In his preseason NFL power poll, NBC Sports’ Peter King pulls no punches with the Detroit Lions.
King slots the Lions at No. 26 overall, sandwiched between the Atlanta Falcons and Cincinnati Bengals. Coming off an injury-ravaged, 3-12-1 season where Detroit finished 30th in the league, that might seem like progress. But King is skeptical of coach Matt Patricia’s defense, which underwhelmed in 2019.
Detroit basically treaded water in the offseason, trading ace cornerback Darius Slay to Philadelphia and using the third pick in the draft on his replacement, Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah. He’ll play opposite new cornerback Desmond Trufant, who comes from Atlanta after a disappointing end there. Patricia’s D needs to show progress after allowing a gaudy 24.5 points a game in his first two years, not the kind of performance the Lions expected when they hired the Belichick disciple two years ago.
The optimism stems from the offense and QB Matthew Stafford, who is returning from what was a fantastic season before a broken back sidelined him after just eight games.
King concludes the Lions section with this telling, unintentionally punny quip,
“I won’t be shocked if Detroit contends, because the Lions will score. The big question is the D.”
The reigning champion Chiefs sit at No. 1, while the Jaguars bring up the rear.