Detroit Lions flop in Minnesota: Dave Birkett, Jeff Seidel analysis
Dave Birkett, Jeff Seidel talk Detroit Lions flop at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025.
“This may have been our only shot.”
Dan Campbell said that nearly two years ago, right after the Detroit Lions blew a 17-point lead in the NFC championship game. At the time, I thought the coach was being bravely honest and emotionally raw.
I didn’t think he was being a prophet.
But the Lions’ Super Bowl chances have gone steadily downhill ever since. Last year, they crapped out in a divisional-round playoff upset. This year, with eight losses already, they’re missing the playoffs altogether.
Now, I can’t tell Campbell how to coach. I can’t tell Jared Goff how to elude pressure. I can’t teach an offensive lineman how to not miss his block, or show a defensive back how to play smarter coverage.
I can’t do that, and neither can you, because we are not professional players or coaches.
But we are fans. So I can offer the following three scenarios for how to deal with the latest Lions’ disappointment in the months to come — as a fan — depending on your type.
The Die-hard Fan
If you are this breed of fan, then you will point out the positives. The Lions have some terrific players under contract. Campbell is an exceptionally good coach. General manager Brad Holmes has had great drafts before. And neither man is likely to sit still this offseason.
Both Campbell and Holmes have been humbled by the 2025 campaign. The loss to Minnesota on Thursday, Dec. 25, was the low point. Campbell, who prides himself on having his teams ready, didn’t get that done. The Lions looked worse than a Vikings team with nothing to play for, a third-string quarterback and multiple absences on the offensive line.
Meanwhile, Holmes had to be cringing watching his second- and third-stringers perform like Not Ready For Prime Time Players.
These two proud men, The Die-hard Fan says, will surely right the ship. “Remember the start of the season? When the Lions went 4-1, had a bazooka offense, and an MVP candidate in Goff? We can do that again!”
The Die-hard Fan believes the injuries were fluky-bad this season — most of the O-line, the tight ends, and the defensive backfield. “That can’t happen again,” he says. “We still have Goff, Sam LaPorta, great running backs and great receivers, right?”
The Die-hard Fan points to the Kansas City Chiefs, last year’s Super Bowl participants, who are now sitting with a 6-10 record. Does anyone believe they will never be back?
“Playoffs next year,” The Die-hard Fan says. “Bigger and better. On we go!”
His glass is always half-full.
Next, there’s …
The Realist Fan
This fan wants to believe, but also understands a few truths about NFL football: A.) Windows open and close. B.) Other teams also want to win.
The latter is the kind of thing that got forgotten in 2025, particularly in the November game against Minnesota, the Thanksgiving game against Green Bay and the Week 16 home game against Pittsburgh. The narratives going into those contests — the Vikings were bad and starting a raw quarterback; the Lions wanted revenge against the Pack; the Lions faced a must-win against a Steelers team with a bad defense — all favored Detroit.
But too often in Motown, we act like the Lions are the only determinant in the game — that all they have to do is want it enough to win.
“Hey,” The Realist says, “the other team wants it, too. Their players want to look good. They have guys who play hard. Unless you come in every week fully charged, healthy and in domination mode, you will always have a battle in the NFL. And a handful of plays will determine the outcome.”
The Realist admires what Holmes did in 2022 (picking Aidan Hutchinson, trading up to get Jameson Williams) and 2023 (drafting LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell and Brian Branch) but he also sees that 2024 and 2025 haven’t come close to producing such talent, and Holmes’ inactivity at trade deadlines and free agency reveals a too-stubborn valuing of draft picks over desperately needed fixes.
The Realist looks at the NFC North and sees Chicago on the rise, Green Bay not going anywhere, and a Minnesota team that often gives the Lions fits. The Realist can’t ignore the Lions are last in their division.
But The Realist still watches with hope. He doesn’t deny the Lions’ successes. He doesn’t think the 2023 postseason was a myth. He doesn’t think the 15-2 regular season last year was a mirage. He doesn’t believe in curses.
Those traits belong to …
The ‘Same Old Lions’ Fan
This type, “SOL” for short, believes all of this is predestined. It’s the Curse of Bobby Layne. It’s the curse of the Ford family ownership. It’s in the water. It’s in the air. It doesn’t matter how many promising players or stunning wins the Lions deliver. It will always end badly.
The SOL Fan doesn’t see silver or Honolulu Blue. He only sees gray. He thinks Holmes had a lucky draft in 2023 and has bungled everything since. He already wants Campbell fired. He sees Goff as a one-dimensional quarterback who can’t do anything once he’s chased from the pocket. He says Hutchinson is overrated and now overpaid. He says the Lions’ training staff should all be fired, because all they produce is a M*A*S*H* unit, year after year.
The SOL Fan watches the present but only sees the past. He sees Aaron Rodgers killing the Lions’ chances as a Packer and then again as a Steeler. He sees the 2023 Lions reach the NFC championship game and wither just like the 1991 Lions did, not to return for three decades.
The SOL Fan predicts doom, expects doom, and often gets it. Right now, nothing about the 2025 season surprises him, other than the fact that anyone expected otherwise.
“This is who the Lions are,” The SOL Fan moans. “Expect heartbreak. Get heartbreak. They never disappoint.”
So which are you? Die-hard? Realist? SOL? Or something in between?
Wherever you land, just know that fans in 16 other cities are going through the same thing right now, some in shock (Kansas City, Cincinnati, Washington), some in mild surprise (Tampa Bay, Dallas), some because they absolutely expect it (Cleveland, the Jets).
Losing, as Goff said, “sucks.”
That’s the only thing that every type of fan can agree on.
Contact Mitch Albom: malbom@freepress.com. Check out the latest updates on his charities, books and events at MitchAlbom.com. Follow @mitchalbom on x.com.