Dan Campbell returns for his sixth season as head coach of the Detroit Lions. Last year, the Lions finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs, which, by their standards, was a bad season. Drew Petzing comes over from the Cardinals organization to take over as offensive coordinator. Jared Goff returns at quarterback with plenty of weapons. The Lions will miss the 1-2 punch of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, as Montgomery is now with the Texans. The Lions signed Isiah Pacheco, but he will have to wait a few weeks because of an MCL injury. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jameson Williams, and Sam LaPorta return as top pass catchers from a year ago, along with Isaac TeSlaa. Penei Sewell, Christian Mahogany, and Tate Ratledge return as starters on the offensive line. Detroit added Larry Borom and Juice Scruggs from the Texans to bolster the offensive line. Rookie first-round pick Blake Miller will have an opportunity to make an immediate impact. Cade Mays comes over from the Panthers and was scheduled to be a starter but will miss the first half of the season with a wrist injury.

Kelvin Sheppard returns for his second season as defensive coordinator. Aidan Hutchinson, Tyleik Williams, Alim McNeill, Derrick Barnes, and Jack Campbell return on the front seven. Detroit is eager to see D.J. Wonnum in action. D.J. Reed and Thomas Harper return to the secondary. Terrion Arnold was released during the offseason, while Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph begin the season on the PUP list. Lions fans are excited to see veteran Chuck Clark, who should have a significant early role in the secondary.  The Lions also added Roger McCreary to help reinforce the cornerback room. The Lions defense returns eight of its top eleven tacklers from last year and hopes to avoid the kind of secondary injury that, at one point, left every starter on the sidelines together.

Dave Fipp returns for his sixth season as special teams coordinator. Jake Bates returns as placekicker along with punter Jack Fox. The Lions will rely heavily on Jacob Saylors as their primary return man. The Lions have the offensive firepower and the gambling attitude from their head coach to be unpredictable, which makes them dangerous. The playoffs should be back on the table, provided the defense can stay healthy.