Detroit, MI - It’s not enough that the Detroit Lions are coming off the first 0-16 season in NFL history, but its coming up on the time of year, where despite everything, Ford Field seems to sell out.
"We go because it's tradition," says Lions fan Mike Holmberg.
All the Lions seem to be able to do these days is lose, and lose, and ruin the careers of players and coaches, mess up draft picks, overpay players not worthy of past their primes, and lose some more. With a 31-97 record since their last winning season, in 2000, the Lions have only seven winning seasons total since 1973, and only one playoff win, despite being three games above .500 on Thanksgiving, with a 35-32-2 overall record, but the majority of those wins came back when the Lions weren’t quite the laughing stock of the league.
High priced draft picks such as Joey Harrington, Charles Rogers, Mike Williams and more, have come and gone, all before the age of 30, and are now out of football entirely.
The Lions actually have hosted the game for the longest time running, according to profootballhof.com.
In 1934, then owner G.A. Richards scheduled the game as a gimmick to get people to attend Lions games, and it stuck.
But it seems, that one team will always lose, at least in recent years. Since the new millennium, the team has just one victory on that day, winning 22-14 versus Green Bay in 2003, and just got rid of the man who was in charge of the team since then, Matt Millen.
Dallas has five wins since 2000, and even its four losses have been by a combined total of 36 points since then.
It’s crazy to think that every Thanksgiving game since 1992 has sold out for the Lions, despite their recent poor showings, however, last year’s massacre against the Tennessee Titans needed an extension to sell out, but eventually did. It’s tradition indeed to watch, especially being from the state where the team plays, but every time around dinner time, it seems we’re all in a little worse of a mood, because the game has just ended or is nearing it’s climax, and the Lions trail.
"We don't usually watch the end of the game, because it just puts everyone in a bitter mood, so instead we just turn on something else, and eat our dinner," announces Lions fan Darren Lescott.
This Nov. 26, Detroit will host the Green Bay Packers, a bitter division rival, in what hopes to be a watchable game, although with the Detroit Lions, it seems games are only watchable now, if you’re a fan of the opposing team.
