Friday, May 15, 2026

Lions Links for Thursday 5-14-26

Articles:  

TWENTYMAN: Breaking down the Lions' 2026 schedule:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/breaking-down-detroit-lions-2026-schedule-nfl






Why Lions Fans Are Mad About 2026 Bye Week Timing:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/onsi/why-lions-fans-are-mad-2026-bye-week-timing

Detroit Lions 2026 Schedule: First Opponent, MNF Game Week 16:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/onsi/detroit-lions-2026-schedule-first-opponent-mnf-game-week-16

NFL Analyst Believes Jared Goff Is Still Best NFC North Quarterback:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/onsi/nfl-analyst-believes-jared-goff-still-best-nfc-north-quarterback-2026







See it: Detroit Lions' 2026 schedule, with instant analysis:  https://www.audacy.com/971theticket/sports/detroit-lions/detroit-lions-2026-schedule

Lions GM Brad Holmes: "What really did it for me" with Derrick Moore:  https://www.audacy.com/971theticket/sports/detroit-lions/derrick-moore-brad-holmes-lions

Detroit Lions Schedule Release: Top 5 biggest takeaways from the Lions’ 2026 schedule -despite the strength of schedule, everything is against the Lions this year:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-news/detroit-lions-schedule-release-top-5-biggest-takeaways-from-the-lions-2026-schedule-despite-the-strength-of-schedule-everything-is-against-the-lions-this-year/

Detroit Lions Schedule Release: Game-by-game and final record predictions for the Lions after their full schedule has dropped:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-schedule-release-game-by-game-and-final-record-predictions-for-the-lions-after-their-full-schedule-has-dropped/

Detroit Lions Schedule Release: The Lions’ 2026 schedule just dropped, and it’s loaded with storylines:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-schedule-release-the-lions-2026-schedule-just-dropped-and-its-loaded-with-storylines/

Detroit Lions Schedule Release: The NFL is doing the Lions, their fans, and local media a major favor this coming season:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-news/detroit-lions-schedule-release-the-nfl-is-doing-the-lions-their-fans-and-local-media-a-major-favor-this-coming-season/

Detroit Lions Schedule Release: The Lions will play against a former Detroit defensive lineman who had some not-so-nice words for Lions fans on Monday Night Football:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-news/detroit-lions-schedule-release-the-lions-will-play-against-a-former-defensive-lineman-who-had-some-not-so-nice-worlds-for-lions-fans-on-monday-night-football/

5 best primetime games of the 2026 NFL schedule, including a rematch of the best game ever (Week 2, Thursday night: Detroit Lions at Buffalo Bills - Which team will snap back from their 2025 malaise? The Lions slipped from Super Bowl contender to outside the playoffs. The Bills relinquished their claim to the top of the AFC East and fired head coach Sean McDermott even after he led the team to the Divisional Round.  Detroit returns a healthy lineup in a season that will likely be a proving ground for the stars on the brink of contract extensions. The Lions are loaded with young talent but can't afford to keep everyone while paying them what they're worth. There will be more motivation for Dan Campbell's team than simply bouncing back from a difficult season.  Buffalo will have its own motivation. This will be the first game played in the new Highmark Stadium, providing a new backdrop for some of the most passionate fans in football. New head coach Joe Brady has to prove his worth after being promoted from offensive coordinator despite last year's relative swoon. Josh Allen will work to restore his MVP status even with a still-underwhelming receiving corps.  A win in Week 2 will be a major morale boost to whichever contender comes out on top.):  https://ftw.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2026/05/14/nfl-schedule-5-best-primetime-games-super-bowl-what-if-chiefs-rams/90082038007/

2026 NFL Thanksgiving Odds: Lines, Spreads, What to Know for All 4 Games (Bears at Lions - What to know: A classic NFC North rivalry game. Despite the Bears winning the division last season (11-6), and the Lions finishing last (9-8) and missing the playoffs, Detroit did sweep Chicago. The Lions smashed the Bears in Week 2 (52-21) and then closed the regular season with a 19-16 win over Chicago.):  https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/2026-nfl-thanksgiving-odds-lines-spreads-what-know-all-4-games

