Only one thing can derail Lions long-awaited Super Bowl run

It’s hard to believe the only thing going wrong for the Detroit Lions is something they can’t control. They’ve been destroyed by injuries to their defensive unit all season. As each win piles up, it seems a key injury counteracts their joy. 

Alex Anzalone is the latest Lions defender to go down with a significant injury. According to Colton Pouncy of The Athletic, Anzalone’s broken forearm will keep him out for roughly two months.

Add that to Aidan Hutchinson’s injury, Derrick Barnes’, Carlton Davis and what seems to be the never-ending list of other key contributors and it’s hard to envision the Lions making a deep playoff run for the second-straight season. 

Or is it? These resilient Lions haven’t skipped a beat since the list of injuries has grown throughout the season. They truly embody the next-man-up mentality. 

Despite injury bug to defense, Lions determined to break championship curse this season

Anzalone’s injury is perhaps the only thing that went wrong for the Lions in their 52-6 whipping over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. But regardless of how many injuries have piled up for the Lions, it still doesn’t feel like there’s a team in the NFC that can stop them. 

And honestly, they look like the best team in the NFL, especially given the number of close wins the Chiefs have gotten away with. The question is, however, how long can the Lions weather the injury-riddled season before it catches up to them. They added Za’Darius Smith to lessen the blow of losing Hutchinson. 

But the trade deadline has passed, so how do the Lions move past another devastating injury blow? According to Pouncy, they are most likely to turn to Malcom Rodriguez, one of the Hard Knocks darlings from two years ago. 

Jack Campbell will also be a player who can pick up the slack while the Lions anxiously wait for Anzalone’s return, which could potentially be as early as Dec. 30. 

The one good thing going for this team is that regardless of what happens, they respond. It feels like everyone outside the organization is more concerned about what happens next. The Lions? Well, they aren’t stressing over injuries. 

According to an article in The Athletic, the Lions rank fifth in points allowed at 17.7 and 12th in yards allowed at 372.5. Injuries or not, Aaron Glenn has this defense ready. So even with a depleted lineup, they don’t plan on using that as an excuse.