NFL Power Rankings: Panthers are new No. 1 entering Week 13

The Detroit Lions shook things up by firing offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi and both offensive line coaches, Jeremiah Washburn and Terry Heffernan. Since then the Lions are 3-1, those three wins coming consecutively starting with the Lions first win over the Packers at Lambeau Field in decades.

The Lions offense continues to get better with each passing week and everything finally seemed ot click into place against the Philadelphia Eagles on Thanksgiving.

Matthew Stafford threw for five touchdowns against the Eagles, including three to his favorite target, wide receiver Calvin Johnson. During the three game stretch of wins, Stafford is completing nearly 66 percent of his passes for 861 yards, seven touchdowns and a lone interception, garnering a 106.5 passer rating over that stretch.

The Lions put up 108 yards on the ground, Ameer Abdullah carrying the load with 60 yards off 14 carries.

On defense, Ezekiel Ansah had quite the day recording 3.5 sacks, two tackles for a loss and recovering a fumble. He also hit Mark Sanchez three additional times and was constantly disrupting the Eagles’ passing. The Lions defense had six sacks and nine hits on Sanchez by the end of the day.

The Lions are trending up at the right time and they should feel optimistic was the Packers head to town.

Next: 20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers