Discussion: Was the Detroit Lions’ win over the Raiders enough?

Last week, the Detroit Lions got absolutley embarrased by the Baltimore Ravens, and it shook many Lions fans to their core. A team that had looked like a legit Super Bowl contender got their doors blown off on a day that had no redeemable qualities. Not one.

Detroit got a chance to win back fans on Monday night, facing a far inferior Las Vegas Raiders team in front of a rowdy home audience.

The final score may not have been what some Lions fans wanted. A 26-14 score doesn’t have the looks of a blowout, exactly. And the Raiders may have been a 3-4 team, but they certainly didn’t ever look like a team capable of .500 play this year.

So Today’s Question of the Day is:

Was that win over the Raiders enough to make you feel better about the team?

My answer: Absolutely, yes. Screw the final score. This was an absolutely dominant performance by the Lions. The Lions outgained the Raiders 486 to 157, averaging 6.0 yards per play to the Raiders’ 3.5. who made a firm statement that they are far superior than the Raiders or really any of the mediocre teams in the NFL. Right now, the Lions’ lone two losses are against a 5-2 Seahawks team and a 6-2 Ravens team. They are straight running over the NFL’s middle class. The 4-4 Falcons got downed by 14, as did the 2-5 Packers, and the 3-4 Buccaneers.

Were the Lions perfect? Obviously not. But were any of their flaws on Monday night truly concerning? The three turnovers included just the third fumble of Josh Reynolds’ career, a Craig Reynolds fumble that was almost certainly not a fumble, and a Jared Goff interception that you know he’ll never make again. The red zone struggles were frustrating, but the return of David Montgomery and the rest of their injured offensive line should help.

Meanwhile, the Lions proved they can still run for 200+ yards with a bunch of backups on the offensive front. Aaron Glenn showed a different side of himself, sending blitz after blitz—and racking up six sacks in the process. And for a large majority of the game, the Lions left Jerry Jacobs and Cameron Sutton on an island against Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers and they were perfectly fine.

Do the Lions jump right back into Super Bowl contender after a game like this? No, probably not. This was the Raiders, after all. But that’s exactly the kind of bounce-back game I was hoping for, and now the Lions are set up very nicely with a favorable schedule ahead and a week to get healthy.

How are you feeling about the Lions after this win over the Raiders? Scroll down to the comment section and let us know.