Detroit Lions Schedule Review (Part 2)

Back here with part two (part one here) of the review of the upcoming 2008 NFL Season for the Lions. Quick tidbit, apparently the Lions will now be hosting the Super Bowl champion Giants in the opening pre-season game(!!) And as you may have noticed (probably not) The blog has a new look and is now called 'After the Buzzer,' a homage to an old pre-blog website that I thought about starting once-upon-a-time.

Without further ado...ONTO THE REVIEW
^poet and I don't even know it

Week 10 — Lions vs. Jaguars: NFC vs. AFC = Take the AFC. Lions vs. AFC elite = take AFC. All of the signs point to a Jaguars victory and who am I to argue with that. This one's probably a horrible, horrible blowout. Yuck.
Result: Loss (3-6)

Week 11 — Lions at Panthers: Let's get this straight, Carolina is no good, there's no reason that the Lions shouldn't be in this game. Jake Delhomme's shoulder will be hanging on by a thread. DeShaun Foster should be in a full body cast and Steve Smith will have been thrown into the fantasy-bust pile. So why not pick the Lions. No every reason I just stated above, obviously.
Result: Loss (3-7)

Week 12 — Lions vs. Buccaneers: This is the first game in a late-season three game home stand. Sounds like a late season playoff push to me. Let's just say it — Tampa will be awful in 2008. They were a fluke team last year and a fluke team in 2005. They're good for nothing except padding the Lions' victory total.
Result: Win (4-7)

Week 13 — Lions vs. Titans: Ah yes, the annual Thanksgiving game for Detroit. While the last few years have resulted with losses, this year will be different. With Ford Field sold out and with the Lions on the fringes of the Wild-card race, they should be out and playing inspired football.
Result: Win (5-7)

Week 14 — Lions vs. Vikings: By this point in the season I'm thinking that the Vikings will be the front runners in the race for the NFC north division crown. On the other hand at 5-7, Detroit will start creeping into ESPN graphics about potential wild card winners. Combine that with the fact that the Lions have had a long week coming off the Thanksgiving game, coupled with the fact that that this is their third home game in a row, they should be rested, prepared and ready to win.
Result: Win (6-7)

Week 15 — Lions at Colts: Oh no.
Result: Loss (6-8)

Week 16 — Lions vs. Saints: At 6-8 the Lions will need plenty of help to get into the playoffs. Luckily 8-8 might just be enough to make to to the post-season. With the home crowd behind them, the Lions will roll in a blowout-type victory.
Result: Win (7-8)

Week 17 — Lions at Packers: At 7-8 there will be a lot at stake for the Lions. The best record during the Millen-era and a potential playoff spot. Too bad for the Lions, the schedule makers have cursed them with another late-season game in Green Bay...a place in which Detroit never wins. Added to that with the pressure of a .500 season and a potential playoff spot, it'll just be too much for the beloved Lions.
Result: Loss (7-9)

Well, my official prediction for the Lions is 7-9, which is a lot better than what some people have been saying and the exact same record they ended up with last year. But with a few "meaningful" games to be played at the end of the year, it might be at least a pretty enjoyable season. And that's what it's come down to for Lions fans. Pretty enjoyable is about the extent of excellence that we have come to expect.