The Detroit Lions may have just captured the NFC North division title, but former NFL wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald is still not buying into them.
Speaking on the Let’s Go podcast with Tom Brady and Jim Gray this week, Fitzgerald expressed his doubts about the Lions.
“Look, you can say that I’m the Grinch right now, but a team that hasn’t won a division championship since 1993, it’s hard for you to take them serious,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s just been a long time coming. Yes, they’re playing really well, but they are the Detroit Lions.”
Detroit not only won the division, but at 11-4, it is tied for the best record in the NFC and has an opportunity to secure the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
“It’s just tough to get excited about what they can do in the playoffs,” added Fitzgerald. “You want to see this great matchup they have against the Cowboys. It’s a wonderful test before they go into the playoffs.”
The Lions have made just three playoff appearances since 2000 and have not won a playoff game since the 1991-92 campaign, so you can understand Fitzgerald’s trepidation.
However, this is a different Detroit ballclub, and it’s unfair to compare this iteration of the Lions to teams from multiple decades ago.
Plus, Fitzgerald himself played for an Arizona Cardinals franchise that was largely viewed as a laughing stock upon his arrival. When he was drafted by the team in 2004, the Cardinals had made the postseason just once since 1983, when they made a trip in 1998. Fitzgerald then helped lead Arizona back to the playoffs during the 2008-09 campaign, when the Cards made it all the way to the Super Bowl.
Taking that into consideration, it seems a bit disingenuous for Larry Fitzgerald to simply write the Lions off.
Detroit will take on the Dallas Cowboys in Texas this Sunday before heading back home to host the Minnesota Vikings to wrap up the regular season on Jan. 7.
We’ll see if the Lions can prove Fitzgerald (and many others) wrong between now and February.