As someone who was born on the wrong side of Eight Mile, but left in the great exodus of the 1970s, I must admit its hard to remain loyal to Detroit teams. After all it was just three years ago that the Tigers had the worst record in baseball (43-119). The Lions haven't proved themselves since '57, and the great Piston teams of the 1980s had just about faded from memory.
(By the way, the Red Wings don't count -- as far as I'm concerned pro hockey is closer in nature to the WWE than a bona fide profesional sport.)
Things began to turn around in 2004 when the Pisons spanked the Lakers in the NBA Championship. They've maintained some consistency since then and have put a remarkable amount of talent on the court over the past several seasons. Now its the Tigers turn. After a rocky first game they bowled over the latest version of Murderer's Row in the Division Series and Tuesday's 5-1 win over the A's have made the Tigers likely odds on favorites for a World Series Championship later this month.
So, what about the Lions? Honestly, they stink. Yet, I stick with them season after season hoping for a miracle on a par with the Red Sox miraculous World Series victory in 2004.
I'm not alone.
Detroit Lions Topsites maintains a list of 26 websites, blogs and forums devoted to the hapless Lions. The sites generate an average of 1114 unique visits each day. That's about the size of the line at the men's room on the view level at Ford Field on any given Sunday.
My standing as a Lions fan knows no boundaries. For example, earlier this season I entered a friend's football pool that required picking the winners of every game for the entire season -- in advance. I dutifully filled out my form. Lo and behold, I gave the Lions 10 wins this season. That sounded fishy -- even to me. So, I checked the preseason Vegas line. The touts, sharks and oddsmakers who know better had the Lions with an over-under of 5 1/2. That means, pick the overs and the Lions win six games or more in 2006. Take the unders and they win five or less. Looks like the unders are going to be a sure thing at this point.
What's wrong with the Lions? How about everything for starters. The team is the worst rushing team in the NFL (32nd overall). While the passsing game is among the league's best (6th overall). The defense is about as strong as a wet piece of single ply toilet paper -- 28th overall, 14th against the rush and 30th against the pass. The only reason the D isn't any worse is the fortunate pickup of LB Ernie Sims in the draft. GM Matt Millen might want to take the credit for this, but he's going to have to take the blame for fielding a bizzare supporting cast that wouldn't stand a chance in the CFL, and would likely get blown out by any of the AP's top 25 college teams.
Yes, I'm sticking with the Lions, just like I stick with Ford cars. Not because they manufacture a superior product. We know that isn't the case. It's about the comfort level. At least you know you are going to have to Fix Or Repair Daily.
Of course there's always next year.
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