The NFL might have strategically placed the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions in a matchup to start the 2023 NFL regular season.
Jerry Jacobs, a Lions cornerback, believes he knows why that’s the case, and expressed it recently while also issuing a warning to the defending Super Bowl champions.
“It’s time to show what Detroit is made of,” Jacobs said in an appearance on Sirius XM’s NFL Rewind, as transcribed by Fan Nation’s All Lions on July 3. “When we knew we were playing them in the season opener, (Lions head coach) Dan Campbell came in and said, ‘They want us to lose, so what are we going to do?’ … We almost went to the playoffs and they just won the Super Bowl, so they’re trying to see if we’re really like that.
“We’re ready, I know we’re ready. Every time I hear we’re playing the season opener against the Super Bowl team, we’re ready to go out there and play ball and shock the world.”
Jacobs isn’t the first Lions player that is looking forward to the Week 1 matchup against the defending Super Bowl champions. Cornerback C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who faced the Chiefs as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII in February, also spoke out about the Chiefs-Lions season opener on May 12.
“It’s gonna hurt to see them come out, Super Bowl champs and I just faced them,” Gardner-Johnson admitted to Kay Adams on FanDuel TV’s “Up & Adams”.
“I think I’m going to have to channel my emotions, so I can go out and play a good game,” Gardner-Johnson continued. The guys on the team won’t understand the magnitude of how I feel, because they weren’t there with me. But, I’m still gonna bring the same intensity. I’ve got a chip on my shoulder, I want to beat them. I kind of want to beat them. I want to spoil the homecoming.”
“I got a chip on my shoulder.” – @CGJXXIII
📺: @FanDuelTV | @heykayadams
NFL Blames Slipping in Super Bowl on Chiefs & Eagles: Rumor
Eagles star defender Brandon Graham told JAKIB Sports on June 20 that he believes Kansas City’s offensive line was “blessed” by poor field conditions during Super Bowl LVII, which took place at State Farm Stadium in Arizona, which is home to the Cardinals.
But Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio revealed that behind closed doors, the NFL is blaming the slipping that took place on the field during the Super Bowl on the players.
“The NFL has an unofficial excuse for the situation, one that has been communicated when owners ask about it. Per a league source, the league blames the players for not wearing the right shoes,” Florio wrote on July 3.
The problem that exists with the NFL blaming the players for the slipping is that both teams switched cleats during the game, which should have helped if the problem was with their cleats.
But it didn’t.
Twitter Reacts to Jerry Jacobs’ Warning to Chiefs
Twitter users reacted to Jerry Jacobs’ warning to the Chiefs on July 3.
“It wouldn’t be a shock. For the umteenth time it’s the KC Chiefs! EVERYBODY plays with their A game against them,” one Twitter user wrote. “They have been the team everybody wants to prove something to since the mahomes era.”
“(The Lions) already shocked the world…. They got a national TV game and it’s not Thanksgiving,” another user wrote.
Lions Player Issues Warning to Chiefs Ahead of 2023 Season Opener