A bye week can be a strange thing in the NFL. Sometimes it feels like a clean reset. Other times it just sharpens the debate around where a team really belongs.
That’s where the Detroit Lions find themselves entering Week 7. They came out of their Week 6 bye sitting second in the NFC North, but by the time Week 7 rolled around, they were fourth in the division. Minnesota was also idle, while Chicago and Green Bay both picked up wins last Sunday and moved ahead of Detroit in the standings.
National power rankings reflected that split view. Some analysts nudged the Lions down, while others pushed them up as other teams around the league lost some shine.
The Athletic had Detroit at No. 9, up from No. 12.
Chad Graff and Josh Kendall pointed to Jared Goff as the key storyline, noting that Jahmyr Gibbs was the obvious fantasy standout but that Goff has been every bit as important. Goff is third among quarterbacks in fantasy scoring at 23.0 points per game, and the 11-year veteran has thrown 12 touchdowns without an interception while ranking fourth in EPA per dropback at 0.29.
Connor Orr also highlighted what comes next: “The Packers and Vikings are next on Detroit’s post-bye schedule. We’ll find out immediately if the defense was fixed, has the potential to be fixed, or if Jared Goff is going to continue needing to score 30-plus a week to keep the Lions in the conversation.”
USA Today kept Detroit at No. 11, one spot lower than The Athletic but still steady from its previous placement of 12. Nate Davis wrote, “Still 3-2 after their bye week, they’ve fallen into the NFC North basement … but that can change fast with the Packers and Vikings coming to Ford Field the next two weeks.”
CBS Sports also landed on No. 11, holding the Lions in place from the previous week. Pete Prisco described the bye as beneficial for “an ailing team” and emphasized the defensive side of the ball, writing that the main concern is “improving the bad defense going forward.”
Yahoo Sports ranked Detroit 11th as well, up from 13th. Frank Schwab called the timing of the bye “well timed” and pointed to the next two home games against Green Bay and Minnesota as the stretch that will define Detroit in the division race.
Yahoo also noted that center Cade Mays and safety Brian Branch are expected back from injuries. Branch’s return stands out for a defense that needs help, though he is coming off a torn Achilles and can’t be expected to fix everything on his own.
Schwab wrote that when healthy, Branch is a difference maker, but it remains to be seen whether the injury took away any explosiveness. Dan Campbell said Monday that Branch won’t have a full snap share right away.
Even so, his return, along with Mays’, gives the Lions some hope heading into the next two weeks.
Nick Shook had Detroit at No. 11 as well, but he argued the team didn’t deserve to slip at all coming off a bye. He wrote that Chicago’s rise caused the change and pointed to Goff’s efficiency and the defense’s strong showing in the Week 5 win over Arizona. His message was clear: “Wise individuals know not to overlook the Lions.”
ESPN dropped Detroit to No. 12 from No. 11.
In a staff excerpt from Eric Woodyard, the main offensive concern was third-down production. The Lions are tied with Buffalo for the most offensive points per game at 32.8, powered by Goff’s 12 touchdown passes and no interceptions, but they are only 22nd in third-down conversion rate at 37.3%.
On third-and-short, defined as third-and-3 or less, Detroit is tied for last at 43.8%.
ESPN also pointed out the odd shape of the defense. The Lions led the league with 20 sacks going into the bye, but they were also last in pass defense. The challenge now is turning that pressure into better results over the second half of the season.
In Other News...
Why The Lions Contender Hype Suddenly Looks A Lot More Real
Through six weeks, the Lions have started to look less like a team riding early-season momentum and more like one with a real path to staying in the NFC race. The numbers back up the eye test, too, with the offense and defense both showing meaningful improvement from where this group has been in recent seasons. Detroit has been efficient enough to keep pace with almost anybody, and the way the unit is functioning now suggests the ceiling is higher than many expected back in September.
A big part of the optimism is what still appears to be coming. The defensive front has shown more bite, the secondary has steadied in stretches, and the team is set up to get healthier after the bye with key pieces coming back into the mix. Add in a remaining schedule that does not look overwhelming, and the case for the Lions as a legitimate contender suddenly feels a lot less theoretical. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Suddenly Face A Packers Threat That Looks Much Worse
Green Bay has spent much of its recent stretch looking like a team trying to find its footing on the ground while leaning harder on the parts of its offense that can still stress a defense. The Packers have battled inconsistency in the run game, but they remain dangerous in the vertical passing game, and their safety play has given them a sturdy backbone as they head into a matchup with Detroit.
For the Lions, that creates a very specific kind of problem. Detroit has struggled to handle deep shots, and the Packers have shown they can punish teams in those areas while also targeting the middle of the field with confidence. A few personnel changes could shape how much balance Green Bay can bring back into the offense, and that is what makes this matchup worth watching closely as the week unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Campbell Sees Something Even Scarier In Penei Sewell
Penei Sewell has already built a rsum that would satisfy almost any lineman in the league, but the Lions still believe there is more room to grow. Since Detroit drafted him in 2021, Sewell has handled the move from right tackle to left tackle with ease, and coach Dan Campbell continues to talk about him like a player still on the rise rather than one who has peaked.
That is what makes Sewell such a fascinating piece of Detroits foundation. He is already a four-time Pro Bowler and three-time NFL All-Pro, yet both he and Campbell see more improvement ahead, and Sewell has pointed to his daily battles with Aidan Hutchinson as a big reason he keeps pushing his level higher. For a Lions offense and team identity built on toughness up front, that kind of internal competition is exactly the sort of thing that can keep getting scarier. [Read more 🡒]