Golden Tate: The Lions need to improve to advance in playoffs

The Detroit Lions haven’t won a playoff game since 1991 and wide receiver Golden Tate believes the losing streak will continue against the Dallas Cowboys if the team doesn’t improve its play.

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Right now, the Detroit Lions are trying to get it together after a loss to the Green Bay Packers heading into the post season. If they’re going to win their first playoff game since 1991, they’re going to have to bounce back. Wide receiver Golden Tate, acquired in the offseason from the Seattle Seahawks, voiced these concerns to the media on Tuesday ahead of Sunday’s wild-card showdown with the Dallas Cowboys.

“If we play the way we have the last few weeks, this playoff run will be short-lived,” Tate said per the Detroit Free Press. “So we’ve got to make sure we’re on our game. We’ve got some guys in here that know what it’s like to be a champion and know what it takes to go deep into the playoffs.”

Tate finished the season with career highs in receptions and yards, hauling in 99 catches for 1,331 yards as the team’s leading receiver. As a member of last year’s Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, Tate understands how difficult it is to win in January. The road may be tougher for the Lions this year, who enter the playoffs as the NFC’s sixth-seed and must win three road games to advance to the Super Bowl.

In their past three games, the Lions have scored 16, 20, and 20 points, finishing the season ranked 22nd in scoring. With weapons like Reggie Bush and Calvin Johnson, many expected Detroit to light up scoreboards. But the team they face Sunday, the Cowboys, are the ones putting up the points. During a four-game win streak in December, the Cowboys averaged 41.3 points per game and ride Tony Romo’s hot hand into the playoffs.

Unfortunately, Tony Romo doesn’t play quarterback for the Lions. That would be Matthew Stafford, who threw 12 interceptions this season and barely completed 60 percent of his passes. In order to advance and win his first playoff game, Stafford will need to keep up with the likes of Romo, Dez Bryant, and DeMarco Murray.

The defense will also need to keep up its staggering pace and shut down the Cowboys’ second-ranked rushing attack. Defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh had his one-game suspension for stepping on Aaron Rodgers’ arm reduced to a $70,000 fine on Tuesday and will be available for Sunday’s game in Dallas. He anchors one of the league’s nastiest defensive lines, which ranks first overall against the run.

The Lions face a tough test on Sunday against a white-hot Cowboys team, and if they’re to have any chance at advancing, their offense must return to life and live up to its potential.

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