The Lions begin the post-Megatron era with plenty of questions, not many answers, and a new management team in place to oversee the on-field product. That product won’t have Calvin Johnson, who retired this offseason after nine seasons in a Lions uniform, taking the face of the franchise over the last decade away.
The problem remains the same for the Lions: they’ve yet to find the recipe for building a consistent winner. New GM Bob Quinn, hired from a winning organization in New England, plans to change that. He retained coach Jim Caldwell after Lions rallied for a 7-9 record after starting 2015 at 1-7.
Detroit Lions Regular Season Win Total Odds at BookMaker.eu
Lions Over 7 Wins ( -125)
Lions Under 7 Wins ( +105)
There will be an entirely different look on the field when the Lions open the 2016 season. Johnson, still an elite receiver at age 30, hung up the cleats and his departure leaves a gaping hole on offense. Much like Barry Sanders a generation earlier, Johnson, the Lions’ all-time receiving leader, stepped away with plenty left to give.
He threw a jab at the organization recently as well, saying it would have been more difficult to retire if the organization had been a contender. In his nine seasons, the Lions went to the playoffs only twice and the club never had a team in place to legitimately contend for a Super Bowl.
And that doesn’t appear to be changing this season. Everyone’s job gets a bit tougher with Megatron gone and quarterback Matthew Stafford has to keep building on strong second half of last season when he threw 19 touchdown passes following the promotion of Jim Bob Cooter to offensive coordinator.
2016 Detroit Lions Schedule
Opening betting lines for the Lions in parentheses
Week 1: at Indianapolis Colts ( +4.5)
Week 2: vs. Tennessee Titans ( -5)
Week 3: at Green Bay Packers ( +8.5)
Week 4: at Chicago Bears ( +1.5)
Week 5: vs. Philadelphia Eagles ( -1)
Week 6: vs. Los Angeles Rams ( -1.5)
Week 7: vs. Washington Redskins ( -1)
Week 8: at Houston Texans ( +4)
Week 9: at Minnesota Vikings ( +6.5)
Week 10: BYE
Week 11: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars ( +3.5)
Week 12: vs. Minnesota Vikings ( +2.5)
Week 13: at New Orleans Saints ( +2)
Week 14: vs. Chicago Bears ( -2.5)
Week 15: at New York Giants ( +3)
Week 16 at Dallas Cowboys ( +5)
Week 17: vs. Green Bay Packers
The Lions were doomed last year by a poor start to the season that saw them open with five straight losses and a 1-7 record before the bye. Detroit opens 2016 with three of its first four games on the road and travels to division foes Green Bay and Chicago in Weeks 3 and 4. The Lions open against the Colts, who should have quarterback Andrew Luck back healthy. The only home game in the first month is against Tennessee, a team that tied for the worst record in the NFL in 2015.
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A mid-season coaching change made all the difference for Stafford and the Lions, who rallied to win six of their final eight games in 2015 to salvage at least a bit of respect. The quarterback was under siege in the early part of the season and reverted to some of his turnover-prone ways, even getting benched briefly for the first time.
With Johnson retired, Stafford has to shoulder more of the load offensively and he better not crumble or the Lions could be in serious trouble. Detroit wasn’t very good with Megatron last season, so it’s hard to believe they will improve on their win total without him.
Many pundits and sportsbooks aren’t giving the Lions much of a chance this season. And that’s something that could work in their favor. The whole “us vs. the world” approach has worked before, but not much. If you’re not very good, you just can’t win. The Lions are putting some pieces together and have stud building blocks on defense in DeAndre Levy and Ezekiel Ansah. But overall it’s tough to see Detroit doing much.
NFL Odds: Detroit Lions Under 7 Wins
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