The Detroit Lions look like they are rebuilding once again, and traded away one of the faces of their franchise this offseason. All that could add up to another dim season in terms of the bright lights of primetime television.
Last season, the Lions had only a pair of primetime games, with their Thanksgiving Day game against the Houston Texans on national television and their late-season afternoon tilt against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers getting NFL Network treatment. This season, things could only get worse for the Lions in terms of national representation.
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Detroit figures to have just one game that could have any hint of national appeal, and it’s their contest against the Los Angles Rams. That’s something which The Athletic’s Chris Burke noted, while wondering if the team will get any other games on the docket minus that one.
Over/under for Lions prime-time games in 2021: 0.5
(Or, rephrased: Will the Lions-Rams game be on national TV?)
The reasoning for the battle against the Rams potentially being a national television favorite? The Lions and Rams swapped quarterbacks, Detroit hired Brad Holmes and the team has seen a significant amount of roster turnover, with other former Rams players, front office members and a few coaches joining him in the Motor City.
Other than that game, the Lions will get on national television on Thanksgiving, but that figures to be about it in 2021, as many anticipate Detroit’s product to be bad next season.
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Lions Will Learn 2021 NFL Schedule May 12
Like the rest of the league, the Lions are slated to get their NFL schedule on Wednesday, May 12. The league will wait until a full week has passed since the finish of the 2021 NFL Draft in order to reveal that schedule to the masses. In the past, the schedule reveal has been a big event, with primetime coverage and plenty of buildup as the league reveals where everybody will be playing next season.
Some of the dates to watch for include the season opener, the bye week for the team, Thanksgiving Day and whether or not the Lions can actually land a primetime game at all.
Lions 2021 Schedule Looks Difficult
As for Detroit’s schedule next season, there will be several tough games. In spit of the fact that the Lions finished in last place during 2020, their schedule looks pretty treacherous. The AFC North is loaded and features three high-rising teams in the Browns, Steelers and Ravens to go with a team that could have a bright future in the Bengals. Other that that, the Lions will tangle with the NFC West, which is another stacked division. Obviously, it will be tough to quantify how difficult Detroit’s schedule might be without knowing more about when and where the games are played the details of which will come next month. Still, it’s tough not to think about the daunting nature of the battles that loom for Detroit.
When the time comes later on this year, not many of those games could figure to be given a national primetime television audience.
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Lone Game Speculated as Potential 2021 Prime Time Tilt for Lions