Your 2023 NFC North Champion Detroit Lions

[RandyMarsh]

Just now, Motown Bombers said:

There was a stretch in the 00's where a Detroit team was in the championship almost every year.

2002: Red Wings
2003: None
2004: Pistons
2005: Pistons
2006: Tigers
2007: None
2008: Red Wings
2009: Red Wings

The last Detroit team to even make the playoffs was the currently 2-27 Pistons. 

The 00s was definitely a helluva ride for Detroit Sports, hell they even hosted a Final Four and Super Bowl during it too as well as all the team success. Felt like there were always big games going on here. 

[lordstanley]

5 hours ago, Motown Bombers said:

 

The Lions went 11-3 in 1962, 12-4 in 1991 and 11-5 in 2014.

If you count postseason games, the Lions won 11 in 1952 (9-3 plus conference championship game win plus NFL championship game win) and won 11 in 1953 (10-2 plus NFL championship game win). 

The Lions have never won more than 12 regular season games and including playoff games have only won 13 games or more once (1991; 12-4 plus divisional playoff game win).

 

[Motown Bombers]

 

[Motown Bombers]

 

[Motown Bombers]

 

[lordstanley]

20 minutes ago, Motown Bombers said:

There was a stretch in the 00's where a Detroit team was in the championship almost every year.

2002: Red Wings
2003: None
2004: Pistons
2005: Pistons
2006: Tigers
2007: None
2008: Red Wings
2009: Red Wings

The last Detroit team to even make the playoffs was the currently 2-27 Pistons. 

And if you loosen the standard to conference finals or more, even better and longer for almost 20 years:

1995: Red Wings

1996: Red Wings

1997: Red Wings

1998: Red Wings

1999: None

2000: None

2001: None

2002: Red Wings

2003: Pistons

2004: Pistons

2005: Pistons

2006: Tigers, Pistons

2007:  Red Wings, Pistons

2008: Red Wings, Pistons

2009: Red Wings

2010: None

2011: Tigers

2012: Tigers

2013: Tigers

 

[Cruzer1]

Just winning a division means nothing. I want it all. 

[lordstanley]

Anyone know the significant of "It's A Lock" on the Lions' t-shirts? Is there a Lions' significance to that phrase?

Edited December 25, 2023 by lordstanley

[oblong]

10 hours ago, lordstanley said:

It was approaching the longest ever.  Plenty of regular season division titles (or regular season league titles) by Tigers, Wings or Lions between 1934-1957. Went 8 years between 1957 (Lions) and 1965 (Wings). Went 11 years between 1972 (Tigers) and 1983 (Lions). Plenty by the Tigers, Pistons, Wings (and even a couple by the Lions) between 1984 and 2014.

I think of it just in terms of relevance and reasonable expectations of playoff success and this ends what I think is the longest drought since that 70s era. The Tigers did contend in the strike year of’81 and had what was considered a good team prior to 84.  Then you throw in the wings and pistons in the late 80s. The Wings covered you for 20+ years, throw in the pistons and tigers until the 2014 time frame. Our sports scene needed this from the Lions.  They are carrying the torch. 

[Motor City Sonics]

10 hours ago, lordstanley said:

And if you loosen the standard to conference finals or more, even better and longer for almost 20 years:

1995: Red Wings

1996: Red Wings

1997: Red Wings

1998: Red Wings

1999: None

2000: None

2001: None

2002: Red Wings

2003: Pistons

2004: Pistons

2005: Pistons

2006: Tigers, Pistons

2007:  Red Wings, Pistons

2008: Red Wings, Pistons

2009: Red Wings

2010: None

2011: Tigers

2012: Tigers

2013: Tigers

 

We had a great run for about 30 years where at least one of our teams was in it - a team that was in the playoff hunt or at least a really good team.     Now it's only the Lions.    The Tigers are at least 2 years away,  the Red Wings are treading water and still lacking something that Yzerman needs to figure out NOW (no more excuses, it's time now) and the Pistons, well, to quote the Walking Dead  "Just look at the flowers, Pistons, just look at the flowers".    If you jettisoned them to Seattle or Vegas, very few people would miss them.  They aren't even interesting anymore and there is no end in sight, because Gores is in it for the investment and he's doing just fine.  

1983-1988  Tigers

1987-1992  Pistons

1994-2008 Red Wings

1997  Michigan Football

1999/2000 - MSU Basketball

2003-2009  Pistons 

2006-2014 Tigers

[KnoxP]

10 hours ago, Cruzer1 said:

… I want it all. 

