The Detroit Lions remain one of the best teams in the NFL, one year removed from their shocking Divisional Round exit against the Washington Commanders. Despite that disappointing postseason run, the team is now looking to get and stay healthy on defense in addition to remaining the best offense in the NFL.
They're still contenders, but they have to show they have postseason resilience in order to remain in that conversation - especially against an NFC juggernaut like the Philadelphia Eagles, who just won the Super Bowl in emphatic fashion against the Kansas City Chiefs.
So, it would've been perfect to see the Lions face the Eagles first thing in the season - during the Thursday Night Football 2025 kickoff. It'd be a road game, and that's something we already know is on Detroit's schedule for this season.
However, the NFL clearly felt like a rivalrly game between the Eagles and Dallas Cowboys would make for better television, so that is going to be the opening game for the 2025 season.
In a way, this snub is a good thing for Detroit.
Lions snub for season opener is a good thing
While it would've been great to see the Lions open their year up and recreate a potential preview of the NFC Championship Game against the Eagles, it's a good thing that they'll have a bit less pressure to trounce their opponent in Week 1. The team, while still great, is coming off that embarassing playoff exit, so maybe the less pressure, the better.
That's especially the case since they're also running an offense and defense with two new coordinators - John Morton as the OC, and Kelvin Sheppard running the defensive unit. Ben Johnson, the former OC who is now the head coach of the Chicago Bears, and Aaron Glenn, who went from the Lions DC to the New York Jets HC, left Detroit with some pretty big shoes to fill.
Now, instead of showcasing Morton and Sheppard for the very first time on primetime in Week 1, they'll likely be relegated to a Sunday game slot. Hopefully, it's a game against the Bears, as that'd make for great rival fodder between the two NFC North teams and as Johnson makes his head coaching debut against his former boss, Dan Campbell.
There are clearly many iterations of the Lions' Week 1 matchup that'll still make for a great game. It's for the best that the league felt the Cowboys earned the right to be embarrassed on primetime by the Eagles.
