the Green Bay Packers, 20-16. The win eliminated the Packers from the playoff race and also ended Aaron Rodgers’ time in Green Bay on a sour note.
Why 2023 Has Been a Season for the Ages
This year, expectations were high, and the Lions sent a message to the NFL on the first night of the season. Detroit knocked off the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.
They announced to the league they were going to be a force this season, and the team has delivered. The Lions finished the regular season with a record of 12-5, tied for the most wins in franchise history. The team also won its first playoff game since 1991, which is the only other time the team has played in an NFC Championship Game.
The game against the San Francisco 49ers could be another chapter in this incredible season for the Lions. Regardless, though, Campbell and the Lions have shown that it is a different era in the team’s history.
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