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The Detroit Lions are NFL darlings this season, and they actually have been the past few seasons. The team is 5-2 after taking down one of the most promising teams in the NFL this season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with a 24-9 final score, and now, people are talking about the team, from NFL experts and analysts to moms and dads at the dinner table. Running back Jahmyr Gibbs was extra special during the game, clocking 218 yards and two rushing touchdowns, according to ESPN. The Detroit Lions are now 13-4 following a loss since the start of the 2022 season, which is the second-best record in NFL over that timespan after the Kansas City Chiefs (11-2), according to ESPN Research. “Gibbs broke free up the middle for the longest run of his NFL career with a 78-yard touchdown with 5:51 left in the first half,” Eric Woodyard of ESPN adds. “Gibbs’ top speed was 22.2 mph, the fastest rushing TD by an offensive ball carrier this season, per Next Gen Stats. He is the only player over the past three seasons to reach 22 mph on a rushing touchdown, and he has done it twice now, including on a 70-yard touchdown versus the Titans in 2024.” Even Tom Brady is Noticing the Detroit Lions So, the Lions are on fire, and even legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady is taking notice. Brady released his Fox Sports power rankings on Wednesday, October 22, and he has the Lions at No. 1. “Make it three straight weeks that the No. 1 team in Tom Brady’s power rankings has gone down,” the article notes, since Brady has the Bucs at No. 1 last week. “After getting anointed as the No. 1 team last week, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost decisively to the Detroit Lions in Week 7. The result was just one of many that’s brought some chaos to the top as we continue to figure out who the contenders in the league are nearly halfway through the season.” The article adds, “Even the GOAT needed some help to round out his latest top 10, so much so that he called upon a coin to help him pick his 10th team.” The Detroit Lions Are No. 1 He didn’t need a coin to pick his first favorite team, though. That team is the Lions. Brady also talks up the Detroit Lions’ stars, from Gibbs to quarterback Jared Goff. “The Lions are No. 1 after dominating last week’s leader [the Buccaneers],” he states in the piece. “The stars were out with the contributions from Amon-Ra St. Brown, [Jahmyr] Gibbs and [Jared] Goff. I can’t wait to hear that crowd on Thanksgiving.” The NFL’s official website agrees, too. They have the Lions at No. 1, with lead draft writer Eric Edholm stating, “Detroit’s undermanned secondary stepped up in a massive way in Monday’s statement victory over Tampa Bay. The home team entered the night alarmingly shorthanded in the defensive backfield, and then Rock Ya-Sin had to miss some snaps with cramps.”
