The Darrell Bevell era in Detroit got off to a solid start, as he led the Lions to a 34-30 victory over the Chicago Bears. His leadership has proven to be very anti-Matt Patricia and the team responded in a notable fashion.
The national experts are
Let’s take a closer look at what the national analysts thought of the Lions’ victory and what the experts are saying this week.
Touchdown Wire: 21 (Previous: 29)
“Interim head coach Darren Bevell got a chance to make his debut as the head man for the Detroit Lions. It was quite the memorable first outing… The win keeps the Lions’ slim playoff hopes alive, but they’ll probably need to win out and get a bit of luck over the final few weeks to sneak into the dance.” — Mark Schofield
USA Today: TBD (Previous 28)
Nate Davis did not publish a power ranking this week.
NFL: 26 (Previous: 29)
“Who knows what the future holds for Matthew Stafford and the Lions? For now, Detroit fans should enjoy their star quarterback, who passed for over 400 yards in leading the Lions to a 34-30 comeback victory over the Bears on Sunday. After the win, Stafford handed the game ball to interim coach Darrell Bevell, victorious in his first outing as Matt Patricia’s replacement. “My emotions right now, I can’t even think straight,” Bevell said. “I’m just trying to wrap my head around this whole thing, what just happened.” A feel-good moment for the Lions in a period in team history that hasn’t had enough of them.” — Dan Hanzus
ESPN: 25 (Previous: 27)
“Person with most at stake: Interim head coach Darrell Bevell. The true answer here is everyone: With a potential regime change coming, the coaches are performing for new jobs or to retain theirs, and the players are doing the same. But Bevell might have the most to gain or lose here. Bevell has been waiting for years for his chance to become a head coach, and if he can manage Detroit well down the stretch, that could help his candidacy with the Lions (at this point unlikely) or elsewhere, either this offseason or in the future.” — Michael Rothstein
CBS Sports: 27 (Previous 27)
“So the coaching change gave them a little juice after all. That was a nice comeback against the Bears.” — Pete Prisco
Sports Illustrated: 27 (Previous: 25)
“Darrell Bevell won his debut and is riding the wave of good fortune that comes with not being Matt Patricia in the Lions’ locker room. Good for him. It will be interesting to see if they can knock off another team or two before the full regime change at season’s end.” — Note: MMQB uses a rotating staff to make selections, so they will sometimes vary drastically from week to week.
Sporting News: 21 (Previous: 25)
“The Lions played a lot more inspired offensive football with Darrell Bevell and got a few defensive breaks to avenge a shocking Week 1 loss to the Bears.” — Vinnie Iyer