DETROIT – “This year, it sucks. Next year, it’s us.”
That’s the message from Alex Anzalone about the upcoming Super Bowl. He said he understands if Detroit Lions fans don’t even want to watch the game after what happened in San Francisco, but his confidence for the future is palpable.
Anzalone wrote an article for The Players Tribune about this season, talking about the ups and the downs and the devastation of losing to the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
But one of the main themes of the piece is Anzalone’s genuine belief that the Lions will be back. And he explained why he’s so confident.
“What we’re building here is extremely special,” Anzalone wrote. “You can talk about it all day, but the proof is in the pudding, as they say. It’s one thing to say that a city, and a team, and a culture is unique. It’s a whole other thing to actually turn down the cheddar.”
Anzalone thanked coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn for turning down potential head coaching opportunities to return to Detroit for another season. Both seemed likely to leave for jobs, but the loss to the 49ers left them with unfinished business.
Anzalone also pointed to the roster, specifically naming Jared Goff, Aidan Hutchinson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Penei Sewell, Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Frank Ragnow, and Sam LaPorta.
“Dogs everywhere, up and down the roster,” he wrote. “But it goes beyond talent. It’s not like a catchy saying you put up on the walls of the facility. It’s not something you can put into words. It’s something we feel in our bones. We want to make history next season. Anything less is failure.”
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He finished by telling the story of Dan Campbell asking during exit interviews whether his players planned to watch the Super Bowl on Sunday. He told them they need to watch, even if it hurts, so that they can “use every second of it as motivation.”
Anzalone said even though the loss still stings right now, it will motivate the team in 2024.
“You’re gonna have 53 dogs out there doing the exact same,” he wrote. “You’re gonna have a whole coaching staff doing the same. You’re gonna have a whole city doing the same.”
