NFL Record Predictions: Where do the Redskins end up in the pack?
By Ian Cummings
Detroit Lions
The NFC features some of the most competitive divisions in football. The NFC South figures to be a three-team race this season, and in the NFC North, no team is truly out of the race.
The Lions have a shot at post-season inclusion if Matthew Stafford returns to form; they added T.J. Hockenson to a solid offensive cast that included Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, and Kerryon Johnson. They also have an impressive amount of talent on their defensive front seven, and in the secondary, Darius Slay, Quandre Diggs, Justin Coleman, and Tracy Walker all have the potential to be game changers.
Talent-wise, the Lions aren’t elite, but they’re good enough to compete. Unfortunately, a lot of teams that are good enough to compete end up being weighed down by coaching. I’m not sold on Matt Patricia yet; he was labeled as prickly at times last season, and his micro-management of the offense might not improve with Darrell Bevell in tow.
Patricia has time to change the perception around him, but he has to make the right choices with his authority. Even the slightest inefficiency can render a team eliminated in the NFL, and in a tight race for the NFC North crown, the Lions are the likeliest team to fall behind.