Are Detroit Lions Fans Jerks to Rival Fans at Ford Field?

Supporting a bad football team has never stopped fans from being completely insufferable. We've all met a fan of our least successful rivals and wondered just where in the galaxy they found all of that audacity.

But does that pertain to the Detroit Lions and its fans when Ford Field hosts the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings?

First, let's not get off to a delusional start. The Lions are the betting favorite to win the NFC North in 2023, but that's a feat the franchise has accomplished exactly zero times. The last time the Lions won the division was 30 years ago when it was the NFC Central.

The Lions are 44-82 against its NFC North rivals since the division was created. All-time the Lions record against the Bears is 77-104-5, against the Vikings is 41-80-2, and against the Packers is 75-105-7. The Lions are the little brothers for now. But, are the fans insufferable at home against these teams despite it all?

A Packers fan's girlfriend took to Reddit on the /r/Michigan subreddit recently to ask Lions fans if her boyfriend would be heckled for showing up as a proud cheesehead at Ford Field this Thanksgiving.

The answers she received show that Lions fans are in fact not one of those insufferable fanbases carrying around unwarranted audacity.

Comment
by u/xenonwarrior666 from discussion Do Packer fans get bullied at Ford Field?
in Michigan

It's bad enough you guys over in Wisconsin have to be Packer fans, but to try to claim something so... wrong? Unforgivable. You can wear a cheesehead to the game, but keep that nonsense out of our stadium, please.

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Comment
by u/snatchmachine from discussion Do Packer fans get bullied at Ford Field?
in Michigan

It's rooted in football lore, Packers fans travel probably better than any other franchise except maybe the Pittsburgh Steelers. Ford Field is full of cheeseheads when the Packers come to Detroit. The team has kind of earned it over the course of history, to be completely fair.

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by u/Ok_Air_8564 from discussion Do Packer fans get bullied at Ford Field?
in Michigan

I'll give Michiganders this after living here for nearly a year: As long as y'all aren't driving, you are fairly nice folks. Most Lions fans I've met are masochists who don't have the energy to be rude over football in the first place. It's a solid balance, I think.

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by u/kykam from discussion Do Packer fans get bullied at Ford Field?
in Michigan

Pretty standard conduct at most stadiums. Fans get what they give. Everyone wants to have a good time, win or lose. Football games are expensive, and there are always children nearby who don't need to see some of the antics unruly fans get up to.

In the end, it's no surprise that after 90 years of being humbled on the gridiron, Lions fans are pretty relaxed about it all. Now, if they taste some success soon as expected, all bets are off.

After all, the Lions have ultimate bragging rights over Packers fans for how Aaron Rodgers's career in Green Bay ended and are more than happy to give steady reminders.