Can the Detroit Lions Break Through to the Super Bowl in the Next Three Years?
Let’s be honest-when the Super Bowl rolls around and the matchup is once again a familiar pair of teams, it can feel like the NFL’s much-touted parity is more myth than reality. This year’s big game was another reminder: the Seahawks made their fourth appearance since 2005, and the Patriots?
Their 11th since 1996. For a league built on the idea that any team can rise, it sure seems like the same franchises keep finding their way to the top.
But then there’s Detroit.
The Lions haven’t made it to the Super Bowl-yet-but they’ve flipped the script in a major way. Under owner Sheila Hamp, GM Brad Holmes, and head coach Dan Campbell, Detroit has gone from perennial punchline to one of the most respected operations in the league. The Lions have become a model of how to build a roster, develop culture, and stay competitive in a league where the margin for error is razor-thin.
And here’s the thing: over the past four seasons, Detroit has been winning. A lot.
Most Wins Since 2022:
- Eagles: 50-18
- Bills: 49-18
- Chiefs: 46-22
- Lions: 45-23
- Vikings: 43-25
- Ravens: 43-25
- 49ers: 43-25
- Seahawks: 42-26
- Steelers: 39-29
- Cowboys: 38-29-1
That’s not just a sign of progress-it’s elite company. Detroit has been right there with the league’s heavyweights.
They’ve outpaced the Seahawks in regular-season wins over that stretch, and they’re just a step behind the Chiefs and Bills. This isn’t a flash in the pan.
This is sustained success.
So, the big question: Can the Lions make the Super Bowl in the next three years?
It’s a fair question. The foundation is there.
The Lions’ core-Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs, Penei Sewell, Sam LaPorta, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Aidan Hutchinson, and Jack Campbell-is both talented and young.
That’s the kind of group you can build around. And for the most part, they’re locked in for the foreseeable future.
But the NFL doesn’t operate in a vacuum. Every season brings a new set of challenges, and 2025 was a reminder of just how quickly things can change.
Detroit went into last season with arguably the best safety tandem in football. Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph looked like long-term anchors for a defense on the rise.
Now, Branch is expected to miss the start of 2026, and Joseph’s health remains uncertain.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg.
This offseason, Detroit faces a number of critical decisions:
- Will David Montgomery return to the backfield?
- Who steps in at left tackle and center?
- Can LaPorta bounce back from back surgery?
- Who lines up opposite Hutchinson on the edge?
- Can Alim McNeill regain his dominant form?
- Will Alex Anzalone be re-signed to lead the linebacker corps?
- Can rookies like Terrion Arnold and Tyleik Williams make the leap?
- And perhaps most pressing: who’s starting at safety in Week 1?
These aren’t minor questions. And with only two top-100 draft picks and a roster currently over the projected salary cap, the Lions will have to get creative.
Sure, there are ways to maneuver around the cap-restructures, extensions, clever contract design-but GM Brad Holmes has shown a preference for long-term sustainability over short-term splashes. Don’t expect him to go on a spending spree just to chase a quick fix.
That said, the Lions' core gives them a fighting chance in every game. This is a team that’s built to compete, and in the NFL, sometimes that’s all you need. A favorable schedule, a healthy roster, a few fortunate bounces-sometimes that’s the difference between a playoff run and a Super Bowl berth.
The Lions don’t need to be perfect. They just need to be good enough-and get a little help from the football gods.
That’s the formula for just about every Super Bowl team. And while Detroit doesn’t have a long history of luck on their side, they’ve earned the right to be in that conversation.
Bottom line: **the Lions have the talent to get there. ** Whether they can overcome the cap constraints, roster questions, and health concerns to finally punch their ticket to the big game?
That remains to be seen. But for the first time in a long time, it feels like the Super Bowl isn’t just a dream in Detroit-it’s a real possibility.
And that, in itself, is a massive step forward.