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Can the Detroit Lions dethrone the Green Bay Packers?

By Freddie Boston

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Dec 7, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Lions wide receiver

Calvin Johnson

(81) is announced before the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

2. Take care of the home games

When you win the majority of your home games, it becomes a lot easier to make the playoffs.

How important is it to take care of business at home?

Dec 7, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Lions fans during the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field. Detroit won 34-17. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

Well, the Lions went 7-1 at home in 2014 and finished with their best overall record since 1991.  Their 7-1 home record achieved this past season was the best Lions’ home record since 1995, when they also finished 7-1. That year, the Lions went 3-5 on the road but still made the playoffs with a 10-6 record.

You only have to look at the Green Bay Packers, who have won four straight NFC North crowns to see the importance of home field advantage. Their home records since 2011? 8-0, 7-1, 4-3-1 and 8-0. The only anomaly is the 2013 season, in which Aaron Rodgers missed eight games with a broken collarbone.

With a healthy Rodgers, they have lost just one regular season game at home in the past four years and that has been the key to winning the division. Last year, they split their road games 4-4 and came away with a 12-4 record and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

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    • For the Lions to win the division, they will need to follow the Packers’ blueprint and make Ford Field a fortress. They did a good job of that in 2014, surrendering just one game in a 17-14 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

    Along with their usual divisional meetings with the Packers, Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings, the Lions will host the Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos and the Oakland Raiders. Going 8-0 will be no easy feat, but the team is certainly capable.

    On the road, the Lions will face the following teams outside the division in the form of the Seattle Seahawks, St. Louis Rams, San Diego Chargers, Kansas City Chiefs (at London, England) and thew New Orleans Saints.

    While there are no easy games on the road in the NFL, the Lions would hope they could pick up four wins in that run -giving them a 12-4 record. In the NFC North, there is no guarantee that a dozen wins will give you the division title. However, if they can follow the next step, it almost certainly will be enough to dethrone the Packers…

    Next: Break the streak...

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