2026 NFL Schedule Release: What We're Watching For In Every America's Game Of The Week (Week 7: Green Bay Packers At Detroit Lions.  A healthy part of the Lions' slide from 15-2 in 2024 to 9-8 in 2025 was going from sweeping the Lions to being swept. Detroit's defense dropped from seventh in points allowed in 2024 to 22nd, and the Packers averaged 29 points in the wins over the Lions. Can a retooled offensive line get Detroit back into playoff form? New Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon should have Micah Parsons back healthy by this game, though starting the season without him could get Green Bay out to a slow start. Detroit's health is a key, and you'll see how they're better with defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike back after missing all of last season.  Week 17: Detroit Lions At Chicago Bears.  The Ben Johnson Bowl is back. Chicago went 11-6 and won the division last year despite Johnson getting swept by his old team, including a 52-21 drubbing in Week 2 in Detroit. This is a game that could have major playoff implications, in the division and the conference. Watch for Chicago's two second-year pass-catchers to shine, with tight end Colston Loveland leading the team in receptions as a rookie last year and receiver Luther Bolden emerging in the final month of his first season. Which quarterback will throw more touchdown passes in 2026? It's a close call between Detroit's Jared Goff (who threw 34 last year) and Chicago's Caleb Williams, who threw for 27 himself.):  https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/2026-nfl-schedule-release-what-were-watching-every-americas-game-week

Top-10 NFL QBs: Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes at No. 1? Colin Cowherd Shares List (9. Jared Goff - Cowherd's thoughts: "The most disrespected guy in the league. All he does is win. Four straight seasons with 4,000-plus passing yards. And, strangely, never misses a start. He and Caleb Williams, they don't get hurt."):  https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/top-10-nfl-qbs-josh-allen-patrick-mahomes-no-1-colin-cowherd-shares-list

Conor Orr’s Best 11 Games of the 2026 NFL Season (Week 2: Lions at Bills, Thursday at 8:15 p.m. ET.  I am not normally a new stadium guy. The other day, an aggregation outlet posted a list of the 10 most “iconic” NFL stadiums, and they almost all sounded like some corporate insurance partner rebranding, and one of the stadiums listed was MetLife—a gigantic cheese grater that swallows up one of the most beautiful skylines in the world. Most of them were built after 1990 and had all the characteristics of fake barnwood. But the Bills deserved a new stadium. The original Highmark had opened in 1973 (as Rich Stadium), during that hideous era of stadium construction that made everything look like an unsafe spaceship. Seeing the Bills open their new place in a stand-alone Monday night game against the Lions will, at the very least, be incredibly aesthetically pleasing. This is the one spot on this list that I’ll allow the matchup to be secondary (though in this case it is a pair of teams that have been contenders who have failed in recent years to get over the hump and into the Super Bowl). Football is great because it’s perfectly suited for television, and some newer stadiums manage to give the broadcast experience a theatrical feel. I’d expect as much for the opening of the new stadium, though I will likely plan on muting a large segment of the broadcast in which I’m sure the commentators will make the whole thing seem like a benevolent gift from ownership when a significant amount of it was funded by the state of New York. Week 10: Lions vs. Patriots (Munich), Sunday at 9:30 a.m. ET.  My working theory is that even preseason strength of schedule, which people often calculate based on the previous season’s records, matters to some degree. The 49ers and Patriots had the two easiest strengths of schedule going into last year, and San Francisco was able to weather some horrendous luck on the injury front, while the Patriots were able to glide to a wholly unexpected Super Bowl berth in Mike Vrabel’s first season.  This year, it’s the Lions who own the best theoretical strength of schedule, while also boasting a new offensive coordinator (Drew Petzing) and a renovated offensive line. Last season, much of Detroit’s struggles were blamed on brain drain, as Ben Johnson took a job within the division and Aaron Glenn left to become the head coach of the Jets. However, less is said about the fact that Detroit went into the season with the league’s third-hardest schedule in terms of carryover win percentage and took on a slate of games that offered very little in terms of respite. Seeing the Lions against a team that represented the AFC in the Super Bowl can and should offer a kind of recalibration of optics—even if that game is in Germany on what amounts to a neutral field. Here is a team that probably benefited too much from a schedule and got overrated versus a team whose theoretical window was obliterated by a difficult schedule, but may not be nearly as bad as we think. Vegas seems to agree, with the Lions’ season win total set at 10.5 and the Patriots’ at 9.5.):  https://www.si.com/nfl/conor-orr-best-games-2026-nfl-season

