Entering Week 9, the national media’s opinion of the Detroit Lions mirrors the fans, with some believing they can string together a series of wins over the next month, while others think the season is basically over and that coach Matt Patricia’s days in Detroit are numbered.
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: 25 (Previous: 22)
“Thankfully for the Lions, they now enter the more favorable part of their slate of games. Their next four games are winnable, as they face Minnesota, Washington, Carolina and Houston. But any hope Lions fans had last week took a huge blow seeing this one get away from them.” — Mark Schofield
USA Today: 18 (Previous 18)
“They’ve scored first in all seven of their games this season … but haven’t scored enough in four of them.” — Nate Davis
NFL: 27 (Previous: 21)
“The Lions are now 0-3 at home after a 41-21 loss to the Colts that wiped away any goodwill accrued from back-to-back wins. They had a chance to put themselves into excellent playoff position entering the season’s second half, but instead melted down with two turnovers that produced 15 Colts points at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth. Detroit also lost star wideout Kenny Golladay, who’ll likely miss time after sustaining a hip injury. The Lions face three losing teams over the next three weeks — if they clean up their play, they could still find themselves in the thick of the playoff race come December. But can you trust this team? That’s what I thought.” — Dan Hanzus
ESPN: 24 (Previous: 22)
“Reason for optimism: P Jack Fox. The offense is inconsistent. The defense can’t do much against any team with a winning record. The coaching has been suspect — and has moved away from things that work, like a group of offensive linemen that appeared to coalesce prior to Sunday’s demolition by Indianapolis. But hey, have you seen the punting? Fox leads the NFL with 53.2 yards per punt, best in the league by 2.8 yards. His 47.6-yard net punting average also leads the NFL. And Detroit’s special-teams coverage, led by coordinator Brayden Coombs, has been good. So not all is troublesome in Detroit.” — Michael Rothstein
CBS Sports: 18 (Previous 16)
“Their little surge came back to reality in a hurry with a terrible showing at home against the Colts. The heat is back on Matt Patricia.” — Pete Prisco
Sports Illustrated: 26 (Previous: 20)
“The fact that a win against the Colts would have pushed the Lions over .500 for the first time in the Matt Patricia era is damning. So, too were the results: The Lions yielding 41 points to the Colts in their seventh straight loss at home. Lions ownership billed this as a judgment year for Patricia and GM Bob Quinn, and games like this certainly make reaching that judgment easier.” — Jenny Vrentas
Sporting News: 19 (Previous: 18)
“The Lions couldn’t run the ball on the Colts and also lost wide receiver Kenny Golladay to a new injury. Matthew Stafford managed as well as he could but Matt Patricia’s defense got ripped too much for the QB to make a difference. Consider the coach back on a hotter seat.” — Vinnie Iyer