Wednesday open thread: How many more games will the Lions win in 2022?

The Detroit Lions are heading in the wrong direction following a promising start to the season. An explosive offense was enough to carry a hampered defense until a hampered defense turned to a nonexistent one. Then, the offense joined the defense in going nonexistent when they traveled to New England for the team’s most embarrassing loss in a long time.

Things aren’t headed in the right direction and the Lions face a brutal stretch in their schedule coming up.

Question of the day: How many more games will the Lions win in 2022?

My answer: I give them three, maybe four.

I highlighted last week that the Lions were heading into a brutal stretch of their schedule the next few weeks, regardless of how good (or bad) the team is.

A sorry pounding in Foxborough at the hands of a rookie quarterback doesn’t have me feeling any better. Typically I’d evaluate the remainder of the schedule in the form of teams the Lions should win, shouldn’t win, and toss-ups. However, given the current level of play, nothing falls into the first category, so it’s can-win and can’t-win.

Here’s how I see things playing out:

Can’t win:

• Week 7 vs. Dallas
• Week 8 vs. Miami
• Week 13 (Thanksgiving) vs. Bills

Can win:

• Week 9 vs. Packers
• Week 10 vs. Bears
• Week 11 vs. Giants
• Week 13 vs. Jaguars
• Week 14 vs. Vikings
• Week 15 vs. Jets
• Week 16 vs. Panthers
• Week 17 vs. Bears
• Week 18 vs. Packers

That’s a lot of winnable games against middle-of-the-pack teams, largely helped by the fact that the NFC North is one of the worst divisions in football so far. I expect the Lions to win at least one game each against the Bears and Packers. Between their second Bears matchup and the Panthers, the Lions should slip in another win. I could see them pulling off an upset against one of the Jets, Giants, or Jaguars, as they’re all solid teams but have their holes. That leaves them with three, maybe four wins, leaving them staring down 4-13 or 5-12 to finish the season. Not promising, but not surprising, because this looks like a four to five-win team right now.

Am I a Debbie downer? Can the Lions pull off a late-season rebound like they did in 2021? Vote in the poll below and let us know your thoughts.