The 2008 Detroit Lions: The NFL’s Worst Team in History
There is a reason that the Detroit Lions were able to draft Matthew Stafford in 2009. The 2008 Detroit Lions made history as one out of two NFL teams in history to go 0-16, the other team being the Cleveland Browns in 2017. Fans would show up to the games with bags on their heads. There was absolutely no pride in Detroit. There was only shame. Seasons like this made people think that the Detroit Lions would never be good. Seasons like this gave the phrase “Same old Lions” its origins.
The Problem
Looking at the wide receivers on the 2008 Lions team, it may be puzzling to see that Calvin Johnson was on the list. To go 0-16 with Calvin Johnson on your team seems crazy. That starts with the quarterback. Going into the season, Jon Kitna was almost 36 and had thrown 42 interceptions since 2006. According to Medium, quarterback Jon Kitna started the first five games of the season until he got a back injury. Dan Orlovsky was put into a terrible situation, where he was going to be a starter of a 0-5 football team. Throughout the season, it was clear that Orlovsky was terrified. He was under incredible pressure and was not responding well. On a podcast called the Pivot Podcast, Calvin Johnson was asked, “Was it Dan Orlovsky’s fault that ya’ll were 0-16?” He replied, “It didn’t help.” In an article published by Dan Orlovsky that talked about the pains of going 0-16, he described the feeling of going to the Detroit Lions stadium as going to a funeral. He also described the feeling of being in that locker room as people not even looking at each other. There was a feeling that they just wanted to get the season over with.
The coaching certainly did not help either. Rod Marinelli was 10-38 as the Detroit Lions coach from 2006-2008. The defense was also a huge problem. The Detroit Lions’ defense allowed 517 points in that season, which was the most in the league. The Detroit Lions offense only scored 268 points in total, which was ranked 27th out of the 32 teams. Good teams have balanced teams. This means that when the defense does not play well, the offense plays well and when the offense does not play well, the defense plays well. However, with this Lions team on both sides of the ball, there was so little skill that no side of the ball could bail the other side out.
The Future
There is a reason that the Detroit Lions were able to acquire Matthew Stafford in 2009. The 2008 Detroit Lions team was historically bad. However, from the ashes of that team, one of the members of that team has created a new team, a new legacy. Dan Campbell was on that 2008 Detroit Lions team as a tight end. He saw the lack of pride in Detroit. He saw the shame. He has transformed the Detroit Lions from terrible to Super Bowl contenders. The Detroit Lions fans will never wear bags on their heads again anytime soon. With Sports Illustrated picking the Detroit Lions to win the Super Bowl this season, the future seems brighter than it ever has been.
