This season for the Detroit Lions was a great one. From starting with a low record, they ended their season 9-8. And they were so close to making the playoffs but were unfortunately not successful. Despite starting the season 1-6, they turned it all around midseason and won eight of their next ten games. Going 9-8 was a huge improvement for this team after going 3-13-1 in their previous season. The lions were eliminated from playoff contention for the sixth season after the Seahawks beat the Los Angeles Rams. Nevertheless, the Lions defeated the Green Bay Packers in the final game of their regular season.

Now let’s get into how hard this team worked this season.

The Detroit Lions first game started against the Philadelphia Eagles. This game showed how the Lions are not a team that will give up easily. In the third quarter, Lions were trailing by three possessions. However, the offense came alive and the defense were getting amazing stops. Both teams were fighting hard with nearly 400 yards on the ground between the 2 teams. But in the end the Eagles took home the victory 38-25, making the Lions 0-1.

The next game in the Lions season was the Washington Commanders. The lions looked unstoppable in the first half of the game. The defense was dominating and the offense was making huge plays. At halftime, Detroit was leading 22-0. But the Commanders did not make it easy for the Lions. On three separate occasions, Commanders quarterback Carson Wentz drove Washington into the end zone. In the end, a key missed extra point for Washington sealed the win for the Detroit Lions 36-27, making them 1-1.

Up next, the Lions face off against the Minnesota Vikings. The Lions were leading for nearly the whole game. With 10:40 left they had the ball and a 10-point lead. But with some questionable decisions made the Vikings scored 14 unanswered points including the touchdown with under a minute left. The game ended with a Vikings win 28-24, making the Lions 1-2.

In their fourth game of the season, the Lions went head to head with the Seattle Seahawks. This was a very close game in the end but the Detroit Lions defense was just not up to standard during this game against the Seahawks. The Lions offense worked as hard as they could but could not catch up to Seattle. The game ended with a Seahawks victory 48-45, making the Lions 1-3.

Next game for the Lions was against the New England Patriots. The Lions were making some questionable decisions that led them to not score, such as going for it on fourth and 9 instead of attempting a field goal. They had many injuries and a lot went wrong. This led to the Patriots defeating the lions 29-0, and making the lions 1-4.

The next game up for Detroit is the Dallas Cowboys. The Lions said during their bye week they figured some things out for their defense. It definitely showed because the defense held Dallas to 3 points in the first half, and only 17 points until the game started to spiral. The offense then showed signs of issues as the game went on. The Lions also had five turnovers which wasn’t good for them at all. The Cowboys secured the victory 24-6, making the Lions 1-5.

Next up was the Lions vs. The Miami Dolphins. This game was a close one, the Detroit offense finally did what they needed to do and scored touchdowns on all three of their opening drives. Unfortunately, the Lions defense had difficulty with the Dolphins offense. Miami only had to punt once out of the whole game. In the end, the Lions lost 31-27, making them 1-6.

This game was the game that started the turn around for the Lions season against the Green Bay Packers. This week of this game, the Lions fired defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant. The outcome of this the Lions forced three interceptions, and tallying nine passes defended almost doubling their season total. The Lions finally walked away with a win against the Packers 15-9, making them 2-6.

Next up against the Lions was the Chicago Bears. Chicago punted twice, was pick sixed once, and when the Bears needed game-winning drive, the defense produced two sacks, spoiling Justin Fields impressive game. The Lions had back-to-back wins for the first time in the Dan Campbell era. They defeated the Bears 31-30, making the Lions 3-6.

The Lions continue their 3 game win streak against The New York Giants. Detroit dominated during this game. On offense, the Lions tallied over 150 yards and made it to the end zone four times. On defense, they forced the Giants offense into three turnovers. Detroit took home the victory 31-18, making it a 3 game win streak and making them 4-6.

The next game up in the Detroit Lions season was against the Buffalo Bills. The Lions put up a huge fight in this game. The Lions scored the game tying drive with 23 seconds left to push for overtime. However, Bills quarterback Josh Allen was able to use that time to drive the Bills down field with a 39-yard strike to Stefon Diggs. The Bills took the victory with a 45-yard field goal making the game 28-25, bringing the Lions to be 4-7. Unfortunately, ending their winning streak.

Next up, Detroit Lions faced the Jacksonville Jaguars. Detroit’s offense played the best they have so far this season. The offense scored on every possession and the defense held the Jaguars down for most of the game. They defeated the Jaguars in a blowout of 40-14, making them 5-7 and making people talk about their playoff chances.

Moving on, the Lions then played the Minnesota Vikings once again. Jared Goff earned 300 yards for his second game in a row. Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson connected for 213 yards on Minnesota’s offense. Despite a comeback attempt by the Vikings, it wasn’t enough to get a win over Detroit, the ending score being 34-23 making Detroit 6-7.

Getting down to the last few games of the season, The Lions faced the the New York Jets. With people starting to look at the opportunity of Lions making it to the playoffs, the Lions ahd to make sure they keep these winning games they had going. That is exactly what they did because they secured the victory over the Jets 20-17, making the Lions 7-7.

In their next game, the Lions went up against the Carolina Panthers. The Lions have been feeling strong but starting this game, the Panthers were dominating physically. Carolina controlled the game with each of their running backs had 100 yards by halftime. The Lions just couldn’t keep up this game and lost 37-23, making them 7-8.

Coming down to the second to last game, the Lions face off against the Chicago Bears. The week before against Carolina, people did not think the Lions played or looked ready to even be considered to go to the playoffs. But the Lions bounced back and were able to get a 28 point lead early in the second half of this game. The Lions dominated the Bears with a 41-10 victory, making them an even 8-8.

In the Lions last game of the season they faced the Green Bay Packers. This game we figured out the the Lions were eliminated from the playoff contention, but that wasn’t going to stop them from beating the Packers. Detroit got off to a slow start but the defense kept them in the game. Even though they didn’t make playoffs, they ended the season with a great win against the Packers 20-16, ending their season 9-8.