While the Lions are underdogs no more, they still have plenty to prove. That they can defend their division crown. That they can seize their conference. That they can go one game and two wins further than last year, which was more than just a "one-shot, Cinderella, magical journey," as Brad Holmes said shortly after the season ended. That they are here to stay.
"It's not like we just ran through everybody last year and blew everybody out," Dan Campbell told CBS Sports. "We had losses and tough games. We have division opponents. We lost in the NFC Championship Game. So we've got our own targets man. And that's the motivator."
The Lions will be tested out of the gate, their first two games coming against the teams they knocked out of the playoffs last season: the Rams and the Bucs. And after a trip to Arizona, they'll play two of the teams that beat them last season: the Seahawks and the Cowboys. The game in Dallas will be a particular grudge match after the Lions were robbed of a win in JerryWorld last December.
The Lions will also get rematches with the Packers and Bears, the division rivals who beat them last season, and the chance to win on Thanksgiving for the first time in eight years. They play three straight games against the AFC South in November, including a clash with the Texans and reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year C.J. Stroud. And looming at the end of the season, in Week 17, is a rematch in San Fran with the 49ers -- and perhaps a preview of another collision in the playoffs.
"I think our guys know where we're at," said Campbell. "I would say this: the motivator is we still have things that we circle, too. We have our own sh**list. So we're the team with the target on our back, but we've circled some people too now. We have targets, too."
You can bet the 49ers and Cowboys are on that list; Campbell wanted to see Dallas again in the playoffs last season. Ditto the Packers and Bears, both of whom came on strong at the end of the year. They loom as legitimate threats in the NFC North, Green Bay in particular. And look out for Chicago if Caleb Williams is the real deal.
The Lions know they're not sneaking up on anyone this year, not after racking up 14 total wins last year, the most in franchise history. And that's fine. In fact, that's exactly where they want to be.