Along the path of my personal journey to greater self-awareness, I read an article about how fickle memory can be. It said a memory is a feeling we have in the present about a feeling we had in the past.
The author then pointed out that the feelings on either end are our emotional reactions to something, not the thing itself.
So on Sunday night I will pull on my Detroit Lions jersey, forget that somber walk in January to the parking lot near Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, banish the memory of disappointment and embrace what surely is the most anticipated season in franchise history.
It’s pretty evident I’m not the only one riding the Great Expectations Express: One sports media outlet gauged fan sentiment with something they called the “NFL Hope-O-Meter.” Based on fan responses to a survey, they rated the optimism level for each fan base in the league.
The Lions checked in at No. 1, with an optimism rate of 98.8 percent, ahead of the two-time defending Super Bowl champs the Kansas City Chiefs.
The writer used “hope” and “optimism” as if they are synonyms, but we know much better. For decades, Lions fans had very little reason for optimism and have subsisted on hope alone.
Last year was not only a thrill ride for Lions fans due to the success on the field, it also challenged the way we thought of our fandom. As the season kicks off, it’s seeming less and less odd to see league forecasters pick the Lions to win their division, or to see “Lions” and “Super Bowl” in the same sentence.
Check that: According to MLive’s most seasoned Lions writer, Kyle Meinke, the attitude in the locker room and front office is “Super Bowl or bust.” It’s not good enough anymore to simply aim for the playoffs.
Meinke notes how the Lions had one of the most powerful offenses in the league at the end of last season. Then, they spent the offseason bolstering the defense.
“If training camp was any indication, they’ll be much improved on that side of the ball,” he wrote. “And with everything that’s back from one of the elite offenses in the game, well, you can understand the super expectations in Detroit.”
Meinke and his beat mates, Ben Raven and Kory Woods, have been working hard this summer to meet fan demand for news and information on the team. You can view all of the reports from training camp, player profiles and season previews at mlive.com/lions.
And for those who want to get deep into their Lions fandom, check out our Dungeon of Doom podcast, which drops two episodes a week during the season, as well as the companion Dungeon of Doom Insider Texts. The latter delivers multiple texts per day from our Lions writers to your phone with up-to-the-minute updates on roster moves, game preparations, hot takes and more. To sign up, click here. You can text STOP at any time to end the service.
Our Dungeon of Doom podcasts are free to anyone with a streaming service such as Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And debuting this season, a full length video version of the Dungeon of Doom podcast will be available on our YouTube channel as well as weekly clips on Shorts and TikTok.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go wash the San Francisco out of my Jared Goff jersey and plan my menu for Sunday night. One thing that will be missing is blue Kool-Aid – it feels good that Lions fans don’t need it anymore to feel optimistic.
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