The Detroit Lions were unable to deliver the NFC Championship Game that many NFL fans wanted to see this season. The Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles were the two top teams in the NFC along with the Minnesota Vikings for most of the season, but a shocking loss to the Washington Commanders in the Divisional Round cut their season short.
The Eagles crushed the Commanders in the title game before blowing out the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl, capping off a very dominant playoff run with a championship. Despite the string of impressive performances by the Eagles, Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown still thinks that Detroit could have done some damage. He dropped a bold take on the St. Brown Podcast when the idea of the Lions opening the 2025 season in Philadelphia came up.
You would see with our healthy defense how that s*** operates,” St. Brown said of the potential opening night matchup.
Of course, the injuries to the Lions on defense played a major factor in the loss to the Commanders. Jayden Daniels and company were able to move the ball up and down the field against a depleted defense that was missing nearly all of its top pass rushers, key linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez and star cornerback Carlton Davis.
When healthy, the Lions had a very good defense that allowed them to get the No. 1 seed in the NFC. However, they didn’t get a chance to show it in a matchup against the Eagles due to those injuries and some sloppy play in the playoffs by the offense.
The Lions will have a hard time replicating that production on both sides of the ball next season after losing offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to head coaching jobs. Dan Campbell made an in-house hire on defense, promoting former linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard to be the team’s new DC. The Sheppard hire should allow the Lions to maintain some continuity on that side of the ball when it comes to the scheme, but he has big shoes to fill.
It would make a lot of sense for the Lions to be the opening night opponent for the Eagles, although the league could go with divisional matchups such as the Commanders in an NFC title game rematch or the Dallas Cowboys. If it is Eagles-Lions, NFL fans will be treated to a blockbuster matchup between two of the best rosters in football.