Predictions:

2026 Detroit Lions game-by-game record predictions (Erik - Lions win (13-4).  Jeremy - Lions win (12-5)):  https://www.prideofdetroit.com/detroit-lions-schedule/164183/2026-nfl-schedule-detroit-lions-game-by-game-predictions

Predicting Every NFC Team’s Record Based on the 2026 Schedule (Detroit Lions: 12–5.  I tend not to put too much stock into strength of schedule because so much changes year to year in the NFL. But this stacked roster, which probably needed a reset year after the departures of Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, should take advantage of having the easiest schedule, according to data from Sharp Football Analysis.   The Lions will face the Saints, Bills, Jets, Panthers and Cardinals to open the year. Don’t be surprised if they start 4–1. Also, coach Dan Campbell’s team got better on the offensive line with first-round rookie tackle Blake Miller and newcomer center Cade Mays.):  https://www.si.com/nfl/predicting-every-nfc-team-record-2026-schedule

Detroit Lions 2026 NFL Schedule Revealed: Game-by-Game Predictions (Final record prediction: 11-6):  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/onsi/detroit-lions-2026-nfl-schedule-revealed-game-by-game-predictions

Way-too-early record predictions before 2026 NFL schedule release (NFC North - Detroit Lions: 11-6.  Helped by the sixth-easiest strength of schedule entering the season, the Lions have a great opportunity to get back on track in 2026. Detroit’s offense should be prolific with quarterback Jared Goff, running back Jahmyr Gibbs and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown leading the way. The Lions must do a much better job up front; they ranked 31st in pass-block win rate and 26th in pass-rush win rate last year, per ESPN. The Lions used their first two draft picks on tackle Blake Miller and edge Derrick Moore as they try to strengthen both areas. Tackle Penei Sewell was by far the team’s best O-lineman. Aidan Hutchinson was the Lions' only reliable edge rusher last year. Sewell and Hutchinson will need more assistance if the Lions want to roar back into contention in the NFC North. - Tyler Dragon):  https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2026/05/14/2026-nfl-record-predictions-every-team/89984996007/

Detroit Lions schedule 2026: Dates & times for all 17 games, strength of schedule and predictions (Detroit Lions record prediction - Over/under win total: 10.5 (per Caesars).  Bottom line: The Lions are an excellent bounce-back candidate if they take care of business against those other last-place teams. Drew Petzing – who spent last season with the Arizona Cardinals – is the new offensive coordinator. Kelvin Sheppard returns as defensive coordinator, and Campbell has a talented roster that has ranked in the top five in scoring offense each of the last four seasons.  Detroit had a 2-4 record against NFC North opponents last season, but those two victories were against the Bears. That rivalry should heat up even more this season. The rivalry with the Packers has already done that – and Green Bay swept both meetings last year. Detroit should be favored against the Vikings. Detroit also is 13-7 against AFC opponents the last four years – a good track record that should hold up against the AFC East.  The Lions will return to the NFC playoffs, and it will be in the mix for the NFC North title – a race that will likely be decided by just one game. Record prediction: 11-6):  https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/detroit-lions-schedule-2026-dates-times-prediction/413ec7782ab3163e95c4fb3d

Video:

NFC North Offseason To Do List | 'The Insiders':  https://www.nfl.com/videos/nfc-north-offseason-to-do-list-the-insiders




Posted by LionsFan at 7:52 PM

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