Detroit Lions Hoopla

After a perfect start against suspect teams, are the Detroit Lions for real? At least we know Megatron is. By Eugene Lanzoni

The Detroit Lions bandwagon has grown more and more crowded in the past couple of months as expectations have soared for the not-so-under-the-radar “sleepers”. Now, four weeks into the 2011 NFL season, the Lions are fulfilling all the Detroit preseason hopes and hoopla with a flawless 4 and 0 start to the season. But is this rags to riches tale unfolding before our eyes too good to be true? Are the Detroit Lions for real? Or will this storybook beginning prove merely a false premise for yet another lackluster year in the Motor City?

Many of the individual moving parts on this Lions team cannot - and should not - be doubted. Calvin “Megatron” Johnson is the real deal. Matthew Stafford, when all of his bones are intact, is the real deal. These two studs have hooked up for two touchdowns in every game through the first quarter of the season, adding up to a grand total of eight touchdowns. Chris Carter is the only other receiver in league history to record four consecutive two-touchdown performances, and this week’s matchup against a relatively toothless Bears secondary indicates that Johnson has a splendid chance of distancing himself from Mr. Carter. With Stafford slinging him the pigskin, Johnson is a stone cold lock as a top five receiver and has quite possibly surpassed mainstays such as Larry Fitzgerald and the other Johnson (Andre Johnson) as the new top dog.

However even with Stafford and Johnson lighting up the scoreboard and Ndamukong Suh, Kyle Vanden Bosch, and the rest of the Detroit front line anchoring an improved defense, the Lions’ success to this point is deceiving. Their only convincing victory came against a Chiefs team that was in shambles and, despite favorable match-ups, the Lions won their other three games by the skin of their teeth. Their margin of victory against the winless Vikings, the Dallas “Choke Artists,” and the unpredictable Buccaneers was an underwhelming 4.7 points (on average). In fact, without a healthy dose of good fortune and another healthy dose of the hapless Tony Romo, the Lions could easily be staring at a .500 record. Huge comebacks and thrilling overtime triumphs make for great television. But they don’t exactly inspire confidence in the Lions as a bona fide playoff contender.

I’m not advising we count the Lions out. I just need to see a little more from them before they’re anointed comeback team of the century and hold a parade to celebrate. A strong showing against the Bears this week would help cement their credibility, and considering the almost depressing impotence of the bears’ offensive line, it should be open season on Jay Cutler on Monday night. I’m expecting the Lions to make a serious statement against their divisional rivals in Chicago. If Detroit is who we thought they were, they’ll prove it with a fourteen point victory in their primetime debut.