NYLion

The 49ers aren't falling out of the playoffs, they rely on their QB less than just about any other team. I wouldn't rule out the Lions making the playoffs (they obviously have a shot) but it's a real longshot. The positive is that it's two spots up for grabs, not one, so they'll just need to pass two of those teams not all three but it's a tall order which the Giants/Commies tie made even taller. With that said, just the mere fact that we're discussing playoff possibilities in December is a big step in itself.

It's going to be tough. The Giants/Commies tie really hurt the cause and made the tiebreaker they had over both irrelevant, plus they're essentially 3 games behind Seattle because of the tiebreaker. I'm not even sure 9-8 gets it done tbh, they'll need to run the table most likely.

What the hell? There's no way that can be real, right? Edit: I see that is indeed, not real.

And they could have beaten any of those teams (not including San Fran obviously). I still don't know how they blew that first Minnesota game.

Last week was a big missed opportunity. Had Buffalo on the ropes and could have been on a 5 game winning streak going into the Minnesota game with a ton of momentum. Regardless, the arrows are pointing up. Not ready to call them a good team yet but I don't think they're far off. Blowing out Jacksonville after that heartbreaker against Buffalo told me a lot about this team/coaching staff.

The Lions are a.... wait for it.... good team?

St. Brown, Rodrigo, Joseph, Houston, Jacobs (UFDA). Holmes just has a knack for finding these late round gems.

Score effect. They were trailing most of the game, sort of like a Stat Padford statline.

Whitmore and Whitehead were the two guys I had pegged as the best fits for the Pistons based on position and skillset so needless to say that it's been disappointing to see Whitmore shelved with an injury (I wouldn't be surprised if he sat out the season) and Whitehead getting virtually no playing time. The Thompson twins are intriguing but I don't know if either are a natural wing, they're more like big guards. Brandon Miller is another intriguing guy, has the frame and shot to be a legit 3 and D type. Not much of a shot creator though but the Pistons don't need one on wing. Obviously Victor and Scoot are the prizes (Scoot is just destroying the G League) but I'm preparing for 3-7 as per usual in Pistons lottery lore.

I don't know about turning a corner yet but he's had more good games than bad the last few weeks and is playing with a lot of confidence so I don't think it's far fetched to think that the lightbulb might finally be going on. He'll more than likely never live up to his draft position but he could very well carve out a career as a key bench player if he keeps this up.

That's kind of how I look at it if it's somebody like Carolina for instance. They'd be foolish to give up their 2024 1st under any circumstances but if they really believe in a guy this year and he's out of reach, they'll have to pay up.

Bingo. If the Lions are considering a trade down to a team that badly wants a QB then their 2024 1st is a must especially if it's a jump of 3 spots or higher. The Jets traded three 2nds to move up from 6 to 3 for Darnold so I don't think a 2024 1st at minimum is an unreasonable ask for a similar jump. Build up that ammo for the Caleb Williams bidding war.

If that's the case then you let him go. I'd only re-sign him at a reasonable price. I don't think the market for him will be as robust as some people think which is why I think there's a solid chance he re-signs here.

I know some people aren't big on the "culture" thing but Williams is a huge part of this culture they're building and he probably has a few years left in the tank to contribute on the field as much as he does off so if they can lock him at reasonable dollars, I think it's a must sign. I also think he's the type that will take a bit of a paycut to stay here.

Outside of a rough patch in the middle of the season, he's had a really good year actually surprisingly under the radar considering how much hype he had coming in to the NFL. He just has the look of a QB ready to turn the corner, similar to Peyton Manning in his 2nd year. I'm still buying full stock on him.

All of us are amateurs tbh although I feel us as a team could have done a better job than most Lions scouts over the last 60+ years. All we'd have to do is not completely screw up and we'd be an upgrade.

Don't even think about taking Stroud. Another accurate passer with a good, not great, arm that has mobility issues? No thanks. Either take Young if Houston somehow passes on him or take a high upside guy outside of the 1st like Richardson. No Stroud, no Levis

Not that I'm advocating for taking either of these guys with the 1st rounders but Levis's completion percentage is likely higher because Kentucky plays a MUCH more conservative offense, rarely push the ball downfield. Also, Levis is 2 years older so he's more polished than Richardson is. With that said, once again, this is a QB class filled with flaws so you're taking a leap of faith if you take any of these guys with a high 1st (which is where both of the Lions 1sts appear to be headed). If you look at Mahomes and Allen going into the draft, both were quite raw but also had an enticing skillset so if you believe in franchise upside, you have to roll the dice at some point. Out of all the QBs in this draft, I think Richardson provides the biggest boom potential but it also comes with a lot of bust potential. If he's there in the 2nd, I might be willing to take a chance especially since they now have another 2nd to play with.

I think they needed this one to have a legit shot at the playoffs. I think they'll likely split the rest of the games and finish 7-10 which is a very nice step forward for this franchise especially with so many key injuries that they had to navigate. A good draft and free agency and I honestly think they have a shot to compete for the division next season.

I want to reiterate that while I didn't like the coaching on the final drive, I thought they all coached a great game prior to that, so I'm not going all TP and saying that they need to be shot into the sun or anything like that.

It sure seemed like it with all the time they were bleeding off the clock although that 3rd and 1 call was aggressive.

Not really unless they throw a 30 yard TD pass on the next play which was exceedingly unlikely. Chances are that it would have taken at least several plays to get into the end zone which would have bled a lot of the remaining clock.

As I said before, if they had like 50 seconds left and 2 timeouts, that opens up the playbook and at worst, you're giving Allen something like 30 seconds or so left if you score in the next 3-4 plays and needing to go the length of the field, or kick a shorter field goal and give him no time left. That drive played out as poorly as possible, outside of a turnover or missing the FG.

Yes but having like 50 seconds left and 2 timeouts gives you more options.

Probably about 25 seconds left and 2 timeouts. Of course it would have made scoring a TD tougher because they bled too much clock prior to that but by kicking a FG, you're giving the ball back to Allen with too much time left. I think a higher percentage play would have been to have some shots at the end zone then kicking a shorter FG as opposed to giving Allen another shot.