For the past three decades, the Detroit Lions have gone through it. As a Michigan native, I had only heard about the Lions doing horribly, making me tune out to professional football entirely. Sure, I’d watch the game with my dad when it was on and would always cheer for the Lions, but nothing too exciting ever seemed to happen for us and we almost always lost. In fact, it became a running joke to say, “Maybe the Lions will make the playoffs this year,” because they were that bad. For some context, in 2008, the Lions lost every single game in the regular season, with a 0-16 record. This is the reputation that lingered for years under head coach Matthew Patricia.
But in 2021, things started to change when Dan Campbell became the head coach. Campbell was determined for the Lions to make a comeback, and he got to work right away; from the ground up. Campbell knows the struggles of the team and is beyond motivated to rise to the top, as he was a player for the Lions in 2008 during the 0-16 season.
Now in 2023, the team is in the third round of the playoffs with a 12-5 record and won the first-place division title in the NFC North for the first time since 1993.
When I started catching wind of how well the Lions were playing, I was curious to see them in action. I started watching the first regular season with my die-hard Lions fans friends, and made the joke, “Maybe the Lions will make the playoffs this year.” But my friends shut it down, saying that the Lions might do really well this season after drafting some star rookies. I listened to them, and closely watched the game. I was stunned by what I saw; we were actually good. Really good.
After many tragic seasons, the Lions traded our star quarterback Matthew Stafford in 2021 to the Los Angeles Rams for quarterback Jared Goff. After this trade, Stafford led the Rams to a Superbowl in his first season with the Rams, but Goff played the long game and started working with Campbell on how he could bring the Lions back. Detroit fans were sad to see Stafford go at first, but once new players started to step up to the plate under new leadership, things were starting to feel a little more optimistic. Goff now holds similar stats as Stafford, and the players we gained in the past few years, such as rookies Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta in 2023, are (literally) unbeatable.
Because Goff was struggling to meet the expectations of the Rams at the time of the trade, the Rams threw him away for Stafford. But Goff got his revenge when the Lions beat the Rams in the Wildcard Round playoffs at Ford Field 24-23. This win was huge for Detroit, as it was our first home playoff game since 1994. Fans across the stadium were seen crying tears of joy after the game ended, and not a single seat was empty in Ford Field up until the final second. This full-circle moment brought a lot of pride to Detroit and showed how far Goff and the Lions have come. In Campbell’s post-game speech in the locker room, he hands Goff a gameball with the words, “You’re good enough for Detroit, Jared Goff.”
And good enough he is, as the Lions have moved on to the third round of the playoffs after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31-24 in the Divisional Round playoffs. The Lions will be off to San Francisco this weekend to play in the NFC Championship and face the first-seed NFC North Team: the San Francisco 49ers. This is the first time the Lions have been in the NFC Championship since 1991 and will be the second time the team has ever made it to this round. If the Lions win this game, we will be in the Super Bowl for the first time ever.
Besides the amazing storyline behind the team, my other favorite part of being a Lions fan is the controversy and drama. The biggest piece of drama for One Pride Nation was the game between the Lions and the Dallas Cowboys, where the most controversial call of the season was instated. In the final few minutes of this game, the Lions got a touchdown and went for the risky 2-point conversion to win the game. I could not believe my eyes when I saw that Taylor Decker made the catch, and the Lions won the game 21-20! But this excitement immediately ended when referee Brad Allen took away our 2-point lead, claiming Dan Skipper reported as eligible and Decker did not. Unfortunately, being on the receiving end of horrible calls isn’t new for the Lions, and these calls rarely get reversed. Later that evening, footage was released of Decker clearly reporting, with Skipper not even close to Allen. Even the sports commentators on ESPN were confused and hesitant about agreeing with the call. The NFL later claimed the Lions were being too confusing and that Allen’s call stands; making the Lions lose to the Cowboys 20-19. This was devastating, but as I sat there fuming at what happened, my boyfriend looked at me and said, “Welcome to the life of being a Lions fan.” I’m still in denial.
But this loss shows what’s fun about becoming a fan: a new sense of community. The bad call led to billboards popping up across the state with the words, “Decker reported,” and even our Governor made a statement about it. Watching the games with your favorite people is always a good time. I’ve even recruited my non-football-fan friends to watch the games with me, and after explaining the Lions lore, they were also hooked and gladly screamed at the TV with me. It’s also fun to watch games in public and screaming with joy (or anger) with complete strangers without judgment can be a cathartic experience. My boyfriend surprised me with tickets to my first Lions game on Jan. 7 and being in that crowd was an unforgettable experience. The people around us were giving us high fives every time we scored, and the energy was unmatched. It’s so fun to just let loose and enjoy a good game.
I started watching the Lions because I was interested in watching a good game of football, but in all honesty, the game isn’t what made me a fan; the lore did. I had always been indifferent to football, thinking the game wasn’t as hyped up as it’s made to be. But the drama? The storyline? The comeback? The grit? The lore? It’s too good to miss out on. Look out for the Detroit Lions in the 2024 Super Bowl (and this time, I’m not kidding).