No matter what happens from here on out, this season has and will be a rollicking success for the Detroit Lions. They clinched their first-ever NFC North division win in franchise history in Week 16 with their 30-24 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. Just because the Lions have made history, however, doesn’t mean there still isn’t more to play for. The Lions are currently tied with the San Francisco 49ers and the Philadelphia Eagles for first place in the NFC. They will take the home playoff game, but the potential for a first-round bye week is absolutely worth pursuing.
But just because the Lions have won their division, that doesn’t mean there still aren’t some areas of concern for this team. The Lions are by no means a perfect team, though a very good team. They will be a tough out in the playoffs, but their playoff hopes could get crushed sooner than expected if these parts of the team don’t improve between now and the postseason.
Lions’ defense
The Lions’ offense has been strong all season long. Their defense however… has not. This unit did get off to a strong note to start this season; through Week 8, the Lions ranked eighth in EPA allowed per play, seventh in EPA allowed per dropback, and 16th in EPA allowed per rush. That’s all great.
However, things have taken a turn for the worse since the Lions’ Week 9 bye. Since Week 10, the Lions have dropped from seventh to 24th in EPA allowed per play. Most importantly: they’ve dropped from seventh in EPA allowed per dropback to dead last. That’ll happen when a team allows Nick Mullens to throw for 411 yards against them, though it certainly helps to have Justin Jefferson.