Now that it is basically over, it is easy to see that the Detroit Lions’ season was doomed before it started. As much anticipation and reason for optimism as there was, the red flags are hard to ignore. Those red flags bared their teeth all season long as the Lions trudged their way through an 8-7 season.

Any realistic shot the Lions had at reaching the playoffs ended on Sunday. At home against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Lions could not meet the moment. The team was desperate and needed to find a way to win. They could not. The Lions lost in spectacular fashion, with a game-winning touchdown called off on an offensive pass interference call not once, but twice. The loss was heartbreaking to even the most hardened of Lions’ fans.

The Detroit Lions’ Season Was Doomed Before It Started

After over three quarters of uninspiring play, the Lions made a furious comeback attempt. Aided by an unthinkable 36-yard field goal miss from Steelers’ kicker Chris Boswell, Detroit had a final chance to pull out a win they absolutely did not deserve. Jared Goff and Co. drove down to the Steelers’ one-yard line. On second down, Goff found a wide-open Amon-Ra St. Brown for what seemed like the win. Except Lions rookie WR Isaac TeSlaa drew a flag for interference. Followed by a false start, the Lions now found themselves 16 yards away from victory. On fourth and goal from the nine, Goff hit St. Brown just short of the goal line. As he was being pushed back, St. Brown miraculously lateraled the ball back to Goff, who leapt into the end zone for the game-winning score. It would not stand. St. Brown was called for offensive pass interference for running into Jalen Ramsey in the end zone. Game over. 

But enough about Sunday’s game. Let’s talk about why this season was doomed from the start.

“We’re Good”

Those words should live in infamy for the 2025 Detroit Lions. What was intended as an innocent, confident statement from HC Dan Campbell when asked why the Lions didn’t bring back edge rusher Za’Darius Smith turned out to be a curse. To be fair to Campbell, the Lions were good. Unfortunately, they were not good enough. Complacency is something that can wreck your season in the NFL. No matter how good you are, you can always get better. You can also be sure that the other 31 teams are trying to get better as well.

Campbell wasn’t wrong, though. Smith went on to sign with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played five average-at-best games before deciding to retire. The Lions made the right call when it came to Smith. The mistake, though, was that the Lions didn’t do anything to improve their pass rush. Depending on Marcus Davenport to start opposite of superstar Aidan Hutchinson proved to be fool’s gold. Again. Davenport would get injured in Week 2 and missed the bulk of the season. He has not made much, if any, impact since his return about a month ago.

The complacency the Lions showed wasn’t just about Za’Darius Smith. After an uneventful free agency that just saw Detroit swap out CB Carlton Davis III for DJ Reed and sign back-up DT Roy Lopez as its significant moves, the Lions turned their attention to the draft. Instead of using a high pick on an edge rusher, GM Brad Holmes drafted DT Tyleik Williams. Williams is a good player, and he likely was drafted with the intention of starting him next to star DT Alim McNeill starting in 2026. That’s not a bad plan. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, using a top pick on someone who will be a factor from day one should have been the goal. In fact, the Lions didn’t address their need at edge rusher until the sixth round.

The Lions also could have made any number of trades that would’ve helped this year’s squad. Getting someone like the all-world Micah Parsons was never realistic. The cost, both in draft capital and a lucrative contract extension, made it untenable. Seeing him traded to the hated Green Bay Packers was still a gut punch. An already good division rival acquiring one of the best players in the league further doomed the Lions’ season. Trey Hendrickson was also available. His price was also deemed too high. At the beginning of the season, it probably was. At the trade deadline, his price was said to be significantly lower. Pulling the trigger would have been worth it, even if he only been an eight-game rental. Cleveland cornerback Greg Newsome II also could have helped the Lions and their injury-depleted secondary. The Lions stood pat, and Newsome was sent to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a sixth-round pick. Many teams got better during the season. The Lions did not, and it showed.

Too Many Long-Term Projects

Valuing draft picks is a sound approach for any team. Drafting, developing, and retaining your own players should always be Plan A. After the massive hauls Brad Holmes brought in from 2021 to 2023, it’s easy to see why he would be reluctant to part with his picks. It would be even easier to defend if Holmes didn’t throw around those picks on draft day.

Trading up for the likes of Jameson Williams and Brian Branch has been well worth the cost. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for many of Holmes’ other draft day deals. In 2023, the Lions gave up a fourth and two fifth-round picks to move up to pick 96 and selected Brodric Martin, a talented but very raw defensive tackle. Martin never developed and was cut just two years later. Wasting not one, but three, picks on someone who never contributed is a pretty big failure. Earlier in the same round, Holmes selected QB Hendon Hooker. Already 25 years old, Hooker was still seen as a project who would need time to develop. Like with Martin, that never happened, and he was also off the team by the 2025 season.

