The NFL fully released its schedule in May of this year. Now that we’ve had some time to really analyze each matchup, we wanted to give some official predictions for the upcoming year.
The Lions have nine home games and eight on the road, giving them home field advantage for the majority of their seventeen games. They also have the fifth easiest ranked schedule, which should help the Lions on their quest to finish above .500 in 2022.
In Dan Campbell’s first year as head coach, the Lions finished with a disappointing 3-13-1 record. Sitting at the bottom of the NFC North is not the Lions plan going into 2022. Not only do they believe this team can strongly improve from last year’s record, but the team is playoff hopeful.
With that being said, here is an EARLY look at the Lions’ schedule:
Week 1: Eagles at Lions (Sunday, September 11th)
The Eagles are far from great, but their strong draft class, headlined by Georgia DT Jordan Davis, and acquisitions such as A.J. Brown gives them a strong base to build from. Already being a playoff team the year before gives the Eagles an edge in this matchup, but to me the key factor lies in last year’s game. The Lions had no answer for Jalen Hurts and the versatile Eagles offense, giving up 44 points in a devastating loss.
Although the Lions have much improved since then, we don’t see them pulling this win off. We have them losing a close game in week 1. Score: 34-31, (0-1).
Week 2: Commanders at Lions (Sunday, September 18th)
Washington’s biggest changes come in the form of their Quarterback, bringing in Carson Wentz in the offseason. Wentz, a questionable QB to have, has moved into a new system once again and will need time to adjust. That, combined with the loss of all-pro guard Brandon Scherff, has the Commanders facing an uphill climb in 2022.
The Lions on the other hand, boast a possible top-ten offensive line in the NFL. Jared Goff, having experience in the Lion’s system, has more confidence than ever in his offense. Coming off a week 1 loss, Goff and Campbell will bring back the pre-season optimism with a dominant win. Score: 24-7, (1-1)
Week 3: Lions at Vikings (Sunday, September 25th)
As of late, the Lions have struggled against the Vikings, especially on the road. Kirk Cousins boasts a 7-2 record against the Lions, who haven’t won in Minnesota in almost half a decade.
The Vikings have had a quiet off-season, but haven’t gotten significantly worse or better. This matchup will be a preview of the season to come for both teams. Duking it out, likely for second in the division, we have the Vikings taking game one in this series. Score: 24-14, (1-2)
Week 4: Seahawks at Lions (Sunday, October 2nd)
The Seahawks have been on a downward trend since last year, but took more of a step towards a rebuild this off-season. Trading away franchise legend Russel Wilson and losing key pieces like Carlos Dunlap II, have the Seahawks looking weaker than ever.
The Lions, being a rising team within the league, get it done at home. Score: 31-17 (2-2)
Week 5: Lions at Patriots (Sunday, October 9th)
The Patriots, coming off a season ending blowout in the playoffs, keep much of the same roster. Although, they lose a key piece in the J.C. Jackson. A weaker defensive core, and a still questionable Mac Jones gives the Lions a plan of attack.
With Belichick at the helm, we doubt they will have an easy time hitting the Patriots where they’re weak. Having to compensate for multiple large weak areas, Belichick will have a lot on his plate. The largest issue for New England comes on the defensive side. The rushing defense for New England was poor against teams with a top-ten O-line in 2021, giving up over 200yards multiple times to the Bills and also the Colts. Not adding to their defensive core doesn’t help their case for improving the issue in 2022. The Lions largest strength being its line and a strong one-two- punch in Swift and Williams will run their way to victory in Foxborough. Score: 24-20, (3-2)
Week 6: BYE WEEK
Week 7: Lions at Cowboys (Sunday, October 23rd)
Speaking on just talent alone, Dallas has the advantage here. The Lions have already shown they play up to competition, and we think that occurs in this matchup. The Lions will play with a chip on their shoulder in this one, giving them an opportunity to shock the NFL world.
So, just like last year, we think the Lions will play a closer game than what will show on the stat-sheets. The Lions will lose on a late Cowboy drive. Score: 31-27 (3-3)
Week 8: Dolphins at Lions (Sunday, October 30th)
The Dolphins game is going to be a toss up. With a new coach in Mike McDaniel, and new additions like Tyreek Hill giving the Dolphins a ton of pre-season hype, they still have a questionable young QB under center, in Tua Tagovailoa. The goal for the Lions will be containing Tyreek Hill, preventing the deep-ball.
With neither Team having a strong defense, it will come down to the run game. The Dolphins struggled with that all of 2021 and we don’t see that changing with little addition to the offensive line. Meanwhile, the Lions will utilize the defensive scheming of Aaron Glenn and the gritty ground and pound Ben Johnson offense to knock off the Dolphins. Score: 35-30 (4-3)
Week 9: Packers at Lions (Sunday, November 6th)
The Packers had a lot of controversy over the off-season, losing Davante Adams, and having many difficult discussions with Aaron Rodgers. Unfortunately for Lions fans, Rodgers is returning to Green Bay.
