The 2011 (and on-going) version of the Lions seems to be all about signs. No, not the ones on billboards, storefronts, or even the ones the networks may or may not give to certain fans to hold up in the stadium for the cameras. (Though I've been to a whole lot of games, and never saw a fan bring one through the turnstiles yet). Signs. Like in omens. Good, bad, and who knows?
Preseason pundits picked them to finish anywhere from 4-12, a bad sign, to 12-4, a good sign. Yours truly figured around 8-8, and they wound up 10-6. Could they have won a couple more games? Given a break here or there -- maybe. When things seem to be falling your way, that's a good sign.
Could they have lost a couple more? Definitely. While the Lions faithful might look back at a "bad call" here or there, they tend to forget about some of those "prayers" QB Matthew Stafford heaved up to Calvin Johnson, most times in double, and sometimes even triple coverage, only to have those prayers answered. Hail Marys are not exactly a high-percentage play, especially when the other team knows they're coming. Take those away and the Lions probably aren't in the playoffs. That would be a bad sign.
Along those lines, the Lions came back from double-digit deficits 4 times, an NFL record, to win games. Were they lucky or good? Hard to say. Probably some of both, but a good sign. Now that the Lions are no longer considered a joke by other teams in the league, counting on that trend to continue for future success would be a bad sign.
The Lions got their first Monday Night Football exposure in a very long time. This is a good sign. Was it merely a return favor from the NFL for hosting a Vikings game the year before when the dome in Minnesota collapsed? Who knows?
The NFL, in conjunction with the TV networks, moved the Lions-Saints game from its formerly scheduled afternoon time slot, to prime-time on Sunday night. The Lions were hot and the Saints, Drew Brees and all, were, well, the Saints. That was a good sign.
No sooner had the schedule been changed, and the Lions went into a mid-season slump in the weeks leading up to the game. When it finally WAS played, the Saints took them to the proverbial woodshed while countless millions of people tuned in. That was a bad sign.
In the season finale, the Lions lost yet again to the Packers at Lambeau Field. Even though the Packers were resting some of their starters, notably QB Aaron Rodgers, the Lions couldn't quite get over that hump. That was a bad sign.
Yet the back-up QB for Green Bay, Matt Flynn, threw for almost 500 yards and 6 touchdowns. That's an all-world day for ANY QB. It's doubtful even Aaron Rodgers, as great as he is, could have improved much on THOSE stats.
Despite that onslaught, the Lions were still in the game, and actually had a decent chance of winning it in the closing seconds, until their luck ran out. That might be a good sign, but in a bad way. Matthew Stafford through for over 500 yards and 5 TDs himself. That's good. The Lions still lost. That's bad. So who knows? See what I mean?
As schedules go, the Lions had a soft one in 2011. Look what happened within their own division, where they have to play home and away against Green Bay, Minnesota and Chicago. Few would doubt Green Bay was the class of the field, but Donovan McNabb didn't work out in Minnesota and the Vikings went into free-fall. The Bears were in the hunt until Jay Cutler and Matt Forte, their star running back, both went down with injuries. Meanwhile, Lions QB Matthew Stafford, not that long ago referred to as the "china doll" because he seemed to be so fragile, stayed healthy all year. That was good for Detroit, but bad for Chicago. So who knows?
The rest of schedule? Kansas City and Tampa Bay? They're awful. Winning at Oakland and Dallas on miracle comebacks? See above. Atlanta's pretty good, but not considered elite. They waltzed into Ford Field and dispatched the Lions. Detroit beat the Broncos in Denver when Tim Tebow was just getting his feet wet as a starter. What to make out of Tebowmania and the rest of that team is a total mystery to me, but I dare say that was considered a "soft" game when the NFL put it on the Lions' schedule. San Francisco? Be honest. Who amongst you would have ever guessed that first year coach Jim Harbaugh would turn them around so fast, and go so far? Certainly not me. That looked to be a soft game too. I mean, c'mon. The "worst" team in the NFL is pretty good, and the schedule makers can only accommodate them so far in the name of parity. Any given Sunday, and all that. The league bent over backwards to help the Lions out this year. A good sign.
They've finally got some respect. An even better sign.
Now they have to go back to the Big Easy for another go-round with Drew Brees and the Saints. Unless Matthew Stafford and company can figure out a way to put up about 50 points, and make the Hail Mary play routine, on a New Orleans defense that's statistically far superior to what they just saw in Green Bay, that might not fall into the category of either good or bad.
That might get flat-out ugly. Again.
"Signs, signs, everywhere are signs." Lyrics from the classic oldie performed by the Five Man Electrical Band, circa 1971. "And the sign said long-haired freaky people need not apply".
It's probably a good sign that rule isn't still enforced, or else a whole lot of athletes, in several sports, wouldn't have ever played, or be playing right now.
And I'm thinking that would be a bad sign, but perhaps that's a topic for another day.
For right now, there's only one thing to do.
Sign off.
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