Let's Set Odds: Will the Detroit Lions Go 0-17?

When Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell first took over, there was a sense that he would either get his team buying in from the very beginning, or it would be a complete lost cause in his first season on the job.

After six weeks of the NFL season, is it fair to say that both sets of circumstances occured?

The Lions are not a good football team, but the only folks that gave them any reasonable shot to be contenders likely only existed inside their own building. The Lions had the second-longest odds to win the Super Bowl behind only the Houston Texans this year, and were projected for only six wins on the season. If you took the under, your bet is looking pretty, pretty good considering they're now 500/1... just to win the NFC North division!

If we do the math, the Lions are now projected to win somewhere near 2.5 games the rest of the way after starting at six and working our way down to an 0-6 start. But what if we were to set odds on them going 0-17, something that's never been done in the history of the NFL?

I should clarify... Teams HAVE gone without a win in the regular season, just not 0-17. The last team to go 0-16 was the 2017 Cleveland Browns, but the second-to-last team? You guessed it. The Lions back in 2008 under head coach Rod Marinelli.

The schedule isn't getting any easier, in fact it's the fourth-most difficult one left in the season. Let's take a look at who else is coming up for the Lions.

Detroit Lions Remaining Schedule

• Week 7: at Los Angeles Rams
• Week 8: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
• Week 9: BYE (can't lose)
• Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
• Week 11: at Cleveland Browns
• Week 12: vs. Chicago Bears (Thanksgiving)
• Week 13: vs. Minnesota Vikings
• Week 14: at Denver Broncos
• Week 15: vs. Arizona Cardinals
• Week 16: at Atlanta Falcons
• Week 17: at Seattle Seahawks
• Week 18: vs. Green Bay Packers

Odds That the Detroit Lions Go 0-17

NO: -1200

YES: +750

I still contend that based on all the close games the Lions have played this year that they will irk out a victory, possibly even two along the way. Even the New York Jets, who may be a worse team than this year's Detroit Lions found a way to win not only a game last year, but do it in back-to-back weeks.

However, don't be fooled by the final scores. The Lions have also given plenty of reasons to doubt their ability to close a game when it matters, let alone remain competitive.

Only five teams in NFL history have ever had a winless season. With the extra game added to the schedule, along with the added variance of the NFL, I don't believe betting on the Lions to lose all 17 is, ironically, a "winning" bet.