There's going to be a lot said, written, and discussed about the Detroit Lions and their record-setting 2008 campaign. A year after the New England Patriots completed the first ever 16-0 regular season, the Lions decided to reciprocate their efforts and finish without a win.
It sucks—not just for Lions fans, but for NFL fans that want to see a competitive contest every week. It sucks for the players who put their bodies on the line every week despite having their spirits broken for hours at a time.
It remains to be seen if the 0-16 season will actually serve as a catalyst for change in Detroit. Some fans are hopeful, but for others, the outlook is grim.
Bleacher Report writer Keith Shelton did an excellent job detailing the problems Detroit will continue to face until the Lions sever ties with the Ford family.
While the slap of the 2008 season still stings, one has to wonder, is there a team the Lions could've beaten?
They didn't have one of the league's more favorable schedules as it was the NFC North's turn to take on the AFC and NFC South—two competitive divisions sending two squads to the playoffs.
The record looks bad, but is it worth letting the Lions go down in the books as one of the worst teams in the history of the NFL? It's safe to argue that they weren't even the worst team in the NFL in 2008.
If the schedule permitted it, who could the Lions have beaten this season?
NFC North champions or not, the Detroit Lions had the Minnesota Vikings beat in Week Six. If not for an unnecessary penalty flag late in the fourth quarter for pass interference, the Vikings wouldn't have had 42 free yards to place them in field-goal position.
People don't take into consideration how deflating that loss was for the Lions. Losing a game in that fashion weighs heavy on the psyche of a team—even when they do enough to win, something is going to push them to a loss.
It doesn't matter that the Bengals finished the season on a three-game win-streak. In 11 of their losses, they usually did enough to beat themselves.
If we're being honest, a Bengals-Lions matchup would've been one of the season's most disgraceful showings of inept defensive football the NFL has ever seen. But it's a game the Lions could've won.
Make Detroit the home team, and have them meet at around midseason, and it has the potential to be a shootout between two teams who struggled against the pass.
There's no doubt in my mind that Herm Edwards would've found a way to coach his team out of this game.
The clock would've been managed poorly, the Chiefs would run when they should pass, or the defense would falter at the most inopportune moment.
Daunte Culpepper would find a way to get the ball in Calvin Johnson's hands enough times to pull out a victory.
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