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The Detroit Lions are pushing to the finish line of the 2021 season, and naturally, that means folks can start to dream about how the team may be improved during the offseason.
After that, though, most folks want to get an early idea of who the Lions will be playing in the new year. The dismal way the team has played most of 2021 has given a good idea of that, with the Lions expected to tangle with a last place schedule in 2022.
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Following Week 16’s slate of games, the Lions locked in home games against Seattle and Jacksonville and also a road date with Carolina. Chris Burke of The Athletic was piecing together some breadcrumbs about how the Lions schedule for next year could shake out and pointed out some of the early themes in terms of who Detroit will play.
Obviously for Detroit, there’s been little to no advantage playing a last-place schedule in the past, but this coming year, they will at least have the advantages of playing other struggling teams who are attempting to iron things out on their end as well. To that end, it will be a good test to see where Detroit’s rebuild is currently trending.
Lions’ 2022 Schedule Outlook
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.
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 come next April.
Early Lions’ 2022 Offseason Primer
No matter who the team plays, the Lions will be looking forward to this coming offseason in terms of roster improvement. Thoughts of that will start with the NFL draft, where Detroit will figure to have a high pick to use as the big way to build their roster. If the Lions manage to secure a top two selection in the draft as most will hope they can do, there’s a multitude of ways they could elect to go with the pick given the unique needs of the roster. The team’s defense needs playmakers up front to rush the passer along the defensive line, and could also need depth on the back end at cornerback. Offensively, the Lions have a major need for a big time pass catching wideout to help their down field attack on offense. As always, quarterback is going to be a position to watch near the top of the draft, especially considering some of the struggles of Jared Goff with the Lions in 2021.
The good news for Detroit? They also have the first-round pick of the Los Angeles Rams by virtue of the Matthew Stafford trade for this year and next year, and figure to gain multiple compensatory selections for 2022 so some serious building can occur for the roster no matter where Detroit’s selection comes. Obviously, there is no shortage of needs for the team to ponder with all of their selections next year.
In terms of free agency, the Lions will have around $40 million to spend. That will the Lions need to do with that money? For starters, the team will have to think about adding some offensive weapons to the mix. Detroit’s wideout group has lagged behind because of a lack of depth most of all in 2021, so making sure a top-flight wideout comes into the mix via trade or signing to help Goff might be the top priority for the team. From there, the Lions need to think about bolstering the defense. Help could be needed up front and on the back end and potentially at linebacker as well.
In his first offseason, Lions general manager Brad Holmes shied away from big deals, focusing instead on smaller deals to help supplement his roster. Several of those deals have panned out, from names like Kalif Raymond to Charles Harris. The same approach could be expected this offseason, so the Lions might make one bigger splash while choosing to focus on multiple other smaller splashes to help supplement things.
Naturally, lots of improvement will have to happen before the team lines up to play the opposition.
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