At the quarter way point in this NFL season, there are two remaining undefeated teams. The reigning Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers and………….. (long pause) the Detroit Lions. Think about that phrase: Detroit Lions undefeated. That doesn’t even sound right. That sounds about as farfetched as Ron Artest’s new legal name.
He states that he made this change to “reflect his concern when it comes to peace, friendship, and unity”. What are you sick? You have been in more fights than Kimbo Slice, although to your defense, you haven’t been yoked up as bad , or as fast, as he has. My apologies, back to the topic of discussion.
After years of selecting 1st round wide recievers that were busts and misfits, I think we can all agree that they have found their dude in Calvin Johnson. "Megatron" is an absolute freak. Athletically, there might not be a better physical specimen in the entire league. He's got about 6 inches and 50 pounds on the average corner. If that's not intimidating enough, he has legitimate 4.3 forty speed, which puts him among the league's elite. I'm certain that do-do runs down every cornerback's hamstring when they are playing man coverage against him. He's caught 8 touchdown passes in his first 4 games. To put that in perspective, only 5 teams have more touchdown catches than him, and he's on pace to shatter the current NFL record.
Enough about "Megatron" because we all know that it takes more than one player to take you to the promised land (Barry Sanders is an exception). Matt Stafford has been phenomenal and has looked every bit worth the fat, $78 million they paid him. Jahvid Best is a star in the making and is one of the most underrated players in the league. But the reason that the Lions are for real this season: Their defense. They addressed their D-line needs by drafting a defensive tackle in the 1st round the past two seasons. Ndamukong "it's on like Donkey Kong" Suh was 1st Team All-Pro last year in his rookie season and Nick Fairley will hope to follow in his footsteps. The rest of their defense, for the most part, isn't widely known and lacks big-name players, but they can flat out play. Part of that reason is that in the past decade, the Lions completely embarrassed themselves and when your team isn't successful, your players don't get much recognition. But after this year, you will know names like Louis Delmas, Stephen Tulloch, and Cliff Avril. Still not buying the Lions? Get this: They've won 12 straight games, dating back to last season and including this preseason. I know that the preseason is about as pointless as zone defense in the NBA, but a 12-game win streak in any professional sport, let alone the NFL, should open your eyes. The past two weeks, they've shown their relentlessness and fight, posting consecutive 20+ point comeback wins on the road. The last time they played the cheeseheads, they began their 12-game win streak with a hard-fought 7-3 victory.
I've heard enough about the Packers and we already know everything about them, so I'll try to keep it short and sweet. They have one of, if not, the best quarterbacks in the league in Aaron Rodgers. Their receiving core, led by Greg Jennings, is very talented, although I think the Pack would still light up the scoreboard with a bunch of D-3 dudes. Their kryptonite: Their D. Yes, I'm aware that they have Clay Matthews, who's been saucing since grade school, and longtime vet Charles Woodson, but they have been getting absolutely torched out there. All their games so far have been shootouts and, thanks to A-Rod, who has the franchise on his back, they have been able to remain undefeated.
Packers vs. Lions: What happens? I'm glad we will get to see this game twice. Offensively, these teams are almost mirror-images of each other. Both will try to go up and down the field on you and beat you with their vertical passing game. Defensively, the Lions get the edge with their front 7, while the Packers get the edge in the secondary. The teams are almost dead even and I actually like the Lions if you take away both starting quarterbacks (see Week 14 last year). Unfortunately for the Lions, that probably won't be the case. With Aaron Rodgers under center, I can't honestly say that the Lions are a better team. The Packers are the team to beat in the NFC North, and probably the entire league: But I've always loved the underdog. The series splits during the regular season and both teams make the playoffs. But no one likes ties. How bout a tiebreaker in the NFC Championship Game? One can only hope..........
"Any time Detroit scores 100 points and holds the other team below 100 points, they almost always win"
-Doug Collins
P.S. After all the Packers talk and mention of his name, I couldn't leave this one out.
-G Money
Enough about "Megatron" because we all know that it takes more than one player to take you to the promised land (Barry Sanders is an exception). Matt Stafford has been phenomenal and has looked every bit worth the fat, $78 million they paid him. Jahvid Best is a star in the making and is one of the most underrated players in the league. But the reason that the Lions are for real this season: Their defense. They addressed their D-line needs by drafting a defensive tackle in the 1st round the past two seasons. Ndamukong "it's on like Donkey Kong" Suh was 1st Team All-Pro last year in his rookie season and Nick Fairley will hope to follow in his footsteps. The rest of their defense, for the most part, isn't widely known and lacks big-name players, but they can flat out play. Part of that reason is that in the past decade, the Lions completely embarrassed themselves and when your team isn't successful, your players don't get much recognition. But after this year, you will know names like Louis Delmas, Stephen Tulloch, and Cliff Avril. Still not buying the Lions? Get this: They've won 12 straight games, dating back to last season and including this preseason. I know that the preseason is about as pointless as zone defense in the NBA, but a 12-game win streak in any professional sport, let alone the NFL, should open your eyes. The past two weeks, they've shown their relentlessness and fight, posting consecutive 20+ point comeback wins on the road. The last time they played the cheeseheads, they began their 12-game win streak with a hard-fought 7-3 victory.
I've heard enough about the Packers and we already know everything about them, so I'll try to keep it short and sweet. They have one of, if not, the best quarterbacks in the league in Aaron Rodgers. Their receiving core, led by Greg Jennings, is very talented, although I think the Pack would still light up the scoreboard with a bunch of D-3 dudes. Their kryptonite: Their D. Yes, I'm aware that they have Clay Matthews, who's been saucing since grade school, and longtime vet Charles Woodson, but they have been getting absolutely torched out there. All their games so far have been shootouts and, thanks to A-Rod, who has the franchise on his back, they have been able to remain undefeated.
Packers vs. Lions: What happens? I'm glad we will get to see this game twice. Offensively, these teams are almost mirror-images of each other. Both will try to go up and down the field on you and beat you with their vertical passing game. Defensively, the Lions get the edge with their front 7, while the Packers get the edge in the secondary. The teams are almost dead even and I actually like the Lions if you take away both starting quarterbacks (see Week 14 last year). Unfortunately for the Lions, that probably won't be the case. With Aaron Rodgers under center, I can't honestly say that the Lions are a better team. The Packers are the team to beat in the NFC North, and probably the entire league: But I've always loved the underdog. The series splits during the regular season and both teams make the playoffs. But no one likes ties. How bout a tiebreaker in the NFC Championship Game? One can only hope..........
"Any time Detroit scores 100 points and holds the other team below 100 points, they almost always win"
-Doug Collins
P.S. After all the Packers talk and mention of his name, I couldn't leave this one out.
-G Money
Don't kill off Green Bay so fast. The Lions and Packers D's are nearly identical minus total yards allowed and Green Bay has the 2nd best run defense while Detroit's ranks 20th. I'm not impressed by Detroit's wins over teams with a combined record of 6-10; Just saying they could very easily be 6-4 by the time they host the Packers.
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