Lions News

[froot loops]

McNeil hasn't been underperforming, he has been one of their best defensive players.

[Mainevent]

I understand the frustration with Martin, but this new signing is in response to McNeil's injury. Martin will never play the 3.

Yeah, didn’t see that until after the Alualu signing news. That sucks, didn’t realize McNeil was in that bad of shape.

[jaadam4]

Stole my comment. Their D line has been underperforming so may not even be noticeable

Thats absurd. McNeil playing like a Pro Bowler. He has 5 sacks from the DT position.

[Dan V]

When Is Houston coming back?

[wcfwtf]

Every forum needs absurd comments to be made to keep it interesting. Your welcome

[ghandi]

When Is Houston coming back?

Dan Campbell said "maybe sometime in December" but it must not be looking all that great...i think both he and CJGJ havent even started the 21 day window to see if the team will bring them back or not.

[jaadam4]

Every forum needs absurd comments to be made to keep it interesting. Your welcome

*you’re

[whatever_gong82]

Didn't have time to post the Lions - Saints articles the other day, and since we're now getting ready to play the Bears in Chicago, I'll post articles on them for the rest of the week.

Lions’ path to playoffs: Odds to win NFC North and overall conference picture

Detroit Lions players smiling 2023.jpg

By Colton Pouncy
Dec 5, 2023


The Detroit Lions are closing in on their first playoff berth since the 2016 season, and perhaps their first division title since 1993, when the NFC North was known as the NFC Central.

Those were the goals laid out this season. Make the playoffs, win the division and see what happens from there. The Lions — 9-3, in first place in the NFC North, and third in the NFC — have positioned themselves to achieve those goals, with just five games left to play.

As the season winds down, this feels like the perfect time to discuss the Lions’ playoff picture and what’s at stake in December.


NFC North race


The Lions have a three-game lead in the NFC North, tied with the San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins for the largest division lead at this point in the season. The New York Times’ playoff simulator gives the Lions a 96 percent chance to win the NFC North, based on 192,320 simulations. The Lions are in an enviable spot, but it’s up to them to close things out and take care of business.

Regardless of what happens elsewhere, Detroit controls its fate in the North. The Lions can clinch the division with three wins in the final five games. They don’t need anyone’s help to get it done. Best believe that’ll be the message down the stretch.


Lions seeding picture


The Philadelphia Eagles remain atop the NFC standings, even after a loss to the second-place 49ers on Sunday. That game closed the gap, and it’s possible the 49ers could make a push for the top spot before it’s all said and done. The 49ers now own the tiebreaker, which could loom large.



The Lions, meanwhile, are No. 3 in the conference. While technically tied for second, the 49ers hold the tiebreaker over Detroit because of their intraconference record. The Lions are 6-2 vs. the NFC, while the 49ers (7-1) and Eagles (6-1) have performed better. Is it possible for the Lions to catch both teams and earn a first-round bye?

Mathematically? Yes. Likely? No.



Per the New York Times playoff simulator, the Lions have a 7 percent chance at a first-round bye. Compare that to the Eagles (46 percent) and 49ers (43 percent) and you get an idea of how difficult it could be. The 49ers have remaining games against the Seahawks, Cardinals, Ravens, Commanders and Rams. The Eagles still have to face the Cowboys, Seahawks, Giants, Cardinals and the Giants again to close the regular season. There’s a chance. Just not a strong one.

Additionally, the New York Times model gives the Lions a 19 percent chance at the No. 2 seed (better, but still an uphill battle) and 67 percent chance to be the No. 3 seed. That certainly feels like the sweet spot.

Detroit Lions could face Hockenson in 2023 Playoffs.jpg

Potential playoff opponents

Much of this depends on where the Lions themselves finish in the NFC standings. But we can sort through some of the teams they could face in the first round, as a No. 2 or 3 seed.



Minnesota Vikings (6-6): If the season ended today, the Lions would host the Vikings. These teams will meet twice in the final three games of the season, which will tell us quite a bit about playoff seeding. But the Vikings have not looked good of late — losing back-to-back games against the Broncos and Bears — and other teams could jump them if they don’t get back on track.


