We now know who the Detroit Lions will face in the Divisional round of the NFL Playoffs. They will take on Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders at home on Saturday, January 18th at 8:00 PM on Fox.
There's no doubt there was some happiness that the Lions didn't have to face the Packers, Rams, or Vikings in this game. Everyone is sick of playing the same teams over and over again and it's time for a new story. The only thing is that this is not really that new of story for the Lions. This is an old one that is usually a horror story for them.
The Lions have played the Commanders in the playoffs three times. In the Wild Card round in 1982, In the NFC Championship game in 1991, and in the Wild Card round in 1999. They lost all three games. They lost all three games by a large margin as well.
It's really the 1991 game that was the scariest because that 1991 Lions team, much like today's team, was having the franchise's best season ever at the time and looked like a team that could win it all, coming off a divisional win over the Cowboys.
Instead, they walked into a buzzsaw and the Commanders beat them 41-10 en route to a Super Bowl win for Washington a couple of weeks later. The Lions never got back to the NFC Championship game until last season.
Things are different this time. The Lions aren't just a good team, they're a great team. They not only beat the regular season record that 1991 team set for wins, but they shattered it by adding three more. They also get the pleasure of playing this game at home.
That makes a gigantic difference for multiple reasons. The first is that Lions fans have made Ford Field a difficult place to play in recent years. The other is that the Commanders haven't won at Ford Field since 2008. They've lost the last five in a row.
Make no mistake, this is not going to be an easy game for the Lions. They aren't going to easily dominate this young team. This is a 12-win team, and they have the one thing the Lions have struggled the most with in recent years: a mobile quarterback. Daniels ran for 891 yards this season.
In a season that's been all about passing tests, here is another one for the Lions to try to pass. This one gets them a chance to right some wrongs in the NFC Championship game.
