Change is inevitable in the NFL. Roster turnover is a certainty. Coaches come and go. For the Detroit Lions, those inevitabilities couldn't be happening at a worse possible time.
The Lions are in the midst of a true championship window, and now they're going to have to hope it hasn't already passed them by. While Detroit's roster is still considered one of the very best in the league, there is no question that the difficulty of keeping core pieces around and keeping the band together has become more pronounced over the last 12 months.
On top of it all, the Lions are struggling to keep players healthy.
With so many key players and coaches departed this past offseason, there has been a healthy amount of skepticism surrounding this Detroit team, which has been one of the most fun teams in the league to watch over the past few seasons. They've grown into an offensive juggernaut and were still able to win the NFC North last year despite the Minnesota Vikings winning a whopping 14 games.
But the perils of training camp are playing into the narrative of Lions detractors, there's no question about it.
Lions already dealing with more injuries on defense to start training camp
Defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike is already out for the entire season with an ACL injury. Alim McNeill is expected back "sooner than expected" but is also dealing with an injury. The Lions have Alex Anzalone still dealing with both an injury and a contract issue. Now, Terrion Arnold and Derrick Barnes are dealing with injuries.
Sources: #Lions CB Terrion Arnold left practice today with a strained calf. I’m told the team plans to be cautious before putting him back on the field.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) July 24, 2025
LB Derrick Barnes, who also left practice, should be fine. pic.twitter.com/9GDH46l4kz
To see injuries be the reason why this Detroit Lions team becomes a "What If?" story instead of at least representing the NFC in the Super Bowl a time or two would be a massive disappointment. They have simply been too good and too talented to falter because of that.
Injuries are obviously part of the game and an unfortunate reality, but the Lions are already dealing with way too much of that on top of the fact that losing Ben Johnson as the offensive coordinator and Aaron Glenn as the defensive coordinator are going to potentially be much bigger losses than anyone is really talking about.
Then there's transition on the interior offensive line, Aidan Hutchinson still being at least somewhat of a question mark due to his devastating injury last year...
This is a time of year for optimism, of course, but things have been stacking up against the Lions in a big way already.