Tag: Ford Field

Lions attendance spiked in 2022 with the highest increase of any NFL team

Attendance in Ford Field was up over 23 percent in 2022

Detroit sports fans have been starving for a winner for far too long. So when the Lions surged up from the bottom of the standings to a 9-8 finish and second place in the NFC North, the fans rallied around the team.

No NFL team saw a higher increase in average attendance than the Lions did in 2022. With the final five home games all sellouts, Ford Field saw a 23.1 percent jump in attendance over the dismal 2021 season when the Lions finished 3-13-1.

It’s the biggest jump, as tracked by the Sports Business Journal. In fact, the Lions jump of 23.1 percent is more than double the spike of the next team on the list, the AFC South champion Jacksonville Jaguars.

Five teams saw their attendance decline, a group that includes NFC North rivals Chicago and Green Bay.

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Ford Field is getting new turf installed very soon

Ford Field won’t host any neutral-site playoff games because the Lions are installing new turf

The NFL is mulling the possibility of a neutral site for the AFC Championship game in the wake of the cancellation of the Bills/Bengals game in Week 17. Detroit’s proven ability to accommodate teams as a neutral site venue made Ford Field a distinct possibility to host the game, but it won’t happen.

Per Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Ford Field will be unavailable to host the game. That’s because the Lions are replacing the field turf inside the stadium in January, a process they previously set up. Detroit cannot host any playoff games even if the Lions make the postseason, as the Lions would be the No. 7 seed and on the road for any playoff dates.

Ford Field has had the same turf since 2019, when FieldTurf was installed over the course of a month in the offseason. Details on the new playing surface are not yet public.

Additional reports indicate the NFL wants the game to be at an outdoor venue since none of the AFC playoff teams play home games in a dome.

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Lions set Ford Field single-game rushing mark in Week 17 win over the Bears

The Lions ran for 265 yards on 39 carries in the win over the Bears, the most Detroit has had in a home game since 1978

It’s always noteworthy when the Detroit Lions accomplish something in the rushing offense category that trumps the entire Barry Sanders era with the team. In Sunday’s 41-10 win over the Chicago Bears, the Lions ran for more yards in a home game than they ever did in Sanders’ 11 Hall of Fame seasons in Detroit.

The Lions hit 265 rushing yards in the win. Led by Jamaal Williams racking up 144 yards on 22 carries, Detroit averaged 6.8 yards per carry on 39 attempts. It was the most rushing yards by the Lions in a home game since 1978, when the team played at the Pontiac Silverdome. In Week 8 of 1978, Detroit ran for 273 yards on 39 carries in a 31-14 win over the Chargers. Dexter Bussey and Horace King each topped 90 rushing yards and WR Freddie Scott chipped in 28 of his own.

The most the Lions ever ran for in a single game in the Sanders era (1989-99) came in Week 8 in 1991 at Minnesota. Sanders hit 220 on his own and the Lions gashed the Vikings for 267 yards on 38 carries.

Williams ran for 144 and D’Andre Swift charged for 78 yards on 11 carries of his own. Rookie WR Jameson Williams blazed for 40 yards on his only carry. The Lions technically hit 268 but lost three total yards when backup QB Nate Sudfeld knelt down in three victory formation plays at the end of the game.

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Bears look to extend road win streak vs. Lions in Week 17

The #Bears have won their last four games against the #Lions at Ford Field

The Chicago Bears have struggled to find their footing in 2022, and are still in search of their fourth win of the season heading into their Week 17 road matchup against the Detroit Lions. Luckily, they have had an incredibly consistent history at Ford Field over their last several trips to Detroit, and they could add to their sterling resume in this game.

Chicago has won four-straight games against the Lions when playing on the road, and this Week 17 tilt would be a perfect time for the Bears to show some signs of life as the season draws to a close. Even though they’re eliminated from the playoffs, Chicago could spoil their divisional rival’s postseason hopes if they can secure victory in this matchup.

Though their past record at Ford Field will be a good omen for the Bears, they are still likely to be underdogs heading into the game. The resurgent Lions have played some excellent football over the last several weeks, and seem to have turned a corner since their 2-6 start to the season.

It will take an excellent gameplan on both sides of the ball for Chicago to eke out a win this week, and second-year quarterback Justin Fields needs to put together one of his best performances of the season to put the Bears in a position to put up enough points to keep pace with the Lions’ offense. His exceptional running should help mitigate the threat posed by Detroit’s pass rush and, with some luck, he could keep the defense guessing by finding his receivers deep downfield on passing plays.

