Soko Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 (edited) With both teams technically still in the playoff hunt entering Week 15, they’ve come a long way from picking #1 and #2 in last year’s draft. I think both teams have some real potential in 2023, certainly with more building to do. Which team do you think has a brighter future going forward? Detroit: The Lions are on a hot streak right now, rising from the ashes of 1-6 to win 5 of their last 6 games. The offense, statistically, is top 5 in both yards and points. Jared Goff is playing some of the best ball of his career and can be kept for through 2023 and 2024, with easy outs for the Lions. There’s some young talent scattered across this team, mostly the offense, and Dan Campbell has everyone playing hard. Bringing in vets like Jamaal Williams really helped sell the culture that Dan’s selling, and it seems the young team’s bought in. With two first rounders and about $27M in cap space next year, they have ammo to keep building this roster the right way. Unfortunately, the defense is still a problem, ranking towards the bottom of the league in most categories. There’s some potential out of guys along the front, particularly rookie Aidan Hutchinson, but the back seven is in dire need of an infusion of talent. And as good as the offense has looked at times, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has likely bought himself some interviews (at worst) this offseason, if not a real shot at a HCing position. Campbell himself certainly has tons of fans, but without this hot streak there were serious talks about whether or not his seat was about to fully catch fire. Even without a playoff berth this year, Campbell’s going to have his work cut out next year in the NFCN with Minnesota playing the way they are, Chicago possibly on the come up, and of course no one can count out Rodgers. Jacksonville: Re-loading after an absolute failure of a 2021, Trevor Lawrence has taken real strides this year as a player and may just be the franchise guy Jacksonville’s been looking for. Working with SB champion Doug Pederson has to have helped - then again, anyone would’ve been an upgrade over Urban. Marvin Jones is still showing use as a player and WR-market-busting Christian Kirk is showing some real utility in this offense. Second year runner Travis Etienne took the starting job and…ran with it. There’s talent along the defense, largely at different levels more so than any one single unit, and with a little developing/talent added, there’s potential for a big jump. Ditto for the offense. Playing in the AFCS helps, as the Colts are once again dead in the water at QB, Houston coming off a rocky season, and Tennessee seemingly on the downswing of a really strong period of dominance. The Jaguars are largely going to be building through the draft however, as their projected cap space is set to be towards the bottom of the league at -$4.5M. Some moves will be made to remedy that, but it’ll probably prevent them from making any splashes in the offseason. The team’s still coming into it’s own, and despite obvious growth and flashes, it’s a team still trying to find it’s identity on both sides of the ball IMO. The offense in particular is hurting for a #1 WR, despite getting solid plays from it’s receivers. Edited December 12, 2022 by Yin-Yang 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegas492 Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 Jacksonville? Packer fan here. Lions are doing it right. Strong o-line. Sound but not flashy defense or offensive weapons. But their o-line is nasty. Jacksonville may have a few guys that are a higher tier of player than the Lions do. QB and EDGE. Ultimately, I think both teams are poised for success in the future, but Jacksonville has the star power to be a little better. But with that o-line the Lions have built, they are going to win consistently. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 Jacksonville easily. They have a franchise QB, and I'm not sure the Lions do. And Lawrence is on a rookie contract to boot. Rebuilding the rest is easy in comparison to finding a QB. Also the Jags are in a garbage division, which makes things even easier. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KhanYouDigIt Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 I’d go Jags because of the QB/HC combo. I think Trevor will be an MVP candidate next season. Another year in Doug’s system, the massive progress he’s shown in the 2nd half of the season, addition of Calvin Ridley, which will only open things up for the other skill players. The D has underperformed this season, especially with how much we have poured into that side of the ball. Mike Caldwell has seemed in over his head at times. Doug kind of acknowledged that guys aren’t in the right position to succeed. We saw Travon in more of a 3 point stance yesterday against the Titans and he had a 25% win rate before he left due to injury. They slid Darious Williams outside yesterday after being in nickel throughout the year. Lions are a very talented team and clearly on the rise. They smoked us a week ago. I’ll take the QB/HC advantage in a weak division. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingseanjohn Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 Lions. Better front office makes it an easy choice for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nazgul Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 I'm going with the team that beat the other one 40-14 literally a week ago. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seminoles1 Posted December 12, 2022 Share Posted December 12, 2022 I'll take the franchise QB, but Detroit is in a very good spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr A W Niloc Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 I'll bet on Brad Holmes over Trent Baalke. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nazgul Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 55 minutes ago, seminoles1 said: I'll take the franchise QB, but Detroit is in a very good spot. Goff is a franchise QB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Friend Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 51 minutes ago, Nazgul said: Goff is a franchise QB Goff is 28, Lawrence is 23. Other than that, they have nearly identical numbers. Jags have a better overall defense, but Detroit has the better offense. They are kind of mirrors of each other. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post .Buzz Posted December 13, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted December 13, 2022 Lions and Jaguars fans coming into this thread: 20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Superduperman Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 Lions still have many key steps to take. Optimism about them is such an unfamiliar sensation for most folks - especially their fans - that it's easy to take any positive developments and just assume they'll continue. I'll know the Lions have arrived when they get their Reggie White, the top name player that chooses to go there and lets everyone else know it's OK to go there now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ET80 Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 Jags and Lions (pick 1 and 2) are looking like teams to take note of for 2023. Jets and Giants (pick 4 and 5) both look like playoff bound teams this year. Pick 3? Welp… 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thelonebillsfan Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 6 minutes ago, ET80 said: Jags and Lions (pick 1 and 2) are looking like teams to take note of for 2023. Jets and Giants (pick 4 and 5) both look like playoff bound teams this year. Pick 3? Welp… It's okay buddy I'm sure you'll get the Alabama QB that isn't mid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Friend Posted December 13, 2022 Share Posted December 13, 2022 11 minutes ago, ET80 said: Jags and Lions (pick 1 and 2) are looking like teams to take note of for 2023. Jets and Giants (pick 4 and 5) both look like playoff bound teams this year. Pick 3? Welp… Looking at trends and remaining schedules, I think Detroit has a better chance at the playoffs than the Giants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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