The story of the 2016 Detroit Lions was simple: As goes Matthew Stafford, so goes the team. When Stafford was playing well, the Detroit Lions could (and did) beat anyone. When he played poorly—especially down the stretch—the Lions faltered and looked like an average team at best. Never was it more clear that this was Stafford’s team than last year.
However, it has been a completely different story through four weeks of the 2017 season. The Lions have won games without getting into a shootout. They’ve won two games this year getting 17 points or fewer out of their offense.