And so the Lions won in impressive fashion Sunday.
They controlled both sides of the line of scrimmage. Rookie running back D'Andre Swift had a breakout game with 116 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Kenny Golladay is rounding into form.
Most importantly, the Lions' defense was in attacking mode for a change.
Yet were the Lions really that good or are the Jaguars just that bad?
I tend to think the outcome, a 34-16 Detroit victory, was more the result of the Jaguars' many flaws than strengths exhibited by the Lions.
Gardner Minshew is not an NFL-caliber starting quarterback. The Jaguars are fortunate they won their first game vs. Indianapolis. Or perhaps unfortunate. Jacksonville has the look -- and obvious QB need -- of a franchise definitely in the Trevor Lawrence sweepstakes.
Jacksonville represents the only win for the Texans and Bengals this season. The Jaguars were also the first win after two losses for the Dolphins in Week 3.
I understand. The Lions played a solid football game for a change, and to suggest it was anything other than significant progress may come across as needless criticism.
That is not the intent. Rather it is to point out how the bar is so low for the Lions that any step forward is exaggerated, and how often that has been misleading. The Lions are always "arriving."
You don't have to dig deep into the Lions' past for examples. As recently as 2018, Matt Patricia's first season as head coach, the Lions started 1-3 -- just like this season. They then won two straight games, the first in Green Bay.
Rookie second-round draft pick running back Kerryon Johnson had 70 yards rushing for a 5.8 average. The Lions won the following week, too, at Miami. Johnson had 158 yards rushing for an 8.3 average.
At 3-3, the Lions were suddenly cast as playoff contenders.
They lost seven of their next nine games.
It's difficult to know what to expect this week in Atlanta. The Falcons destroyed the Vikings Sunday for their first victory. Matt Ryan is much better than Minshew, and one of the great receivers in the NFL, Julio Jones, is back in good health. He caught eight passes for 137 yards and two TDs Sunday.
The Lions have a lot of apparent cupcake games on their schedule in addition to the Falcons: the one-win Vikings twice, the one-win Texans, a one-victory Washington football team and a suspect .500 squad in Carolina.
The Lions are going to win some games. The question is whether they win just enough to provide hope before their usual let down.
Hate to write, but it seems likely that will be the outcome.
