NFC Wild Card: (6) Detroit Lions (9-7) @ (3) Seattle Seahawks (10-5-1)

[slickdtc]

Lions back in to the playoffs after a crazy year. Seattle has had something wrong with them all year but still end up the class of the NFC West.

I've loved what the Lions have done all season, but the last three weeks has seriously put a damper on things. Having to go in to Seattle, cold, it just doesn't add up for me even without Earl Thomas.

Gimme the Seahawks at 34-20.

[fugazi]

I will be thrilled if Detroit can find a way to win his game.

[pietasterp]

The Lions are a bad team that just happened to have a lot of 50-50 games against non-playoff-caliber teams tilt their way. Unless I'm missing one, I don't think we've beaten a playoff-bound team all year. Frankly, we haven't even been all that competitive with playoff-caliber teams all year.

I give the Lions a 1% chance of winning this game, +/- 1%.

[thaima1shu]

Been a pretty tough year for the Hawks with all the major injuries. Still, 5th straight year with 10+ wins and another playoff appearance is pretty nice. Not sure things are in place for them to make a deep run, but just glad they're in and have a chance.

[ProfessaPackMan]

Go Lions.

I wish San Fran would've got that W last night. Would've loved to see Giants-Seahawks instead of this matchup.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SPTO]

It's nearly impossible to beat Seattle at their place and the Lions haven't looked so great over the last month. I think Seattle will win this one by 10 points.

[RJTurneR]

Quote: Originally Posted by pietasterp

The Lions are a bad team that just happened to have a lot of 50-50 games against non-playoff-caliber teams tilt their way. Unless I'm missing one, I don't think we've beaten a playoff-bound team all year. Frankly, we haven't even been all that competitive with playoff-caliber teams all year. I give the Lions a 1% chance of winning this game, +/- 1%.

No no no no no... The Browns are a bad team. The Chargers are a bad team. The Jets are a bad team. The Jaguars are a bad team.

To say we are a bad team is ignorant. I'm amazed how far we have come given what we have had to overcome. A less than healthy Ziggy Ansah who was in and out all season, a depleted secondary, linebackers beaten up with nagging injuries, our best RB was gone by seasons start and our second best RB was constantly injured, our offensive line has suffered injuries late in the season, and even our star QB has had to play through injury.

Yet we're 9-7 and in the playoffs. We needed some luck, but it doesn't take much to look through history and find loads of wild card teams that needed luck to get in.

I've been pretty critical at times (Including last night as I was pretty mad..) of this team. The play calling is awful and someone needs to take the blame for how poor this defense is coached, missed tackles and blown coverage is becoming a common problem more often than it isn't.

This is the NFL. Doesn't matter who you face be it the Patriots or the Browns. You win the games you need to win. We did that. We've been just good enough. But far from bad.

Anyway, rant over (I'm a bit sensitive after last night.. Aplogies), I don't think facing Seattle is as terrifying as it sounds. This isn't the same Seattle Seahawks of 2013 or 14. As Slick mentioned there has been something not right with them all year, they are still a good team though. If anything I'm more concerned about playing at Seattle, than just playing Seattle. That stadium in the playoffs... yikes.

[pietasterp]

Quote: Originally Posted by RJTurneR

No no no no no... The Browns are a bad team. The Chargers are a bad team. The Jets are a bad team. The Jaguars are a bad team. To say we are a bad team is ignorant. I'm amazed how far we have come given what we have had to overcome. A less than healthy Ziggy Ansah who was in and out all season, a depleted secondary, linebackers beaten up with nagging injuries, our best RB was gone by seasons start and our second best RB was constantly injured, our offensive line has suffered injuries late in the season, and even our star QB has had to play through injury. Yet we're 9-7 and in the playoffs. We needed some luck, but it doesn't take much to look through history and find loads of wild card teams that needed luck to get in. I've been pretty critical at times (Including last night as I was pretty mad..) of this team. The play calling is awful and someone needs to take the blame for how poor this defense is coached, missed tackles and blown coverage is becoming a common problem more often than it isn't. This is the NFL. Doesn't matter who you face be it the Patriots or the Browns. You win the games you need to win. We did that. We've been just good enough. But far from bad. Anyway, rant over (I'm a bit sensitive after last night.. Aplogies), I don't think facing Seattle is as terrifying as it sounds. This isn't the same Seattle Seahawks of 2013 or 14. As Slick mentioned there has been something not right with them all year, they are still a good team though. If anything I'm more concerned about playing at Seattle, than just playing Seattle. That stadium in the playoffs... yikes.

Point taken, RJTR. I shouldn't have said the Lions are "bad". They are very mediocre and could just as easily have been 5-11 as 9-7. But it's true that making the playoffs is no small feat and shouldn't be dismissed.

I agree that playing @ Seattle is the problem as much as playing VS. Seattle. I don't think Seattle is all that great, but again - against playoff-caliber competition, the Lions have not even really been competitive. That's a big part of the reason I have discounted them so heavily - they are the beneficiaries of a near-last-place schedule, and they just barely won most of those games despite that.

Having said that, I don't think it's ignorant to say we're 'bad'. If you take off the Honolulu-blue goggles, and consider that if the Lions played the same schedule as the Browns or Jets, it's not clear to me we wouldn't have had the same record. Anyone who saw this team against the Giants, Packers, Texans, or Cowboys - literally the only playoff teams on their schedule - can't possibly be convinced they're significantly better than the bottom-feeders. Look at our 2 games against cellar-dweller Chicago - did it look like we were better than them? And that's a bad team.

Anyway....go Lions. Rather be in than out of the playoffs either way.