Though they are likely to be outmatched in some aspects of their game against this Lions team, the Bears will be able to play with reckless abandon in this game, which should lead to some entertaining football on Sunday afternoon.

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Watch: 2024 four-star CB announces his commitment to Michigan State

Watch Riverdale (Tenn.) 2024 four-star cornerback Jaylen Thompson announce his commitment at Ford Field in Detroit.

As we turn the page to a new year next week, more and more recruiters will be shifting their focus to the top class of 2024 prospects. Michigan State made a move in the right direction there on Tuesday.

Watch Riverdale (Tenn.) 2024 four-star cornerback Jaylen Thompson announce his commitment at Ford Field in Detroit.

Thompson (6-foot-0, 173 pounds) is ranked No. 23 at his position and No. 4 overall in Tennessee. According to On3, he had a dozen other offers to choose from, including one from Michigan.

Thompson is the third recruit in Michigan State’s 2024 class. The others – River Rouge (Mich.) wide receiver Nick Marsh and Westland Hialeah (Fla.) cornerback Jamari Howard are also four-star prospects. It’s still too early to mean anything, but the Spartans’ ’24 class ranks No. 11 in the nation.

More recruiting stories

Colorado on a Roll: ‘We are about to change college football’

Top ’22 recruit follows Deion Sanders, transfers to Colorado

Jared Goff loves winning for ‘a fan base that deserves it’

Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff happy to have fun winning for “a fan base that deserves it”

Ford Field has been rocking the last few Sundays. No, it hasn’t been for shows like Metallica or the Monster Truck series. It’s been the Detroit Lions thrilling the capacity crowds with some very good football.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff understands the importance of delivering a fun product on the field. Goff also knows that winning goes a very long way in Detroit.

Goff was asked about the Ford Field atmosphere with the raucous, jubilant fans the past few games as the Lions have risen from 1-6 to 5-7 in the standings.

“Yeah, man it gets fun. It’s fun,” Goff said. “It’s really fun. I think seeing what they were able to do, obviously on Thanksgiving like you said and then last week as well. It’s a lot of fun. It’s a fan base that deserves it. It’s a fanbase that we need to get winning for and deserves good football on the field. And deserves to enjoy their Sundays, as do we when we win.”

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Fans did not like the Thanksgiving halftime show at Ford Field

Fans did not like the Thanksgiving halftime show at Ford Field

The first half of action between the Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving was fun and crowd-pleasing. Then came the halftime show…

The performance by Bebe Rexha inside Ford Field was not well-received. Not by the fans in the stadium, who got to watch the backside of a stage concealed in a corner of the end zone with the performance strictly for television.

The television audience wasn’t exactly thrilled with the performance production either. Social media reaction to the halftime show was not positive. A small but representative sampling from Twitter:

 

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Detroit’s Ford Field to host 2027 College Basketball Final Four

Detroit’s Ford Field to host 2027 College Basketball Final Four

The last time Detroit’s Ford Field (home of the Detroit Lions) hosted the College Basketball Final Four, Michigan State basketball was present, knocking off Connecticut before falling to North Carolina in the National Championship.

The Spartans will hope for some similar, but hopefully even better fortune, when March Madness comes back to Detroit in 2027, as it was announced on Tuesday that the Final Four will return to Ford Field for the 2027 March Madness Tournament.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.

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How Ford Field went from indoor carnival to football field for Browns-Bills

A time-lapse video of Ford Field going from indoor carnival back to football field

An indoor carnival was taking place at Ford Field in Detroit … until the NFL needed the venue because a snowstorm forced the Cleveland Browns-Buffalo Bills game to Motown.

The challenge became dismantling the amusement rides, all that went along with it, and getting the floor ready for an NFL game that wasn’t scheduled.

Thanks to NFL social media there’s a time-lapse video of the work done by those in charge of such audibles at Ford Field

Ford Field will host the Browns vs. Bills on Sunday

The NFL moved Sunday’s Browns-Bills game from Buffalo to Ford Field in Detroit due to snow

There will be NFL football in Detroit in Week 11, but it won’t be the Lions playing at Ford Field. The NFL moved Sunday’s Browns-Bills game from Buffalo to Ford Field in Detroit due to expected snowfall and weather conditions in Buffalo.

It’s the second time the Bills have relocated for a week to Detroit. With the Bills on the Thanksgiving menu in Detroit four days later, Ford Field made the most sense, aside from also being a short drive from Cleveland. Up to five feet of snow is expected in the Buffalo area between now and Sunday.

Tickets for fans in Detroit will be made available. Sunday’s game will kick at 1 pm ET. The Lions will be playing the Giants in New York at that time.

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