Tuesday open thread: Who should be the Detroit Lions’ Week 1 opponent?

Normally, this would be the time of year in which the NFL releases their schedule for the upcoming season. A mid-April release typically gets a full night of coverage to drum up excitement.

However, early reports are that the schedule release will be pushed back to mid-May this year. It’s unclear whether this is the result of COVID, the expansion to a 17-game schedule or if this is simply going to be the new normal going forward.

Either way, it’s nearly time to start thinking about the Detroit Lions’ upcoming schedule. We already know the home and away splits of all 17 games, but sometimes the order of the games is just as important. It’s always better to head to Lambeau in September than in December.

What may be most intriguing for Lions fans, however, is their Week 1 opponent. How will the Dan Campbell/Brad Holmes era start in Detroit? It’s not hard to remember how Matt Patricia’s reign kicked off with a telling blowout at the hands of the New York Jets on national television.

So today’s Question of the Day is:

Who do you want the Lions to open the 2021 season against?

My answer: Home against the Eagles.

Let’s just cross our fingers and hope that by Week 1, the Lions will be able to have fans in the stands again. As of now, the Eagles game looks like the most winnable home game on the schedule to help kick off the Campbell era in a positive way. I’m fully aware the Jets were also the easiest-looking opponent back in 2018, but screw the past. This is a new era of Lions football.

The Eagles are in just as much of a rebuild as the Lions, but they may be further behind given that they’re still trying to figure out their quarterback situation.

Even if the Lions don’t win the game, it won’t be a complete disaster, because unlike 2018, expectations are very low this year. But pull off a convincing win, and it could go a long way in building confidence both in the players and the fans.

Your turn.