Getty Detroit Lions defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson fired a clear message to the rest of the NFL after Week 18.
The Detroit Lions raised their first division title banner in 30 years prior to facing the Minnesota Vikings on January 7. But according to Lions defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson, that’s just one of three pennants the team will place in the Ford Field rafters this year.
“We got two more banners to hang, if you know what that means,” Garner-Johnson told reporters after the Lions beat the Vikings, 30-20.
“Two more banners, and I’m not falling short on that. We’re not falling short, and I’ll be damned if that happens.
“We worked too hard. Like coach Dan says, we’re seasoned for this. We’re perfectly scarred for this.”
The Lions haven’t won a playoff game in 32 years. For that reason, some NFL pundits aren’t taking the team too seriously this postseason.
But there are plenty of reasons to support Gardner-Johnson’s claim that the Lions are about to go on a playoff run.
Lions Ready for a Super Bowl Run?
On their way to just their second 12-win campaign in franchise history this season, the Lions matched marks they haven’t reached in decades.
The Lions finished fifth in points scored and third in yards this season, recording their second straight season of being ranked in the top 5 of both categories. Before 2023, Detroit hadn’t accomplished that feat in back-to-back campaigns since 1953-54.
With 461 points, the Lions scored their most points in a season since 2011. They also had their best point differential, plus-66, since that year.
After their Week 9 bye, the Lions scored at least 30 points in six of their last nine games. They were 6-0 in those contests.
At home, where the Lions will host the Los Angeles Rams in an NFC Wild Card matchup on January 14, Detroit went 6-2 and averaged 30.5 points per game.
The Lions won their first division title since 1993 and 12 contests for the first time since 1991. If not for a controversial penalty on the 2-point attempt near the end of the fourth quarter against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17, the Lions could have won 13 games for the first time in their 94-year history.
“We’re ready,” quarterback Jared Goff said about the postseason following Week 18. “It just feels like we’ve been waiting for quite some time to get these opportunities.
“They’re here now. Ford Field will be rocking, and it’ll be fun.”
C.J. Gardner-Johnson Ready for Playoffs After Week 18 Return
Detroit’s strength is on offense, but the team’s defense appears ready for the postseason too.
In Week 18, both Gardner-Johnson and defensive tackle Alim McNeill returned from injured reserve.
Gardner-Johnson made a significant impact in his return. He posted 1 pass defense and an interception while playing 52 defensive snaps.
“When I hit that tight end [Johnny Mundt], I was folding him across the middle, that’s when I felt like myself,” Gardner-Johnson told reporters. “I felt good. As the game got on, getting into the flow with the safeties, we gonna be a f****** problem.”
97.1 The Ticket’s Will Burchfield reported that Gardner-Johnson returned in roughly three months from a pectoral tear by rehabbing more than 12 hours per day with his personal trainer.
When Gardner-Johnson suffered his injury in Week 2, he originally faced a six-month return timeline.
While the pectoral injury sidelined him, safety Ifeatu Melifonwu and cornerback Kindle Vildor emerged as playmakers for the Lions defense. Melifonwu played particularly well, recording an interception in both Weeks 16 and 17.
Now with Gardner-Johnson back too, all the pieces are in place for the Lions secondary to support the team’s offense in the postseason.