After years of fighting off tryptophan to try and stay awake through another awful Thanksgiving Day game, be thankful the Detroit Lions are finally competitive again. Over the past 10 years, the annual Turkey Day host has entered its Thanksgiving Day game with a winning record once. And that was in 2007 when Detroit was right in the middle of a six-game losing streak.
Since 2001, the Lions have a combined 26-76 record entering Thanksgiving Day, including two years when they were winless at the time.
And if you have forgotten, those teams were as dismal on Thanksgiving Day as they were the rest of the season. The Lions haven’t won on Thanksgiving Day since 2003 and have been outscored 258-98 in that span. The closest game over the last seven years has been a 37-26 loss to the Packers in 2007.
So for the first time in a decade, the Lions have an exciting team worth watching.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford is finally healthy and having a breakout season with 25 touchdown passes and a 93.4 passer rating. Wide receiver Calvin Johnson leads the league with 11 touchdown catches. And one of the nastiest defenses in the NFL is led by dominating second-year defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.
Detroit enters Thursday’s game with a 7-3 record and playoff aspirations.
At last, the Lions are ready to showcase their young talent on a day that over the past 10 years has exhibited their ineptitude.
And who awaits to feel the wrath of the Lions’ newly discovered prominence?
Oh, just reigning Super Bowl champion Green Bay, which hasn’t lost since Dec. 19, 2010, and is led by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who has a passer rating (128.8) higher than any quarterback in the history of the NFL.
Oh well, maybe next year will be a good game.
– Jeffrey Tomik
