The Lions were 1-5 in year two under Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes and 4-18-1 for their tenure when owner Sheila Ford Hamp met with reporters on the team's indoor practice field in Allen Park and backed the head coach and GM.
"This was a huge teardown and then turnaround," said Ford Hamp in her third year as principal owner. "We’re only a third of the way through the season. I just don’t want everyone to push the panic button and give up the ship, because I think we’ve got the right people in place to pull this off. I truly believe that."
The Lions would lose the next week to the Dolphins in a game they blew a two-touchdown lead, before winning eight of their final 10 and nearly making the playoffs. Since November of 2022, a week after Ford Hamp made those remarks, the Lions are 35-9 -- tied with the Chiefs for the best record in the NFL.
Detroit and Kansas City are the two playoff teams who will watch this weekend's action from the comfort of their own homes as the top seeds in the NFC and AFC.
"We really had to take it down to the ground level," Ford Hamp said at the time. "Not only on the football side but across the whole organization. We’ve put in a lot of new talent at the top. I really believe in the top leadership in this organization and I think we’ve got the people to do it, to carry this out. I think that’s what’s different."
One of those leaders on the field was Jared Goff. He had yet to be redeemed in Detroit, but was quietly playing some of the best ball of his career under first-year offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Now his name is chanted across the state of Michigan. After helping the Lions beat the Vikings last Sunday night to clinch their second straight division title, Goff was asked about the leadership of the franchise and pointed right to the top.
"Shoot, Sheila has been as good as it gets across the league," said Goff. "I always think back to when she stood in front of all you guys and spoke that week. That was as strong as it gets, putting her faith in Dan and Brad and all of us. A lot of owners won’t do that, don’t do that. It’s a lot easier to pull the plug in certain situations. What she’s done, and then obviously it trickles down to Brad and Dan and all of us, it’s been a fun team to be a part of and I couldn’t be happier.”
In winning the North and claiming the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the Lions have checked off two of their three goals this season. As Goff reminded everyone Sunday night, that's "step one. Now the playoffs start." So when he was asked if the Lions' primetime win over the Vikings in what was billed as the biggest regular season game in NFL history represents the cherry on top of his tenure in Detroit, Goff said, "Not the cherry on top, no, not yet."
"When I first got here the opportunity you dream about is being able to win division championships and then the NFC North and then ultimately win Super Bowls -- that’s what next for us," said Goff. "Yeah, this is fun and exciting and we obviously wanted it really bad and we’re going to enjoy the heck out of it, but it’s step one."
On that day in October of 2022, Ford Hamp acknowledged her own frustration and that of the fans. She reiterated that "this is difficult, our rebuild is hard, but we really believe in our process." She declared her confidence in "what we got and what we’re going to be. It just takes time."
Their time has arrived.