Getty Dan Campbell looks on during a Colts vs. Lions preseason game in 2021.
During the 2021 season, the Detroit Lions were the NFL’s kings of the road, traveling out west routinely. This year, though, the team will see that change dramatically.
If being at or near home sweet home can help a team, Detroit’s slated to get plenty of opportunities to feel comfortable. This year, the Lions aren’t going to be straying far from the midwest whatsoever.
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Before the schedule comes out for a new year, ESPN’s Adam Schefter took a revealing look at how things are going to stack up for teams in the future in terms of travel. The Lions catch a lucky break in a big way with their travel for this coming season, with only 8,348 yards and only 8 total timezones changed. The information Schefter revealed was first shared by Bookies.com in a piece by Bill Speros.
With the full NFL schedule being released Thursday night, here is a look at the teams that will travel the most miles and the most time zones this season, via @billsperos.
The Steelers will travel the fewest miles and not leave the eastern time zone all season.
The Lions traveled out west multiple times in 2021, and were one of the most battle-tested teams in terms of travel. That’s not an excuse for a 3-13-1 record, but only serves to point out that they were constantly on the move and their bodies had to deal with the reality of multiple timezone changes.
During this season, Detroit will have this slight advantage. Will it matter to them in the end? That remains to be seen, but at the very least, it represents food news for the Lions.
Lions Schedule Will Be Revealed Soon
Detroit will find out what teams they will be playing and when this coming week on Thursday, May 12. The schedule will be unveiled in primetime, and will provide a peek at what teams and times the Lions will play next season in 2022. Looking ahead a bit to the schedule, the Lions could be expected to not play in too many primetime games in 2022 given the fact they are a team that has struggled. Come 2023, the team could see more primetime dates as they improve their roster and become a team that is more in demand to watch, especially after Hard Knocks comes to town this August.
This year, it might be wise to expect Detroit’s schedule to feature only two or three total national or primetime games. One will likely be Thanksgiving, where the Lions are always featured nationally. Detroit could also land on Monday Night Football, as they played there in 2021 early in the season in Green Bay and have been featured on the telecast even throughout their struggle years.
Lions’ 2022 Schedule Outlook
As for what that schedule will look like, Detroit will play a last place schedule next season by virtue of the way they finished 2021, which means tangling with the last place teams in divisions. Beyond that, the team plays the AFC and NFC East divisions on the schedule for 2022, which Burke also pointed out in a tweet.
@Barry45562166 Easts. Eagles/WFT/Bills/Dolphins at home; Cowboys/Giants/Jets/Patriots on the road.
This would mean that the Lions would play the likes of Dallas, Washington, Philadelphia and the New York Giants while tangling with Miami, the New York Jets, New England and Buffalo in their AFC crossovers. Add it all up and it seems like another tough schedule for the Lions overall next year once things get finalized soon.
At the very least, the Lions won’t have to be too big of road warriors this year. That’s the good news for the team.
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