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A Packers fan celebrates beating the Lions at Ford Discipline.
The Detroit Lions haven’t gained their division in many years, and the oddsmakers don’t precisely see that truth altering through the 2020 NFL season.
Not too long ago, CBS SportsLine simulated the NFC North race 10,000 occasions. What they discovered is the Lions solely got here up as division winners 9.6% of the time. Maybe. The overwhelming favorites to take residence the crown have been the Minnesota Vikings at 48.3%. Maybe surprisingly, the Chicago Bears (21.9%) and the Inexperienced Bay Packers (20.3%) share almost equivalent lengthy shot odds of taking residence the division.
Our mannequin simulated the NFL season 10,000 occasions. Right here is who gained the NFC North most frequently:
Vikings 48.3%
Bears 21.9%
Packers 20.3%
Lions 9.6% pic.twitter.com/ljEIp9k0tf— SportsLine (@SportsLine) Could 19, 2020
Clearly, it’s not a shock to see the Lions as lengthy pictures for the division it doesn’t matter what metric is used. They’ve not gained the NFC North, and their final division title got here in 1993 after they gained the then NFC Central. The final time the workforce was shut was 2016, when Detroit fell aside on the final day and ended up shedding to the Packers at residence.
The Lions may very well be a darkish horse workforce to recollect, though they aren’t producing a lot love in any respect from the oddsmakers at this cut-off date.
Lions Looking for First Playoff Win Since 1990s
It’s not merely the NFC North the Lions can’t win, however playoff video games too. The Lions don’t make playoff success a behavior, however unusually sufficient, they don’t have the longest present drought within the league when it comes to a playoff win. That belongs to the Cincinnati Bengals, who haven’t gained a playoff recreation since 1990. The Lions final playoff win got here in 1991 towards the Dallas Cowboys at residence.
Longest draught since a workforce’s final playoff win:
1. Bengals: 1990 Wild Card
2. Lions: 1991 Divisional
3. Browns: 1994 Wild Card
4. Payments: 1995 Wild CardA possibility for the Payments to take one other step ahead at the moment.
— Discipline Yates (@FieldYates) January 4, 2020
Clearly, the Buffalo Payments are one of many subsequent groups on the checklist, and when it comes to this group, they’re the squad that appears like they will break by means of and do the largest quantities of profitable sooner or later.
Detroit nonetheless has a methods to go, however the excellent news is, they don’t have the worst drought on the very least. Their divisional drought remains to be powerful to notice.
Lions Playoff Historical past
The Lions have been one of many extra depressing groups traditionally on the subject of the playoffs. Detroit hasn’t gained
a postseason recreation since 1991. It’s not simply 1991, nevertheless. Previous to that win, the Lions hadn’t gained a playoff recreation since 1957. That they had misplaced thrice mixed within the 1970s and 1980s. They’ve had loads of misfortune within the playoffs as nicely, shedding video games in heartbreaking vogue and blowout vogue as nicely.
Detroit final appeared within the playoffs in 2018, however shortly bowed out, shedding to the Seattle Seahawks in shut vogue. They haven’t been constant sufficient by means of the years at each making the playoffs and in addition profitable after they do handle to get there.
With Matt Patricia within the fold, the objective is to get to be a workforce that not solely makes the playoffs persistently, however is ready to ship large wins after they get there. This yr, simply getting there can be an enormous first step contemplating the percentages of them sniffing a division title appear to stay slim.
As normal, will probably be left to the play on the sector to find out what occurs with that ultimately.
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