Dear Sheila Ford Hamp: Lions fans and football fans in general around the country have their eyes on you and the Detroit Lions organization because everyone knows what has to be done. It’s time to move on from Matt Patricia.
A Detroit Lions Thanksgiving to Forget
Thursday’s 41-25 loss to the Texans on Thanksgiving Day should be Patricia’s last time on the Detroit sideline. Turnovers, clock management, and typical poor defensive play all played a role in what was a dismal football game.
In Detroit, Lions football on Thanksgiving is a tradition. It’s the one thing that reminds Lions fans that the team has at least someplace in NFL history. However, Thursday’s game was just flat out embarrassing. On a Thanksgiving unlike any other, a disappointing loss from the Lions felt like one of the few normal parts of the holiday.
Facing a Texans team with a losing record, a Lions victory could have brought a little bit of joy to Detroit fans on the holiday. Instead, the team looked uninspired and as though all hope has been given up. Matt Patricia’s seat has been hot ever since the start of this season, and Thursday’s performance proves now is the time to let him go.
Detroit Lions Coaches: Caldwell vs. Patricia
Jim Caldwell vs Matt Patricia as Lions head coach:
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) November 26, 2020
Caldwell Patricia
36-28 W-L 13-29-1
.563 Win% .314
2 Playoff app 0 pic.twitter.com/vYnstX8Shu
Matt Patricia’s tenure in Detroit has been characterized by disappointment. The most upsetting aspect of all is probably the fact that he was brought in to elevate a winning team to the next level. Instead, the franchise has taken several steps back.
It seems as though with every game he coaches, Patricia is bringing Detroit to new lows. Caldwell’s Lions teams were experiencing winning seasons and playoff appearances. Patricia’s Lions experience nothing even close to that.
The “Patriot Way” Experiment Has Failed
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With GM Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia, the Detroit Lions have been attempting to adopt the winning culture of the New England Patriots. The “Patriot Way” some call it. However, the experiment has failed and the Lions do not have a real identity to call their own.
Making bold draft choices and signing decent veterans to big contracts is not really working. The Patriots can act the way they do because the franchise has a history of winning. The Detroit Lions, on the other hand, do not.
It’s difficult to convince players to buy into a “winning culture” on a team that historically has not won much of anything at all. Instead, they have to be convinced that they’re the ones building the foundation for the winning mentality of the future. That feeling may have been there in the Lions franchise during the Caldwell era, but has disappeared in the days of Patricia.
Time To Move On
All eyes are on you now, Sheila. It’s time to prove that you are different from the other members of the Ford family who have run this organization in the past. You can make the bold moves. You can begin to build the foundation of a competitive franchise.
That foundation was growing but has been torn down by Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn. It’s time to move on, clean house, and rebuild from the ground up. This letter comes from one Lions fan speaking on behalf of many who feel the same way. Detroit Lions fans deserve better, so give them better.
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