12 Burning Questions With The Detroit Lions For 2022
We are just a couple of weeks away from training camp starting up in Allen Park, and another season of Detroit Lions football is just about here.
For the record, rookies report to Allen Park on July 23rd and veterans report on July 26th. You can see all the report dates for all 32 NFL teams here.
Your gridiron heroes, the Detroit Lions, are coming off a 3-13-1 2021 campaign. It was the first season for head coach Dan Campbell and general manager Brad Holmes. The team battled injuries everywhere last season (Frank Ragnow, Jeff Okudah, just to name two).
And even though the Lions started 0-10-1, they did win three of their last six games (vs. Minnesota, playoff-bound Arizona, and Green Bay). That 3-3 finish to the year has hopes higher once again (we've heard this before).
The team drafted Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (2nd overall), and pulled off a trade to move into the first round and took wide receiver Jameson Williams out of Alabama at pick #12. They'll be expected to produce almost immediately.
But given the injuries and other issues last season, I came up with 12 questions regarding this year's squad.
12 Burning Questions With The Detroit Lions In 2022
Even if the most of the questions posed here turn out positive, a playoff berth shouldn't be expected. In my opinion, 7-10 would be major improvement. And even if the teams stinks again, Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell aren't going anywhere. The team is in year 2 of a rebuild and they have long-term contracts with the team. Plus, the Lions are still paying off Dan Quinn and Matt Patricia for the 2022 season (the last year of the payouts).
Expectations should be different with them. The other Detroit pro teams are at different stages of their rebuilds: The Tigers are in year 5, The Red Wings are entering year 4, and the Pistons are entering year 3. Pressure to win is building for them.
The Lions are only in year 2. While we do need to see improvement on the field in 2022, we shouldn't expect a playoff berth this season. They're not that good yet.