One of the more interesting comments from Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell on Monday was his level of optimism at the bye week compared to last year. Even though Detroit had come off a big win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to move to 5-2 last year, Campbell said he feels better about this season because of the youth and growth already shown through five games.
“In some regards I feel better going into this bye than even I did last year because I know we’re ascending and we’re young and we’re growing
and that’s exciting,” Campbell said. “Sometimes you feel like you’re topped off and maybe you’re beginning to deteriorate because of issues worn down, age, whatever it is.
“So that’s exciting. I do feel like we’re on the rise here a little bit. We’ve just got to keep getting better. We’ve got to keep testing ourselves. And look, we’re in for the long haul now and it’s really about to get geared up and the competition is about to really raise up another level, and it starts with Green Bay.”
But is that optimism actually warranted? Is this team’s future far more bright than the one that finished 9-8 and out of the playoffs last year?
On this week’s PODcast, we re-evaluate how the team has played through five games. What have they done well? What have they struggled with? What successes are likely to continue through January, and which struggles could actually improve in the back half of the season?
Last year, John Morton led the highest-scoring offense in the league through the first couple months. What is different about this season that could keep the offense efficient throughout the entire year? And what hope is there that the Lions defense can turn things around?
In the last portion of the PODcast, we discuss the outlook of the NFC North and the overall NFC, and where the Lions fall in the clutter.
You can listen to the entire show below using the Spotify embed, or using whatever podcasting platform you like by simply searching “Pride of Detroit.”
If this episode is not enough Lions talk for you, the video version of the show is nearly double the length. You can catch that over on our YouTube page or Twitch channel. Be sure to follow us on both platforms so you don’t miss a live stream. We’re also about 250 people away from 20,000 subscribers on YouTube, so join now!
