Thursday open thread: Which Lions player is the national media most wrong about?

We can be honest here: the Detroit Lions are not the team that produces the biggest headlines. When national media outlets and Twitter analysts talk about the NFL, attention typically gravitates towards those with huge brands in big markets or teams that have found recent postseason success with promising trajectories.

That is not to say that the Lions never hit the public eye, however, and Hard Knocks will certainly help with that. When there are stories to be told, usually Jared Goff has been the center of many not-so-favorable pieces, and younger players like Amon-Ra St. Brown, Penei Sewell, and Aidan Hutchinson are the ones people like to dream on. Still, it is hard for folks covering the league as a whole to get everything right, and often the narratives stray from reality.

Today’s Question of the Day is:

Which Lions player is the national media most wrong about?

My answer: It absolutely feels like the media is way too critical of Goff, which feels appropriate given how constantly underrated Matthew Stafford was during his time in Detroit. Sure, local fans are somewhat down on the current starting quarterback as well, but those who followed closely last season saw how Goff improved as the year went on, especially after the change in play-caller. While he is (and always will be) far from elite, the general public is lower on Goff than it should be.

Given the current state of the roster, it is hard to overrate too many players, but one has to wonder how long the shine will last on T.J. Hockenson. The fourth-year tight end is still a valuable player who deserves an extension, but most local fans have recalibrated their expectations for what exactly he should be. Those who are not in the Lions’ sphere might still cling on to his eighth-overall draft capital, but as he reaches the end of his rookie contract, it could bring about a change in his reputation nationally.

Your turn.