Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:15 am EST
Today
in the Detroit Free Press, Drew
Sharp writes about how he severed emotional ties with the Lions a long time ago.
Stuck in the column, though, are some neat little factoids that suggest that the
New Orleans Saints don't know the hell that awaits them this Sunday in Detroit.
Read on.
If it's possible to "blow" 0-16, they'll do it.
Why?
They're entering the peak of their performance level during the Age of Millen -- the final two games on the schedule. The Lions are 6-8 in their final two games the past seven years. They've lost their last two games only once during that time -- in Marty Mornhinweg's second and final season as coach in 2002.
That's a .429 winning percentage.
A winning percentage of .429? You know, for the Lions, that's pretty fearsome. It's still not a great football team (for example, the Buffalo Bills currently sport a .429 winning percentage), but it's something you might expect from a real, actual NFL franchise.
And just the shock alone of going into Detroit and finding a real NFL franchise might be enough to shock opponents into a state of confusion. You go in thinking you're about to play the saddest team in Michigan since before Ed Monix turned around the Flint Tropics, and the next thing you know, you're saying to yourself, "Hey, these guys are almost as good as the Bills!"
And then you realize you'll have to play an actual football game that day, and it might not be until the second quarter that you actually bother to put pads on, stretch, or actually call plays in the huddle, instead of just saying, "All right, who wants to score this time?"
Advantage, Lions.
Shutdown Corner is an NFL blog edited by Matthew J. Darnell. Email him, and follow him on Twitter.

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51 Comments
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Bet of the week, Lions +7
They've covered the last 3 weeks handily. Look for the trend to continue.
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GO LIONS
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0-16 ALL THE WAY!!
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lions are a joke and will be the rest of the year. 0-16 . history will be made this year by the lowly lions.............
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Steelers Rule!!!
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Watch....this Sunday be the day when Joey Harrington finally throws for 400+ yards at Ford Field.
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so what have they been doing so far this season... and for the last... uh... long time?
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I'm hoping just for the sake of something coming out of this season that they go 0-16. Otherwise its just another crappy season and it'll mean we still haven't hit the absolute bottom. You go winless and there's no place to go but up.
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Thats OK still up by 8 points, the extra point is good OK, now 7 points the Lions kick off and right to DeShawn Wynn, the 4th string return man- who fumbles the ball and starts to chase after it, never QUITE getting his hands on the ball, it bounces and bounces into the end zone and Wynn dives for it- landing square on it. TD Lions!!!!!!, still, down by a point NAH, Packs wont lose this one. All they have to do is prevent a 2 point play and go into overtime- surely the Lions would want to go for the win- right. Well, the Lions line up- snap the ball- right to Orlovsky who fades to the side looking for a receiver- Orlovsky sees FitzSimmons in the back of the end zone- he fires, a wobbly pass but on target but Packers DE Treamon Williams is RIGHT there and has his hands on the pass, only to stumble on a loose shoe lace and tip the ball in the air, right into the waiting hands of Jerome Felton (who just so happened was supposed to be blocking on this play but miss understood his assignment), who break the plane of the goal line and scores. Lions win 29-28 .wow that felt great and made up for the season. Big rumor going around- I have heard that the Lions are going to fill the Bye week next year and play Riverside Middle School from Dearborn Heights- and RMS is a seven point favorite (but hey, its still early to be projecting those odds).
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