The most maddening thing about the Detroit Lions’ 1-6 start is the opportunity they appear to have squandered in the upside-down NFC.
The three teams favored to represent the conference in the Super Bowl entering the season, the Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Los Angeles Rams, have fallen on hard times with no obvious turnaround in sight, while new contenders have emerged who were bringing up the bottom of standings with the Lions last year.
The Packers and Bucs have future Hall of Fame quarterbacks who are showing their age while trying to navigate problems with their supporting casts (and in Brady’s case, in his personal life).