Detroit Lions fans are experiencing a weird feeling heading into the 2022 season. It’s a kind of unexplained warmth that spreads throughout one’s body when reading about your favorite, albeit, bottom-dweller team.
Is it… could it be… hope?
The NFL world seems to be very bullish on the Lions with Dan Campbell heading into his second year coaching the team. They’re among the most bet-on teams to hit their over of 6.5 wins, and rookies Aidan Hutchinson and Jameson Williams have fans feeling optimistic. Despite going 3-13-1 this year, exposure to the Lions is going to be at a high with them being featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks.
But where is all of this optimism coming from? Normally, one can look at an offseason and identify one or two moves a team makes that makes them better. But for Detroit, it’s been a slow burn. Jared Goff is still an under-achieving, overpaid QB1 and the Lions haven’t made that one big move for a difference-maker.
With that being said, GM Brad Holmes and HC Campbell have an infectious feeling of optimism. Unlike the previous regime of Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia, they seem to be building something. And Lions fans are hoping to see those labors start to bear fruit this year.
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With that in mind, here’s why the optimism around these Lions is founded, along with some realistic expectations for this season.
5 reasons to be optimistic about the 2022 Detroit Lions
1. They finally have some weapons on offense
Wide receiver has been a pain point for the Lions since Calvin Johnson retired in 2015. Last year Kalif Raymond and Tyrell Williams were top two on the depth chart.
That looks very different in 2022. D.J. Chark and Jameson Williams are on the outside with Amon-Ra St. Brown and the ever-underrated Josh Reynolds in the slot, giving Goff far better options than he had last season. The Lions are hoping for strides out of D’Andre Swift at running back as well, but the receiving corps alone is cause for optimism.
The Lions may not have locked down that one premiere target yet, but they’re hoping Williams can become that guy. There will likely be some growing pains, but there’s a lot of excitement around the young receiver.
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2. The offensive line should only get better
The Lions offensive line is a curiosity. Penei Sewell and Jonah Jackson both have another year under their belts, and Taylor Decker and Frank Ragnow are mainstays. The Lions are actually projected to be in the upper echelon of offensive lines of the NFL in 2022, per PFF.
How true is that? Only time will tell. Hank Fraley’s group has to prove itself, and if it is good, Goff has to capitalize.
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Sewell has the potential to be among the top tackles in the NFL, and the Lions know as much. But what would be nice to see is some more versatility from the line as a hole. The Lions are a team who should be able to run the ball. That’s where the o-line should be looking to improve this season.
3. The Lions should have a pass rush
The Lions were 31st in the NFL in team pass rush win rate, posting 33 percent, two percent better than the last-place Denver Broncos.
By drafting Aidan Hutchinson, the Lions are emphasizing pressure. Hutchinson won 25 percent of matchups in 2021 with the Michigan Wolverines, fifth among pass rushers and just over two percent better than Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux.
The Lions are still missing some depth at the position, but it’s certainly a start for a position the rest of the league has prioritized that the Lions have neglected. They got a player with a motor in Hutchinson, and they’re going to hope for even more production from Charles Harris, who had 7.5 sacks last year.
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4. The Lions were generally competitive last year
No one wants to hear this, but the Lions weren’t necessarily getting blown out with regularity last year.
They started the season 0-8 before tying with the Steelers, and three of those games were one-possession games. If Campbell can prioritize and improve situational play, Detroit could find itself starting to win those close match-ups.
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Indeed, the foundation is there. They won two of those close games, with their third win being a wire-to-wire win over the Cardinals. Cultivating a winning culture is what will help the Lions get over that hump and stop becoming the “almost” team.
5. Sheila Ford Hamp wants to win
When an owner cares, it shows. Since Sheila Ford Hamp became principal owner of the Lions in 2020, she has taken strides to smooth over the club’s relationship with Calvin Johnson and bring in good football people to run the team.
That has translated in Holmes and Campbell, even with a rocky first year, but the energy around the team is contagious. Campbell in particular has raked in Coach of the Year bets, which in this day and age is basically a playoff endorsement.
Those are lofty expectations, but they’re the expectations the Lions have put around themselves. They very clearly got better as last year went on, so can they translate that into success after an offseason? We’ll find out soon.
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Realistic expectations for the Lions this season
There is a problem with the “value” Super Bowl bets and the Coach of the Year picks: The Lions do still have a perceived lame duck at quarterback, whether they’ll admit it or not.
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Even with Davante Adams out in Green Bay, they’re the favorites to win the division so long as Aaron Rodgers is in Wisconsin. The Lions still have to do to catch them, and the first order of business is to find a true quarterback of the future, because it’s unlikely Goff is that.
The over/under of 6.5 wins is fair for them, and they may well break that barrier. With NFC Games against the NFC East and AFC games against the AFC East, they have a schedule that is manageable. But a playoff berth for them this season is a reach.
This season is still part of a rebuild that is going to take a bit of time. There’s a decent chance C.J. Stroud and Bryce Young both go top three or five next season. If getting one of them is the Lions’ ambition, seven wins would likely take them out of that running.
A lot of things can happen between now and then, however. In the meantime, this Lions team isn’t going to sandbag. They’re a better team than they were last year, and people are right to be optimistic about them — Even if some folks are going a bit overboard on the hype train.
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