Now that 2007 is officially behind us, it is time to start looking ahead to what 2008 has in store for the Lions. As usual, the next four or so months will be spent worrying about free agency, the draft, and what poor decisions Matt Millen will make, but after that it is all about the 2008 season. Can the Lions finally break the .500 mark and complete this long, drawn out turn around?
Since looking ahead to next season's schedule never can be done too early, let's do that right now. Dates and times and that sort of thing aren't out yet, but we do know who the Lions will be playing at home and on the road. With that being said, here is the '08 home schedule:
vs. Chicago
vs. Green Bay
vs. Minnesota
vs. New Orleans
vs. Tampa Bay
vs. Jacksonville
vs. Tennessee
vs. Washington
Not counting the games against NFC North teams, the Lions welcome four playoff teams to Ford Field. Under the same criteria, the only team that will travel to Detroit without making the postseason is New Orleans, who faced a tough road to the playoffs after a rough start to this past season. Plus, even though they didn't make the playoffs, the Saints still managed to go 7-9, which isn't horrible at all.
Here is the away schedule:
at Chicago
at Green Bay
at Minnesota
at Atlanta
at Carolina
at Houston
at Indianapolis
at San Francisco
The away slate isn't nearly as tough as the home one is, but then again, any road game is a tough one for the Lions. Looking outside of the NFC North games once again, I'm really not looking forward to when the Lions play at Indianapolis. The Colts rarely lose at home, and I'm thinking that will stay true when the Lions head to Indy. The only thing that I'm looking forward to with this game is getting to see the Colts' new stadium, which opens this year.
All in all, I would say that the 2008 schedule is another tough one. Sure, there are some teams on there that had less than stellar seasons, but given the fact that there are 6 playoff teams included and a few other good ones, I'd say that getting to .500 won't come easy by any means.