NFL Schedule Preview: Detroit Lions
By Chris Smith
It’s 45 days until the new NFL season begins but for a football mad guy like me that’s just too long so I’ve taken it upon myself to go over each NFL schedule and try and predict for all of you what may happen once the season rolls around.
Our study of the NFC North schedule ends today with a Sunday double-header beginning with the Detroit Lions who went 10-6 in 2011. Here’s how I think their season will go:
- Week 1 vs St Louis Rams – Win
- Week 2 at San Francisco 49ers – Loss
- Week 3 at Tennessee Titans – Win
- Week 4 vs Minnesota Vikings – Win
- Week 5 BYE
- Week 6 at Philadelphia Eagles – Loss
- Week 7 at Chicago Bears – Win
- Week 8 vs Seattle Seahawks – Win
- Week 9 at Jacksonville Jaguars – Win
- Week 10 at Minnesota Vikings – Win
- Week 11 vs Green Bay Packers – Loss
- Week 12 vs Houston Texans – Win
- Week 13 vs Indianapolis Colts – Win
- Week 14 at Green Bay Packers – Loss
- Week 15 at Arizona Cardinals – Win
- Week 16 vs Atlanta Falcons – Win
- Week 17 vs Chicago Bears – Loss
Overall Record for the Detroit Lions in 2012: 11-5
This is one of the harder schedules to try and predict because the Detroit Lions are one of those teams who are the hardest to read. They look like a playoff contender and have a bunch of nice pieces but there remain a number of holes in thei personnel and on the whole are something of a motley crew with their many arrests this offseason not helping matters.
In terms of the schedule itself, there are three key spots which all involve back-to-back games – travelling to the Eagles and Bears in weeks 6 and 7, defending home turf against the Packers and Texans in weeks 11 and 12 and then ending the season at home to the Falcons and Bears. If they can come out of those crucial games 3-3 then there should be playoffs in the future for this team although I expect them to be in a tough race come Christmas.
One more to go from the NFC North when this evening we look at the Minnesota Vikings.
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