KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The favorable schedule, especially to start the season for the Detroit Lions, could lead to a hot start for the 2023 season.
Coming off of last season’s magical 9-8 run while winning eight out of their final 10 games down the stretch, the NFL finally saw the Honolulu Blue sky’s and has blessed the football world by gifting them the Lions experience on opening night, where they will face off against the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at 8:20 p.m. on NBC.
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Many pundits believe the Lions are being fed to the Chiefs Kingdom on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. But, with former offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy taking his talents to the NFC East and with their top defensive player, Chris Jones, holding out for more pay, Detroit could go into the sea of red and spoil banner night by becoming kings of the Chiefs jungle for their first victory of the season on Thursday (Sept.7).
Here’s a look at the schedule
After being underdogs in the season opener, the Lions will be favored in most of their matchups, which hasn’t been said or done since our grandfather’s Lions roamed the football world during the 1950s.
“They got a number of guys that present challenges for us,” said Lions head coach Dan Campbell. ”It certainly starts with their quarterback. I think their halfbacks are pretty good.”
Campbell continued:
“(Travis) Kelce, we know about. I think their offensive line has improved, and then defensively, they’re fast as they run, especially 32 (Nick Bolton). I think he’s the bell cow over there at linebackers, but we’re excited, and I can’t wait to get this thing going.”
News broke that Kelce injured his knee during practice Tuesday (Sept. 5) in a non-contact redzone drill and his status for Thursday’s season opener is in question. The superstar tight end is quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ favorite target.
Speaking of Mahomes, in season openers dating back to 2018, he is 5-0 with 1,542 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns, zero interceptions, and a completion percentage of 71.6%. So it’s safe to say the Lions will have their hands full.
The Lions are a good team on paper, and the hype surrounding them is through the roof, as even NBA Hall of Famer and now broadcaster Charles Barkley is a fan of the team and their culture.
“I love Dan Campbell,” said Barkley. “When I’m watching Dan Campbell, I’m like, ‘I want a do-over. I want to play for that dude.’ I want the Lions to do well because I love me some Dan Campbell.”
Defense
Detroit finished 32nd last season against the pass, but they’ve activated newly acquired cornerback Emmanuel Moseley from the physically unable-to-perform list to start the season.
He’s been ruled out against the Chiefs, but with Moseley, they’re better than last season.
They’ll have plenty of depth to fill his void, especially with their additions of safeties C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Brian Branch, and Tracy Walker III, who is returning from injury; plus, Jerry Jacobs looks healthy again at the other cornerback position.
Not to mention Cameron Sutton from the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kirby Joseph, who had a phenomenal rookie year and is one year wiser. Don’t forget about the defensive line and what they showed down the stretch of last season.
Having a healthy James Houston for an entire season and Josh Pascal, who was sidelined with injuries last year, to go along with the Michigan man Aidan Hutchinson rushing the passer will make for a tremendous season.
Offense
The return of offensive coordinator Ben Johnson with a full plethora of currently healthy weapons will make the team better offensively than they were in 2022.
The moving parts must first come from the offensive line, as they’ve been graded as one of the best in football. They’ll be able to open run lanes for Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, which would set up the play-action pass for Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta.
The return of Marvin Jones Jr., who has a connection with Jared Goff as they are University of Cal Bear alumni, will be significant, especially when it comes to catching 50/50 balls.
Imagine how scary the offense would be if Jameson Williams was not suspended for those six games.
Read: Detroit Lions announce 6 team captains for 2023 season
Gibbs could be the Offensive Rookie of the Year, and from all of the offseason buzz surrounding him, he could be the creation of a new wildcard position in football as he’ll be used in many facets, including receiver.
The Swiss Army Knife told the media that gaining 1,000 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving was reachable.
Goff finished the 2022 season playing some of the best football of his career as he led a Lions’ offense that was fifth in points scored, fifth in yards per play, first in 30-point games and top seven in plays of 20-plus yards gained.
A scintilla of the reason they’re playing prime time games in 2023 is because how they finished the season. The fanbase believes they’ll be even more explosive with their new additions from the draft and free agency.
