In the final two games of the regular season, the Detroit Lions have a chance to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC. A victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Monday would give the Lions the top seed in the playoffs, a first-round bye, and home-field advantage on their run to the Super Bowl, provided the Minnesota Vikings lose on Sunday. Regardless of how Minnesota’s game against Green Bay turns out, Detroit must win on Monday. Regardless of Detroit’s performance, the Vikings’ victory will determine the division and top seed in Week 18.
The result of Monday’s game would not matter in determining the No. 1 seed if the Vikings prevailed. Detroit could win the North in Week 18 by virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker if they defeat the Vikings a second time, even if the Lions lose and the Vikings win. Coach Dan Campbell, however, is not taking anything for granted and intends to give it his all in San Francisco for the NFC Championship rematch.
“I’ll simplify things for everyone so that the detractors can all come out and launch an offensive. However, you won’t have to argue with them any more,” Campbell stated. “We are playing this game and giving it everything we have, regardless of how it looks or where it is. Or who is this? Who is that? On the west coast, we intend to win this game.
The Lions players who were on the squad the previous season will have even more motivation because they celebrated their comeback to secure a Super Bowl berth as they left the pitch in defeat alongside the 49ers. Detroit will therefore be more motivated to get revenge for the defeat from the previous year. The Lions are nevertheless keen to get revenge even though the stakes are lower than they were in their meeting last year.
Every time we lose, the fear of losing will make you want to win again, especially given where you were at the time. Therefore, that will always add a certain amount of motivation to it,” Campbell stated. However, this is also where we are in the season, dude. We are aware of where we stand in the NFC and the division, and we know we need another victory. Therefore, I believe it to be comprehensive. Above all, the next one is the one that lies ahead of us.
Graham Glasgow, a left guard who missed Sunday’s game against the Bears, should be back in play this week, according to Campbell. The decision to waive second-year safety Brandon Joseph, who was arrested by police over the weekend on suspicion of operating under the influence, was another topic of discussion with the fourth-year coach. Campbell clarified that the incident and the roster’s needs at the time were two of the many variables that led to the decision. It was, in my opinion, the ideal storm. Both were somewhat involved,” Campbell clarified. “We felt that we had to make that move because of the perfect storm of circumstances leading up to that final game.”