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The new Detroit Lions have been a force to be reckoned with, but this season they are in what has recently become uncharted territory.
After reaching the playoffs in each of the previous two seasons, the Lions missed the playoffs after being one of the favorites to win it all in the preseason.
In 2023, they were so close to making the Super Bowl for the first time. Last season, they lost in their first playoff game as the No. 1 seed.
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Amon-Ra St. Brown of the Detroit Lions and running back Jahmyr Gibbs look on prior to an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on September 7, 2025 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)
“I really think we have all the pieces and that’s why this year hurt the way it did because you know we have this high elite level of talent,” star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson told Pakinomist Digital on Radio Row. “I really just think it was a football thing and it was a lack of free football in critical moments. I think different phases let the team down. It’s also the defence. It’s a shame you have to sit there and say it, but I think that’s kind of what happened. Because we have the pieces.”
“I think we just slipped up here and there. Details slipped up a little bit, we had a lot of people injured, but I wouldn’t make that an excuse because we did the same thing last year. Just need to clean up some things,” added running back Jahmyr Gibbs. “Everybody’s in the league for a reason. Every team is good. Every team has players that get paid. So I mean, anybody can beat anybody on any given Sunday, Thursday, Monday, whatever. We just happened to get beat more than we’re used to. So it is what it is.”
Part of the reason the Lions didn’t make that Super Bowl two years ago, many would argue, is Dan Campbell’s aggressiveness on fourth down. But don’t expect anyone on the Lions to ever disagree with their coach’s mentality.
“We love it,” said Amon-Ra St. Brown. “We’re rocking it, we feel like we have a good offense, players everywhere that can go, plays on fourth down. We feel like we can get it on every fourth down. Dan has instilled that in us since we’ve been there … and we feel like we can get it every time.”
Head coach Dan Campbell looks on prior to the game against the Cleveland Browns at Ford Field on September 28, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan. (Mike Mulholland/Getty Images)
Gibbs’ answer was much simpler.
“We want more points,” he said.
One thing that lions definitely do is lean on each other. Hutchinson and Gibbs teamed up with Rocket Mortgage on Radio Row to spread the word about being a good neighbor, comparing home ownership to the locker room.
“Be dependable. Always depend on that one person who will be there, no matter what, to help you. Like, you need your packages picked up. They will help you,” Gibbs said.
Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) celebrates his touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half of an NFL football game, Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
“That’s really what Rocket is all about,” Hutchinson added. “And their culture, they preach being a good neighbor and being kind and spreading kindness. The biggest thing is reliability when I think about teammates and neighbors. “I think the gravity of the situation changes in the game, a little higher pressure, but it’s a similar flair for reliability.”
When asked if anything is missing to get over the hump, Penei Sewell echoed Hutchinson’s teammates about having the right pieces.
“Nothing comes to mind,” Sewell admitted.
“But I’ll tell you what,” Hutchinson added, “when we all get back to OTAs, we all know what’s at stake. We all know how much has been put into this team and the talent that we have. So it’s going to keep sharpening irons, competing in practice, competing in games and really becoming the best version of ourselves.”