The 2024 draft was more of the same. Holmes gave up picks 164, 201, plus a fourth-rounder in 2025 to draft RB Sione Vaki. That’s a lot of value to a guy just to be a special teamer. Vaki has shown flashes when healthy, but is blocked by the stellar RBs the Lions already have from playing any meaningful snaps on offense. That move was preceded by Holmes giving up another future pick, this time a third-rounder, for pick 126 to take OT Giovanni Manu. The tools Manu has are tantalizing, but after playing his college ball at British Columbia, he was a long way from NFL-ready. Manu basically redshirted his rookie year and looked out of place in his brief stint on the field this year. Manu suffered a knee injury during his only start and has been on IR since, further stunting his much-needed development.

Lastly, the Lions gave up three third-round picks, number 102 this year, plus two additional thirds next year, to move up to pick 70 for Isaac TeSlaa. He is a big, athletic wide receiver. Another talented player whom the Lions weren’t counting on in 2025. Drafting TeSlaa also factored into Holmes trading of WR Tim Patrick for only a sixth-round pick. Patrick was terrific for the Lions in 2024. His blocking and clutch receptions made him a favorite amongst fans and coaches. He was the big-bodied X receiver Detroit needed. As a rookie, TeSlaa hasn’t come close to matching Patrick’s production. After fifteen games, he only has twelve receptions. Although five of those have been touchdowns and others were highlight-reel plays, it simply hasn’t justified such capital being spent on another project. His future looks bright, but hasn’t helped the Lions this season.

Teams that have aspirations of playing into February need to make sure they put their roster into the best possible positions to succeed. Having as many guys on the team who aren’t expected to contribute now certainly helps doom this season.

Offensive Line Not What It Used To Be

The success the Lions have enjoyed over the last several seasons was largely thanks to having a dominant offensive line. Penei Sewell, who was the first-ever draft pick in the Holmes/Campbell era, is arguably the best tackle in the league. Longtime LT Taylor Decker has been a stalwart for a decade now. All-Pro Center Frank Ragnow was as good and as tough as they come. In 2024, the Lions allowed LG Jonah Jackson to join the Los Angeles Rams and replaced him with veteran Kevin Zeitler, who was added in free agency to play right guard. Graham Glasnow moved from the right side to left guard to accommodate Zeitler. The line consistently bullied opposing defensive lines. They plowed the road for the Lions’ top-ranked rushing attack while giving Jared Goff time to pick apart defenses. The offensive line was a well-oiled machine.

It was shocking that the Lions let Zeitler walk in free agency. Even though he was 35 years old, he was still playing at a near Pro Bowl level. Holmes let him go to the Tennessee Titans on a reasonable, not exactly cheap, one-year deal. Not keeping Zeitler for this year proved costly.

Making matters much worse, Ragnow suddenly retired before the season started. The Lions lost one of their best players, who was also a leader. The O-line, which had worked so well together, was now in shambles. Glasgow, coming off a down year, had to change positions again. This time to center. Last year’s sixth-round pick, Christian Mahogany, who missed most of his rookie year with mono, was now the starting left guard. 2025 second-round pick Tate Ratledge was immediately inserted as the starting right guard. That meant this once-dominant line had three positions with new faces. Injuries to Mahogany, fifth-round Miles Frazier, and others tested both the Lions’ starters and their depth. The line could not come close to replicating its previous success.

Has The Window Closed For The Lions?

That will be a popular question you will hear about the Lions in the coming months. After Detroit squandered the NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers, Coach Campbell famously told them that it may have been the only chance they would get. After last year’s playoff disaster vs Washington and this year’s disappointment, maybe Campbell was right.

Has the Lions’ window closed? No. With several star core players already signed long-term and more extensions coming, the Lions are expected to be very good for the foreseeable future. Now that those extensions have started to kick in, the 2025 season was their last with the salary cap leeway to make aggressive moves. Now they will have to depend on next year’s draft class being another hit and pray the injuries don’t pile up like they have the past two seasons.

They will still be good, but it is past time to start realizing that, in order to reach that elusive first Super Bowl, the Lions must leave no stone unturned. No more complacency. Understanding that they are always able to get better and they need players that will contribute now, not years down the road, will go a long way to finally taking that last step forward.