Rodgers, who has torn apart Detroit defenses for years, will do the same in week 9. Leaving the Lions battered at home, Rodgers comes out of Detroit with the win. Score: 38-14 (4-4)
Week 10: Lions at Bears (Sunday, November 13th)
The biggest factor for the Bears is obviously returning QB Justin Fields. He was up and down in 2021, failing to live up to expectations. This is partially in credit to his abysmal offensive line. With zero improvement upfront, the Bears’ O-line should be a bottom five group in 2022.
The Lions, who keep adding to the defensive front, will eat the Bears alive in week 10. Score: 21-3 (5-4)
Week 11: Lions at Giants (Sunday, November 20th)
The Lions, coming off a win, head into New York to face Daniel Jones and Kayvon Thibodeaux. This matchup seems fairly even between two teams in the midst of rebuilds. Detroit seems farther along than the Giants, but the Giants are riding the positivity of their draft and free agent classes for the upcoming season.
The Lions seem to have an easy win here, but as we all know with the Lions, they throw away games like these. We don’t see a way the Lions don’t lose a close game to a team they should easily beat. In this case, the Giants defense, led by Thibodeaux and Martinez, will shock the Lions. Score: 27-17 (5-5)
Week 12: Bills at Lions (Thursday, November 24th)
Buffalo, simply put, is one of the most talented teams in the NFL. They have size, speed, youth, leadership, and strength. Josh Allen will look to assert his physical play style through the run, and his rocket-arm through the air. When this offense gets going, it is impossible to stop.
The Lions, coming off a short week, will be caught on their heels. Overpowered and outmatched, the Lions lose on thanksgiving (what else is new). Score: 42-24 (5-6)
Week 13: Jaguars at Lions (Sunday, December 4th)
Jacksonville certainly has a bright future ahead with Trevor Lawrence leading the team. The Clemson rookie showed flashes of greatness, but struggled to win without weapons. The Jags brought in players like Christian Kirk to support Lawrence, but we don’t see this being close to enough.
With the strong base that Brad Holmes has created in Detroit, the Lions are much more well rounded than the Jaguars. Lawrence, who struggled under pressure last year, will underperform against the Lions pass rush led by Aidan Hutchinson. Lions win. Score: 28-17 (6-6)
Week 14: Vikings at Lions (Sunday, December 11th)
The Lions split this series last year, getting their first win of the season against Minnesota. Campbell and the Lions, with knowledge from the first game, will bring a better game plan and the extra intensity needed to push above .500 in a slugfest matchup. Score: 34-31 (7-6)
Week 15: Lions at Jets (Sunday, December 18th)
The Jets had one of the best draft classes in the NFL and are looking like they have taken a step forward in their rebuild. Led by Zach Wilson, the small and speedy gunslinger, the Jets should have more pieces to improve from a dismal 2021 season.
Wilson, struggled to find his BYU playmaking success in the NFL last season. He became Mistake prone, and hot headed under pressure. The Lions will bring the heat to him with the combination of a ferocious pass rush and ball-hawking secondary. Oruwariye and Okudah lead the Lions to a victory in the Big Apple. Score: 31-17 (8-6)
Week 16: Lions at Panthers (Saturday, December 24th)
The Panthers are one of the most questionable teams in the NFL right now, with the QB situation being the most unclear. Sam Darnold, Matt Corral, and PJ Walker are all looking to take the starting job in Carolina.
The Lions will be slow from a travel heavy back half of the season. A rough start with some turnovers will hurt the Lions. Having to air out the ball the rest of the game, the Panthers strong pass defense denies Detroit a victory in Carolina. Score: 24-13 (8-7)
Week 17: Bears at Lions (Sunday, January 1st)
The Bears come to Detroit beaten and bruised after a disappointing 2022 campaign. The experience that Field has gained throughout the season, will propel the Bears to play up to the competition in Detroit. The talent may not be there, but they will play with a chip on their shoulder.
Unfortunately for Bears fans, the Lions are just too much for a team as starved for talent like the Bears. We do think it will be close, with smash mouth football being the main focus. Score: 14-10 (9-7)
Week 18: Lions at Packers (Saturday/Sunday, January 7/8th)
The Lions might be pushing for a wild card spot at this point in the season if they walk into Lambeau at 9-7. Depending on the Packers division lead, this could be an easy task or an extremely tough one. Resting their starters against a playoff hungry Detroit team would be fatal for the Packers.
Sadly, we don’t see that happening. Aaron Rodgers leads his team to another win over Detroit, but the Lions burning desire for a playoff berth helps them keep it close. Score: 35-33 (9-8)
Record: (9-8)
So, a huge improvement from 2021, a possible playoff berth, and a winning season for the Lions. This season is bound to be exciting, or agonizing for all Detroit fans, but we think everyone can agree that 9-8 is a great season for the Lions. Not only would that triple last year’s win total, but it would point possible free agents towards Detroit. That is the real goal for Detroit, finding a way to contend in the upcoming seasons.
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4 Comments
I love the Lions, they actually joined one of my Lives on TikTok haha. For sure one of the best social media pages in sports no doubt
They do have a great social media team! It would be hard not to promote a team with this much potential.
I totally agree. Well thought out and detailed!
Extremely well researched and thought Out! I totally agree!