The Detroit Lions set a single-season franchise record when they won their 13th game of the season in Week 16 against the Chicago Bears, and they of course extended the record with their 14th win Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers.
In his postgame speech, head coach Dan Campbell talked about that 14th win and also going 8-0 on the road this season.
“Listen, we did some things. We got 14 wins”, Campbell said. Alright, we already talked about once we got to where we were at, 13, that we franchise record. Fourteen’s a franchise record. 8-0 on the road, franchise record, alright? 8-0 the road, which tells you at its worst we can go anywhere and (expletive) win, gentlemen. That’s the bottom line.”
There was a time when the Lions could hardly go anywhere and win. Before the last couple seasons that was most of the time since they last won a championship in 1957, if we’re being honest. And some people just can’t handle them being successful, criticizing how they do it at every possible turn (blowout wins, Campbell’s fourth down decisions, “wasting” trick plays in “meaningless” games).
It still feels like Matt Patricia’s tenure as Lions’ head coach lasted longer than 43 games (less than three seasons). With the amount of tearing down he did all the way around, it had to be longer than that, right?
Campbell’s first task upon replacing Patricia was to repair a culture that was broken, and broken might not be a big or harsh enough word to describe what Patricia left behind. Campbell took it on immediately and without hesitation, setting the tone from the moment he was introduced as head coach. Once the culture was fixed, in concert with having players who fit it and could carry it, then winning could happen.
Since starting the 2022 season 1-6, the Lions have one of the best records in the NFL over the last two-and-half seasons or so. This season’s 14 regular season wins are nice to acknowledge on their own, with more left to accomplish, but then there’s this.
It’s easy to see how far the Lions have come under Campbell, with the way they play and the way they respond to adversity as they ultimately win a lot of games. But winning more games this season than Patricia did in nearly three (13-29-1 record) reflects it so simply it’s almost funny.
