The Detroit Lions had a very disappointing 2012 as they finished the season with a 4-12 record. Before the 2012 season the Lions had three consecutive years with an improved record including a 10-6 record in 2011. So after a horrid 2012 can they rebound in 2013?
Quarterback Matthew Stafford will be with the Lions for awhile as he signed a three year contract extension worth $53 million and he is now signed through 2017. The contract extension pays Stafford nearly $18 million per season, and for that kind of money, they will be expecting nothing but excellence on the field. 2011 was Stafford, and the Lions, best season as he threw for 5,038 yards with 41 touchdowns and only 16 interceptions as he posted a 97.2 quarterback rating. 2012 was a down season for the quarterback as he threw for 4,967 yards, but only had 20 touchdowns and 17 picks for a 79.8 quarterback rating. Stafford now has a lot of pressure as he is expected to put up numbers that resemble his 2011 stats in order to get the Lions back on track and back to the playoffs.
The Lions signed running back Reggie Bush this offseason and he will be a key factor in the Lions performance this year. There’s no doubt that Bush can have an overwhelming impact on an offense and the versatile running back is expected to have an immediate impact in Detroit.
Stafford is one of the luckiest quarterback’s in the league because he has the amazing wide receiver Calvin Johnson aka Megatron to throw to. Last season Johnson had 122 receptions for 1,964 yards and five touchdowns.
Defensively, Ndamukong Suh is one of the most feared defensive linemen in the league. Last season he had eight sacks and 35 combined tackles. Last year the Lions ranked 20th in sacks, so they addressed that in this years draft. With Suh, Nick Fairley and draft pick Ziggy Ansah they hope to get more sacks and put more pressure on the quarterback. They also improved their secondary by signing safety Glover Quin who will give them some stability at the safety position.
The Lions are in the difficult NFC North where the Green Bay Packers have dominated and both the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings had winning 2012 records at 10-6 apiece. There’s expectations for this year and Jim Schwartz’s job may be on the line. They’ve made improvements and have a talented team, but making the playoffs will be tricky. They’ve shown that Stafford is their guy by locking him up with a contract extension. Now they need him to be a leader and take the Lions back to their winning ways.