DETROIT – The Washington Commanders visit Ford Field this weekend to face the No. 1-seeded Detroit Lions. It’s a road game for the players, but it will be another homecoming for one of the Commanders' traveling contingent.
Most Michiganders know Lansing native Earvin “Magic” Johnson for his Hall of Fame NBA career, philanthropy, and 1979 national championship win for the Michigan State Spartans basketball team. Many people have also noted his support for the Lions over the years, often rooting for them online and referring to them as “my Lions.”
With Reggie Bush and Calvin Johnson it looks like my Lions could be unstoppable this year!
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) September 9, 2013
Congrats to the Detroit Lions on clinching a playoff berth! This is great for my home state of Michigan!
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) December 21, 2014
What most people don’t know, however, is that Johnson also has substantial ties to the Commanders.
Johnson purchased a 4% stake in the team in 2023 as part of a group led by now-majority owner, billionaire businessman Josh Harris. Magic has been an integral part of Commanders' turnaround, ingratiating himself with players and sharing his years of championship wisdom.
“The culture changed. See, you went from a losing culture to a winning culture. But it’s about those players. They decided they wanted to win,” Johnson said outside the locker room after their win on Sunday night. “They didn’t worry about what all the analysts said, all the people said.”
Johnson’s comments about the Commanders mirror what many have said about the Lions' rise.
They underscore the many parallels between how these two historically underperforming franchises have worked their way to being two of the best teams -- and organizations -- in the NFL.
The most normal thing about the 2020-2021 COVID-19-ravaged season for the Detroit Lions is that they were terrible. While Detroit had a few good seasons in the middle of the 2010s, those resulted in zero playoff wins and a well-earned reputation as the worst of the worst.
Off the field, fans raised questions about attention to detail, suspected nepotism, and a track record of putting decision-makers in positions of authority they were not ready for.
Clearly, the organization needed to lay the foundation to build sustained success year after year, not just here and there. The Lions needed a new GM, new coaches, new vibes -- new everything.
General Manager Brad Holmes has brought exactly that, boasting a proven background with the (now) Los Angeles Rams before arriving in Detroit, combined with near-perfect asset management and draft evaluation during his Lions tenure. His level of enthusiasm is surpassed only by his level of competency.
Lions fans like myself love how he’s set the example for the balance of having fun while still being great at what you do.
Coming into the 2023-24 season, the Washington Commanders also needed a culture change, but for more serious reasons. Troubling allegations against their owner, coupled with a controversial team name change, culminated in Washington being viewed as an organization to avoid. Combine all that with no playoff wins since 2005, and yeah, it’s not good.
When Harris purchased the team in March 2023, he had a lot of work to do. He sought to build a collaborative approach, giving leaders like the aforementioned Magic Johnson, GM Adam Peters, etc., influential voices on how the team would run. They even added former Lions Senior Director of Football Operations Brandon Sosna to their front office. It got to the point where some people wondered if there were too many cooks in the kitchen.
Fast forward to now, and the 12-5 Commanders are ahead of schedule, having won that long coveted playoff game that has them facing a rested, hungry Lions team just after dinner time on Saturday night.
Next, there are coaching parallels. Dan Campbell’s 2021 introductory press conference as the Lions head coach used to live in infamy. The over-discussed talk of biting kneecaps and demonstrative mannerisms were used as confirmation bias for most people in the media.
Indeed, someone whose only coaching experience was as a tight ends coach couldn’t be the one to turn around the most unsuccessful football team in the NFL, right? For about a season and a half, that was correct.
But Lions ownership stood by their coach. Despite a 1-6 start in Campbell’s second year, they knew they had the right leader. And boy, were they right.
In 2025, that introductory press conference is no longer something to laugh at; it’s something to revel in. The results speak for themselves. It clearly set the tone for what is now widely regarded as the toughest, grittiest team in the NFL.
Much like with Campbell, the Commanders' hiring of Dan Quinn last year was met with mixed reviews, at best. Is a defensive-minded coach the right guy to draft and help develop a young quarterback?
Whoever the Commanders hired would also have a key role in changing the culture throughout the organization. This put an even higher level of scrutiny on their coaching hire. Safe to say Dan Quinn has passed both tests with flying colors.
Looking at the similarities between the demeanor and relatability of each coach, one has to wonder if the Commanders took note of Campbell’s success as a leader when they chose Quinn.
Speaking of quarterbacks…
When Jayden Daniels walked the stage as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 draft in Detroit, very few people thought there was any chance he’d be returning to the same city for a playoff game less than 12 months later.
There was a lot of debate over whether Daniels was the second-, third-, or even fourth-best quarterback prospect coming into the draft. Some wondered if his slim frame could withstand NFL punishment.
Despite the noise, the Commanders drafted and started him from Day 1. Daniels has rewarded the organization with an elite level of play, leadership beyond his years, and an ability to suit up despite nagging injuries. Other quarterbacks from his draft class can still prove themselves moving forward, but there’s no question the Commanders have their franchise guy.
Jared Goff was met with even more skepticism than Daniels when he was shipped to Detroit in 2021.
The former No. 1 overall pick was considered by many to be a throw-in in the Matthew Stafford trade. Most fans and pundits thought he would be nothing more than a short-term option until a better quarterback came along. Campbell and Holmes rejected this notion, as they made clear by endorsing Goff as the long-term guy from the day he was traded to the Lions.
Millions of “Jared Goff” chants later, it’s clear their faith in him was well-placed.
Magic Johnson’s presence at Ford Field on Saturday night will be a return home for him and a symbolic representation of how far these franchises have come. And while he’ll likely be decked out in Washington Commanders gear, something tells me that he’s secretly rooting for “his” Lions to get the win.
Cookie and I are excited to head back home to Michigan for our next matchup against the Lions! https://t.co/MwprnFhjGB
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 13, 2025