I don't get it.
I don't understand why every Detroit Lions loss seems to be a referendum on the team and its management.
Seriously? Is the sky falling every week?
Sure, I understand bad losses like Sunday's 41-21 butchering at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts look bad. But fan after fan and headline after headline seem to tell us there's absolutely no hope for this team.
Pretenders. They're going nowhere. Frauds. No reason to believe.
I disagree. I'm not picking the Lions as a dark-horse to win the Super Bowl. But they're not a terrible, hopeless team.
Even at 3-4, they're in the playoff hunt, just a couple of games behind the Los Angeles Rams for the NFC's final wildcard spot after Sunday.
They played a bad game against a Colts team that, like the New Orleans Saints, might be much better than the mediocre team we took them for. The schedule is about to get really hard for the Colts, but for now they're 5-2 and tied for the AFC South lead with Tennessee.
I know it's human nature to complain and shake your fist. And the Lions have given everyone good reason to make a habit of doing that for the past 60 years.
Detroit Lions fan holds up a sign before the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field, Dec. 15, 2019.
But when it comes to this year's team, they're not being treated fairly. The attitude seems to be that a win means nothing and a loss means everything.
Beat the Jaguars and the Falcons on the road? Meh.
Lose to the Colts at home? Clutch my pearls and fire everyone!
The Lions, from top to bottom, deserve blame for such a lopsided loss to the Colts. But they have nine games left and a favorable schedule the next five weeks. If you don't think the Lions deserve your patient judgment, that's up to you.
I'm willing to reserve judgment until at least the end of this five-game stretch. Fortunes can change quickly in the NFL, and if you're too busy trying to run someone out of town, you might miss the bandwagon when it goes by.
