Restore the Roar

Every year at the start of the season I don my latest Lions jersey and head to the bar with high hopes, and every year I'm let down.  It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I follow Detroit religiously.  It's almost gotten to an unhealthy point, but I have to search; I have to find some silver lining in our roster to give myself hope of a promising season.  The year we started 6-0 with Jon Kitna at QB I almost lost my mind, and then we lost every game after that with the exception of one; extremely embarrassing.  Then we finally fire Matt Millen, which means I can now throw away my paper bag hats, and Fire Millen shirts.  We draft Calvin Johnson, then we draft Mathew Stafford.  I'm thinking, alright, now we have the important pieces in place.  Yeah, I think we all know what happened to Stafford's first two seasons.  Over the years it looks so promising, then someone goes down.  Injuries, bad luck, and poor leadership have riddled this team for years.  This year is different.

                                                      (These were bad, bad years.)

The Detroit Lions' have been covered pretty heavily by the national spotlight this year.  It feels like Mo'Town hasn't had any good press since the days when Barry Sanders ran the field.   For those of you who enjoy the NFL ticket from your couch, you may not know that a team's media coverage translates directly to your local sports bar.  I'm always the easiest to spot at the bar, just look for the guy wearing the only Detroit Lions jersey, and there you go.  And while I will miss the free sympathy drinks, I am excited for some long awaited company this year.  I have to admit that the attention will be nice,  but it does come with a cost.  How many fans is enough? How long until I'm surrounded by a sea of honolulu blue and silver jerseys, annoyed with new fans who know nothing of the loss I've felt for years.  The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to have fans nationwide, but most of these fans can't even tell you two players' names on the team.  This scares me!  

After almost twenty-five years of being a die-hard fan, it's about time my team starts winning.  I'll take the good with the bad seeing how I really have no choice.  But the first guy who calls me a bandwagon fan,  is probably going down,  and quick. 

Detroit's Record: 11-5 

  This prediction is completely reliant on Matthew Stafford staying upright.  With Nate Burelson's sudden emergence into a prime receiving target, and Calvin Johnson on the other side, Stafford will have two 1A targets in the red zone.  At tight end, Tony Sheffler and Will Heller can both catch the ball well, and more often than not, be the target of dump passes.  Brandon Pettigew, the team's biggest target at TE, has the entire package set at the position.  This guy can catch deep passes and holds it down in blocking schemes.  You should look for him to finish as a top 5 TE in the NFL at the culmination of this year's season.  

The Lion's Defense has had a huge facelift this offseason.  Bringing in Steven Tulloch(second in total tackles last year) and Justin Durant, has added to the LB corp's speed and overall athleticism.  The D-line is now arguably the best in the NFL, and should make up for a lack of talent in the back end.

Potential ProBowlers:

WR Calvin Johnson, DT Ndamukong Suh, TE Brandon Pettigrew, DE Cliff Avril, Special Teams Stephan Logan.