Don’t Jump Ship On The Detroit Lions Just Yet
Sep 14, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Detroit Lions head coach Jim Caldwell on the sidelines in the third quarter. The Panthers defeated the Lions 24-7 at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Life as a Lions fan can be difficult at times. For many of us, we’ve been here for a while and we’ve seen the worst of the worst. Being around for what was a very dismal decade of football has created what is now a very critical fan base.
As always however, the Detroit Lions fan base entered the 2014 season optimistic, but for good reason this time, right?
Things will be different in 2014.
Detroit Lions general manager, Martin Mayhew made the decision to switch Jim’s in the offseason. Out was Jim Schwartz, in was Jim Caldwell. He also brought in a guy with the last name of Lombardi. Together these two were to correct the faults of Lions quarterback, Matthew Stafford and ultimately right the ship in the Motor City.
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After a win in the season opener on Monday Night Football, the city of Detroit was sure their fortunes had changed for the better. The Lions offense started out quick, with a Stafford to Calvin Johnson connection for six points less than three minutes into the game. Then another score by the pair before the first quarter had even ended.
16-0, here we come!
Then came the cat fight in Carolina.
Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News put it best:
"“Blown kicks, blown chances, poor passes, dropped passes. Oh, and a few fumbles, too. The Lions dropped an ugly one on the road, and we’ve seen that before. But the distressing part is, they revisited many of their old foibles, the ones we thought they’d sworn off.”"
The fact is that he is right. All the mistakes that we seen last Sunday were an all to familiar sight. The Lions’ offense made all the big mistakes in a 24-7 loss to the Panthers Sunday. In the strength-on-strength matchup, we once again beat ourselves. With the agony of defeat came Lions fans doing one of two things.
- Recognizing that we were beat on the road, by a great defense and playoff team just one year removed, or…
- Turning to the dreaded “Same ole Lions” routine.
But is it really the “Same ole Lions?”
In my opinion, it’s far too early in the season to jump ship. It is a loss, but it does not define our season. With that in mind, its apparent where we need to improve headed into the week three match-up with the division rival, Green Bay Packers.
“I still believe after this loss, the only team that can beat us is us. We had a ton of balls on the ground today, including myself. But this doesn’t determine the season or anything.” – Golden Tate
- The kicking situation has to fixed.
- The running game needs to show up.
- Protect the football
- Protect the quarterback
- DONT BEAT YOURSELVES
One thing we’re learning about Caldwell is, his demeanor won’t crack. He calmly praised the Panthers’ defense, and if there was blame to go around, he wasn’t interested in dishing it. The team knows what areas need to be improved, and we have no reason to doubt that they will.