Lions 1 year after firing Bob Quinn and Matt Patricia: Still waiting for the sun to come out

Last year at this time, the Detroit Lions had just fired GM Bob Quinn and head coach Matt Patricia after a humiliating loss on Thanksgiving. Everyone was wondering where the Lions and new owner Sheila Ford Hamp would go, but the overall tone was one of relief, of the sun beginning to rise after a very dark time.

“The sun will come out tomorrow”

One year later, the Lions are the NFL’s worst team. In a season with some really bad rosters around the league, no one has been worse than Detroit. Between the meager talent in too many spots on the roster and the foibles and growing pains of a rookie head coach, the Lions remain winless. They haven’t won a game in almost a full calendar year, with the last win coming in interim head coach Darrell Bevell’s debut in Week 13 a year ago. It’s now Week 13 again and the Lions are going to need a lot of breaks to pull off an upset home win over the Vikings on Sunday.

“Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there will be sun”

So far, the sun has not risen. It hasn’t gotten any darker, but the new dawn everyone wanted has yet to crack the sky. Lions fans keep looking to the east with increasingly anxious eyes, but it’s becoming harder by the week to invest in sunglasses that might never be required.

“So you gotta hang on ’til tomorrow, come what may”

Optimism is in short supply, but it is something that many Lions fans desperately cling to. Avoiding the 0-17 darkness was a thin ray of light. Earning the No. 1 overall pick and holding another, improving-by-the-week first round selection in what is shaping up to be a very good draft class, is enough to raise the sunken spirits.

The last year has not gone as well as hoped. While most everyone understood and expected that the rebuild wouldn’t happen overnight, few thought it would take so long to see any positive results. Fans and media are (rightly) tired of moral victories, of covering the spread but straight-up not having a good time.

“I love ya tomorrow, you’re always a day away”