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Posted September 16, 2006
Point-Counterpoint: Has Detroit improved over last year?
Point by Brett Christopherson, The Post-Crescent
So the Detroit Lions limit the high-octane Seattle Seahawks offense to just 264 yards and no touchdowns in their season-opener last Sunday at Ford Field.
They hold one of the NFL's top running backs in Shaun Alexander to 51 yards rushing on 19 carries.
They even post five sacks and block a pair of field goal attempts against the reigning NFC champs.
Not the kind of stuff we're used to seeing out of the hapless Lions.
But here's something that's become all too familiar over the years: Detroit still lost the game 9-6.
The Lions may feature an improved defense, but until they learn how to move the ball on a consistent basis and put points on the board, consider it status quo in Motown.
In other words, Lions fans can expect to join Packers Nation in wishing their teams were still suiting up come playoff time.
Counterpoint by Richard Arguello, The Post-Crescent
It's been a common occurrence the past several seasons in the NFL.
A team that struggled the year before plays completely out of its mind to surprise the rest of the league.
You saw it with Chicago last season, Atlanta two seasons ago and Carolina in 2003.
Why not Detroit this season? They have a new coach from a proven defensive system (Cover 2) and the Bears showed last season that a good defense can you win you plenty of games, even if you have a rookie, third-string quarterback.
Well the Lions are better offensively than the Bears of 2005 and the Detroit defense is on its way to being dominant.
Holding the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks to three field goals in a 9-6 loss proved that.
They might not win 11 games like last year's Bears, but there's no reason they can't win eight or nine and in the NFC, that might be good enough to get you to the playoffs.
Point-Counterpoint: Has Detroit improved over last year?
Point by Brett Christopherson, The Post-Crescent
So the Detroit Lions limit the high-octane Seattle Seahawks offense to just 264 yards and no touchdowns in their season-opener last Sunday at Ford Field.
They hold one of the NFL's top running backs in Shaun Alexander to 51 yards rushing on 19 carries.
They even post five sacks and block a pair of field goal attempts against the reigning NFC champs.
Not the kind of stuff we're used to seeing out of the hapless Lions.
But here's something that's become all too familiar over the years: Detroit still lost the game 9-6.
The Lions may feature an improved defense, but until they learn how to move the ball on a consistent basis and put points on the board, consider it status quo in Motown.
In other words, Lions fans can expect to join Packers Nation in wishing their teams were still suiting up come playoff time.
Counterpoint by Richard Arguello, The Post-Crescent
It's been a common occurrence the past several seasons in the NFL.
A team that struggled the year before plays completely out of its mind to surprise the rest of the league.
You saw it with Chicago last season, Atlanta two seasons ago and Carolina in 2003.
Why not Detroit this season? They have a new coach from a proven defensive system (Cover 2) and the Bears showed last season that a good defense can you win you plenty of games, even if you have a rookie, third-string quarterback.
Well the Lions are better offensively than the Bears of 2005 and the Detroit defense is on its way to being dominant.
Holding the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks to three field goals in a 9-6 loss proved that.
They might not win 11 games like last year's Bears, but there's no reason they can't win eight or nine and in the NFC, that might be good enough to get you to the playoffs.
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