Lions Still Have Big Hill to Climb in NFC North

Detroit is a better football team than in 2019, but did Lions do enough to catch the Vikings and Packers?

One of the biggest critiques of the Lions' roster is that the organization simply made a series of lateral moves to a roster that finished 2019 with only three victories. 

Gone are solid contributors, including Graham Glasgow, Damon Harrison, A'Shawn Robinson, Devon Kennard and Darius Slay. 

And in are Jamie Collins, Danny Shelton, Desmond Trufant and Nick Williams. Are they enough to improve one of the league's worst defenses? 

Yes, Detroit likely has drafted a cornerback in Jeff Okudah that will eventually become a real cornerstone of the defense, but it is not feasible to levy that kind of pressure on Okudah during his rookie season. 

In order for Detroit to take steps forward, it starts in the division. 

The Lions have not stood atop the division at the end of the season since the 1993 campaign.

NFL.com reporter Cynthia Frelund used an analytics tool to predict the win totals for the NFC North this upcoming season.

The Vikings are projected to finish with the most victories in the division with nine, followed by the Packers with 8.8, the Bears with 7.9 and the Lions with just six. 

Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus explained why he believes the Vikings are the most improved team in the division in his latest report. 

"From an instant reaction standpoint, it looks like they did a pretty good job of reloading in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Justin Jefferson figures to play a large role early next to Adam Thielen

 

after torching college football last season for over 1,500 receiving yards and 18 receiving touchdowns. The Vikings also attacked their need at cornerback early and well with Jeff Gladney and Cameron Dantzler, two players who should see significant playing time. The other big area of need, offensive line, was addressed with Ezra Cleveland at solid value in the back end of Round 2 — a potential starter as a rookie at either tackle or guard. That’s before you even get to the Vikings' sea of Day 3 picks, which included good value with players such as Troy Dye and Kenny Willekes. The Vikings’ roster is certainly in better shape now than it was before the draft."

Detroit's climb to the top of the division is certainly going to be much more challenging than the hill built at its practice facility. 

It's going to be more like Mount Greylock!

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