I imagine we all do, just enjoying the moment and its historical significance! 👍🏻

[Motor City Sonics]

5 minutes ago, oblong said:

I think of it just in terms of relevance and reasonable expectations of playoff success and this ends what I think is the longest drought since that 70s era. The Tigers did contend in the strike year of’81 and had what was considered a good team prior to 84.  Then you throw in the wings and pistons in the late 80s. The Wings covered you for 20+ years, throw in the pistons and tigers until the 2014 time frame. Our sports scene needed this from the Lions.  They are carrying the torch. 

That 70s era is when I started paying attention to sports.  Surprised I didn't give up.  All our teams were dog****.   Only thing interesting in that era was Mark Fidrych and that was too fleeting.     

[Motor City Sonics]

23 minutes ago, KnoxP said:

I imagine we all do, just enjoying the moment and its historical significance! 👍🏻

I just want to see (through my television) the atmosphere of a home playoff game.      People haven't had this opportunity in 30 years and if it isn't the most electrifying atmosphere in all of football, I'd be absolutely shocked.   Might be the Seattle again and that scares me a little bit, but if you can't beat Seattle at home, then you don't deserve to move on.   Beat Seattle or the Rams at home as #2, and you get a second home game - and even as a #3, I am not sure the Eagles or Cowboys win their first game, so the Lions could still get a 2nd home game.  

If I had my guess the playoffs might end up

1 - San Francisco (face it, the Lions aren't catching them). 

2 - Detroit vs. 7 - Seattle

3 - Phladelpha vs. 6 LA Rams

4 - Tampa Bay vs. 5. Dallas

I would LOVE it if the Lions were the only team in the North with a winning record.  

 

[MichiganCardinal]

 

[lordstanley]

3 hours ago, Motor City Sonics said:

That 70s era is when I started paying attention to sports.  Surprised I didn't give up.  All our teams were dog****.   Only thing interesting in that era was Mark Fidrych and that was too fleeting.     

Made the Bo-Woody 10 Year War even more of a focal point. Because nothing else was happening. 

[Motown Bombers]

 

[holygoat]

Vikings cope is an awesome Christmas gift.

[Motown Bombers]

[buddha]

7 hours ago, Motor City Sonics said:

That 70s era is when I started paying attention to sports.  Surprised I didn't give up.  All our teams were dog****.   Only thing interesting in that era was Mark Fidrych and that was too fleeting.     

michigan football was pretty good in the 1970s...

[RandyMarsh]

The Browns kinda deserve the asterisk in the sens that technically the Ravens were the previous Cleveland franchise and this current one is essentially an expansion team. I think the current one started in 99 or 00 so if you go by that then it's at 24 years, still pathetic nonetheless. 

[CMRivdogs]

10 minutes ago, RandyMarsh said:

The Browns kinda deserve the asterisk in the sens that technically the Ravens were the previous Cleveland franchise and this current one is essentially an expansion team. I think the current one started in 99 or 00 so if you go by that then it's at 24 years, still pathetic nonetheless. 

The Ravens became a franchise in 1996. The reactivated Cleveland Browns came to be in 1999.

[Motor City Sonics]

4 hours ago, buddha said:

michigan football was pretty good in the 1970s...

Big 2 Little 8.  Didn't seem to win big games against other conferences, no national titles and pretty consistent Rose Bowl losses.    They weren't as good as we thought they were, but compared to everything else around here they were. 

[NYLion]

Having a division locked up with 2 games to go is a comforting feeling that most of us have never experienced as a Lions fan, unless anybody here is like 80 years old. Kind of surreal now that it's taken time to set in.

Edited December 26, 2023 by NYLion

[Motor City Sonics]

Everything Bo did is tarnished to me because he knew about Dr. Anderson, but not only that, he intentionally kept him around.   I've soured completely on him now.     He died before he ever had to answer for it, so I guess it worked.   

[Motor City Sonics]

8 minutes ago, NYLion said:

Having a division locked up with 2 games to go is a comforting feeling that most of us have never experienced as a Lions fan, unless anybody here is like 80 years old. Kind of surreal now that it's taken time to set in.

I remember the 12-4 season with Wayne, when they had to win their last seven.   I think the Bears were on Monday night football (were they playing the Bills?) and ABC was cutting back to the Lions watching the game at a bar (no dancers present) and when it was certain the Bears were going to lose, one of the players lit a victory cigar for Wayne,  I remember the network cutting to that.     So of course when the Bears beat the Lions in Chicago the next year, when Wayne was walking off the filed a bunch of Bears fans were lighting victory cigars in front of him as walked into the tunnel.