Green Bay Packers (6-6): The Packers are currently the No. 7 seed, with impressive wins over the Lions and Chiefs in consecutive weeks. They’ve won four of their last five games overall and would face the 49ers if the season ended today. However, the Packers have a rather light schedule to close. They’ll finish with the Giants, Buccaneers, Panthers, Vikings and Bears — all winnable games. If a division title is out of reach, it’s possible the Packers could move up to the No. 6 seed by the end of the season if they keep playing like this. That could set up a Packers-Lions playoff game at Ford Field.


Los Angeles Rams (6-6): Well, well, well, look what we have here. This is the dream matchup for sports media narratives. Matthew Stafford vs. his former team. Jared Goff vs. Sean McVay. Brad Holmes vs. Les Snead. The L.A. Rams vs. the, uh, Detroit Rams? Remember that? We’ve come a long way.



The Rams have won three in a row to resurrect their playoff hopes, and are now the No. 8 team in a seven-team field. They’ll close with the Ravens, Commanders, Saints, Giants and 49ers. They’re still very much in the picture, even if they have work to do.


Seattle Seahawks (6-6): The Seahawks are in a free fall. They’ve lost four of their last five games to fall back to No. 9 in the NFC. Their next two games are against the two best teams in the conference — the 49ers and Eagles. It’s not difficult to imagine them losing both of those and falling to 6-8, which would put them in a hole that would be hard to dig out of.



The NFC South (minus the Panthers): We’re including the three NFC South teams still in the hunt (sorry, Panthers) because of all the moving parts here. One of these teams has to win the NFC South, and whoever wins it will not be a first-round matchup for the Lions. The Falcons are currently the No. 4 seed in the NFC and would play the No. 5 Cowboys if the season ended today. The Falcons trail the Lions by three games for the No. 3 seed. It would take a lot to catch Detroit.

The Bucs (5-7) and Saints (5-7) are still in the picture, too, despite losing records. Either team could climb the standings and push for a division title or wild-card spot with strong finishes. New Orleans has remaining games against the Panthers, Giants, Rams, Bucs and Falcons. The Bucs will play the Falcons, Packers, Jaguars, Saints and Panthers.



Colton Pouncy is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Detroit Lions. He previously covered Michigan State football and basketball for the company, and covered sports for The Tennessean in Nashville prior to joining The Athletic. Follow Colton on Twitter @colton_pouncy

[jaadam4]

I wouldn’t want anything to do with Stafford in the playoffs.

[LightninBoy]

Choose the best of the worse for the playoff matchup:

Vikings: Never want to face the same team 3 times in 4 weeks
Packers: Playing the best ball in the division right now
Rams: Would need to avoid all sports media or cut off my ears so I don't hear the endless "Stafford returns to Detroit" narrative
Seahawks: Kryptonite to the Lions

I think Vikings would be the highest probability for a Lions win.

[chemiclord]

We pretty much want whichever QB is performing the poorest. Even then, they'll probably drop a 30-burger.

[ghandi]

Green Bay Packers (6-6): The Packers are currently the No. 7 seed, with impressive wins over the Lions and Chiefs in consecutive weeks. They’ve won four of their last five games overall and would face the 49ers if the season ended today. However, the Packers have a rather light schedule to close. They’ll finish with the Giants, Buccaneers, Panthers, Vikings and Bears — all winnable games. If a division title is out of reach, it’s possible the Packers could move up to the No. 6 seed by the end of the season if they keep playing like this. That could set up a Packers-Lions playoff game at Ford Field.

Dont look now but theres a chance the Packers finsh 11-6...The Lions most likely dont lose 3 of the next 5, but with this defense cant rule out anything really.

[Blue Lagoon58]

LOL, some of you are so soft

[chemiclord]

LOL, some of you are so soft

When you have a defense this bad (worst in the league since Week 7), no lead is safe and matchups matter more than they should.

[Sanders Fan]

Well, I don’t know if anyone is going to be banging on Glenn’s door for a HC vacancy in the off-season so he might still be around next year.