With only two winning records in the past 14 seasons, the Lions haven’t been among the NFL’s elite teams nor a consistent choice to make the playoffs.
After last season’s surprising 11-5 mark and close loss in the wild-card game, the expectations are changing around the Lions, who have a chance to make the postseason in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1994-95.
Despite some key losses on the defense that was ranked No. 2 in the league last season, the Lions are expected by most analysts to take a step back this season and miss out on the playoffs.