...and now for something completely different.

So this post is going to be a little different. I'm not going to spend time bitching about the Steelers losing because hey, shit happens, and complaining about a loss to the defending champs when you're still considered one of the best teams in the league is some entitled-ass-Yankee-fan level bullshit. No, instead I'm going to talk about my second love in the NFL: The Detroit Lions.

I know, that's Neil's gig, (and in no way whatsoever will anything I do compare to his work) but I can't help getting excited over what seems like a real turnaround after so much pain and misery. But first, some backstory.

One of my favorite holidays has always been Thanksgiving. Nothing says America like a day devoted to overeating, football, and the ever present powder keg of having your entire extended family under the same roof. Growing up, our thing was always to go to my grandparents' house for dinner and a big part of that for me was watching the Lions playing the 12:30 game. Sitting in the living room slowly filling with the aroma of turkey and fixings while watching Barry Sanders make fools look silly was what giving thanks was all about, the hell with that Pilgrim and Indians shit. In fact one of my prouder moments was tracking down a #20 throwback jersey in an outlet store an hour away from my house.

It's no secret they've hit some hard times as of late, but for the first time in decades there's reason for hope on the horizon. Stafford's a franchise QB as long as he can keep from being killed by the o-line. Megatron's leading a pretty good receiving corps. I thought Jahvid Best was dead after lawn darting himself in college, but he's been lighting it up so far. Plus they managed to pick up my boy Stefan Logan after he got cut by the Steelers because our OC is a retard who couldn't figure out what to do with a guy who runs really fast. There's still more work to be done, but with the Vikes self destructing at record pace, the Packers setting records for injuries, and the Bears having Jay Cutler at QB, a 7-9 record might just have a team in the running for a division title. With a little luck (lol), the Lions could be in that position sooner than people realize.

The irony is one of the 2-3 games left on the schedule that doesn't look like Detroit has much of a chance would be the New England game on Thanksgiving. That would mean that once again the national TV audience would get the impression of "same old Lions"....but some of us know better.