Why Heath Evans Is Wrong in His Playoff Assessment of the Hot Detroit Lions

The controversial new NFL analyst Heath Evans was at it again recently, holding fast to his opinion that the Detroit Lions are not a playoff team despite their scintillating start to the season. This has drawn the ire of many a Lions fan, who are finally enjoying the fruits of their team's success. 

I for one cannot attack him too much for his opinion for two reasons. Firstly, all preseason I believed that the Lions were not a playoff team, and I am going to stick to that until the Lions win a few more big games. Secondly, Evans is an analyst, and I do respect him for sticking to his point of view.

Nevertheless, I am disappointed that a man earning big bucks on the NFL Network used some awful examples to emphasize his point of view. Instead of highlighting the Lions' real issues in establishing a running game, stopping the run (anyone who saw Jamaal Charles shredding our defense before he went off injured would agree) and keeping a clean pocket for Matthew Stafford, Evans chucked out a list of vague and incorrect one-liners such as our lack of "players" and a lack of experience. In the remainder of this article, I will attempt to explain why each of his reasons are in fact, categorically invalid.

First, he said that the Lions do not have the players to make the playoffs. Disregarding the ambiguity of this statement, it would not be that difficult to argue that one of the real strengths of the Lions' roster is the talent they have brought in through the draft and through free agency. Players like Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson, Ndamukong Suh and Stephen Tulloch are among the best at their position in the league, and other contributors line Cliff Avril, Eric Wright and Nate Burleson provide depth. 

There is no doubt that the Lions are comparable with just about any other team in the league in terms of their offensively skilled players, and on defense they are much improved from last season. For starters, in the NFC North, the Lions easily have more impact players than the Minnesota Vikings, even with the Williams Wall active (which they will not be for this week). The Bears too have very few offensive playmakers outside Matt Forte, and their secondary is weaker than the Lions.

Secondly, Evans has called out the experience of the Detroit team. He said that teams like the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers have an advantage in dealing with big games. While this is certainly true once playoff football begins, I would argue that in the regular season, it is far less important.

Every year there are unheralded, inexperienced teams like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs who win 10 games and are certainly deserving of a playoff spot. Since Heath is not talking about the Lions' performance once they reach the playoffs, but rather making them, this seems to be a weak argument when looking back at the recent history of 10-win teams.

Back in 2009, both the New York Jets and the Cincinnati Bengals were fielding largely inexperienced teams, and in 2008 the Atlanta Falcons and the Arizona Cardinals had very little big-game experience but still made the playoffs. Also, in 2007, the Cleveland Browns managed 10 wins despite being in the same situation as the previously mentioned teams.

Third, Evan's has called out Matthew Stafford as a turnover machine, quoting a statistic that going into the 2011 season, he had thrown 19 touchdowns to 21 interceptions and six fumbles. While this portrays the image that Stafford cannot keep the ball away from defenders, 20 of those interceptions came in Stafford's rookie year. He certainly no longer plays like a rookie, and it is unfair to penalize him for his play that year. On a different note, in the four games he has played since his first year, Stafford has thrown for 13 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Those are serious stats, and they indicate that he will be frugal with the ball this season.   

Evans' arguments certainly do not stack up with the reality of how the Lions are playing this season. For any of you still in doubt over the validity of his opinions regarding the Lions, he predicted that the Buccaneers' defense would dominate the Lions in Week 1 and would lead to a big win for the Tampa Bay team. While everyone can make mistakes, this is one too many in my eyes.