The Detroit Lions were the joke of the NFL for quite some time and a revolving door when it came to head coaches.
The last trip to the playoffs was in 2016 when they lost to the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card Round.
Years later, Matthew Stafford was shipped off to the Los Angeles Rams in what appeared to be the beginning of a rebuild.
From 2018 to 2020, the Lions went 14-33-1 and decided to move on from Matt Patricia after another failed hire.
Then, Dan Campbell came in, although the Lions went 3-13-1 in his first season.
The start of 2022 looked bad as the Lions began just 1-6, but Campbell and his team turned things around and went 8-2 to finish the year with a 9-8 record.
After the Lions ruined the Green Bay Packers’ playoff hopes, he said this is a totally different Lions team:
Dan Campbell postgame on ‘Brand New Lions’ overtaking ‘Same Old Lions’ as Detroit’s mantra:
“Certainly I don't want to hear that anymore, the Same Old Lions. That's what all this is about,” he said. “Yeah, I wanted to be part of building a brand-new brand.” pic.twitter.com/9hIARoRwpV
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) January 9, 2023
“Certainly I don’t want to hear that anymore, the Same Old Lions. That’s what all this is about. Yeah, I wanted to be part of building a brand-new brand,” Campbell said.
The Lions swept the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers and went 1-1 against the Minnesota Vikings to finish with a 5-1 record in the NFC North, a stunning turnaround and a statement of the future of the division.
The new era of Detroit Lions football is finally here, and the playoffs are a very obtainable goal once the 2023 season comes.
