Costa and Jansen discuss whether it's Super Bowl or bust for the Lions this season.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00Regular season's over and with the regular season ending, CBS Sports did season-long
00:06NFL grades.
00:07And I want to read you the blurb they wrote for the Lions.
00:10And there's four words specifically that I know will trigger some people, but I think
00:14it's a pretty honest assessment.
00:16They gave them an A+.
00:18Only team to get an A+.
00:19They said, incredible season for Detroit, best in franchise history, Dan Campbell's
00:23vision came to life and the Lions exploded on offense throughout the season and stepped
00:28on the gas when they needed it most, winning their final two games to secure the division
00:33and the one seed.
00:35It's now Super Bowl or bust for Jared Goff and company.
00:40So what does that mean?
00:41What are you saying?
00:42It means if they don't win the Super Bowl, it's a bust.
00:45It's a failed season.
00:46Dan Campbell himself is not a failure of a person, right?
00:49Jared Goff is not a failure of a quarterback, but for a team that's expectation is the Super
00:54Bowl, anything less is a failed season.
00:58That is a gigantic disappointment.
01:00How can you say it's a failure?
01:02Some people take that as like this threat, like we're threatening to call them a failure.
01:06You're being so negative.
01:07It's a compliment.
01:10The expectations are to win the Super Bowl.
01:13Expectations at the beginning of the season were at a minimum, get back to the FC championship
01:17game.
01:18Others, the minimum was get to the Super Bowl.
01:20Others, the minimum from the, from the get-go was win the Super Bowl.
01:24Every step along the way, I've been very bullish about this team, 14 and three to start the
01:29season when the schedule was revealed.
01:32Even with the injuries, I said, this is a team that should win the Super Bowl.
01:36I understand it's become infinitely harder without Aiden Hutchinson, without Carlton
01:44Davis, without some of the other individuals that are going to be, that should be playing
01:50on this roster.
01:51The number of guys on defense by itself have made this very difficult.
01:57And for some, it's forced it into the unlikely category.
02:02And for you, it was can win the Super Bowl.
02:05I think they still should win the Super Bowl.
02:07And now that, and I think it was very important in that, in that article that they said, hey,
02:12they stepped on the gas at the right time.
02:14People were asking the question, should they play their starters against San Francisco?
02:17Yes.
02:18Step on the gas.
02:19Let's go.
02:20Let's go to the left lane, pedal down and let's keep on rolling.
02:24That led into a Minnesota game where they were clearly the more prepared, better team
02:30than Minnesota.
02:31They secure the number one seed.
02:33And most of us said for them to be able to reach the Super Bowl or win the Super Bowl,
02:37they had to get that one seat, especially with the injuries.
02:41Now the expectation is that they not only make it to the Super Bowl, but they win the
02:45damn thing.
02:46And that's not the expectation solely set by us or you as a fan.
02:50It's set by the coach.
02:52It's set by the general manager.
02:53It's set by the sports books.
02:55It's set even factoring in the injuries.
02:57Understand what we're saying here.
02:59They are depleted on defense and they're still the favorite.
03:02They're depleted on defense and they exceeded even John's lofty 14-win expectations when
03:08the schedule came out.
03:10Understand that even with the injuries, they went 6-0 in the best division in the history
03:13of football.
03:14So why would the standard not be Super Bowl or bust?
03:18Kansas City is Super Bowl or bust Buffalo talk about their history of coming up just
03:24short.
03:25They beat Kansas City in Detroit for them.
03:27Only a Super Bowl is a satisfying conclusion.
03:29Anything else is failure.
03:30These are compliments.
03:32I know it doesn't always sound that way.
03:34And you know, my tone is not always great.
03:37So maybe it's my fault.
03:38But Super Bowl or bust, I truly think is a compliment.
03:41I think the conflict comes from this John incredible season for Detroit best in franchise
03:46history.
03:47How can the best season in franchise history be a disappointment?
03:51That is at the crux of this, right?
03:52Because if they go to the Super Bowl and lose, they would have had the best season in franchise
03:56history, but it's a bust and we're not saying that the journey hasn't been fun.
04:03Of course, it's been a great ride and we're going to enjoy watching everyone else play
04:08this weekend except our Detroit Lions.
04:12We are anticipating and we'll talk about this more maybe tomorrow, more likely Friday in
04:16regards to who do you want to see in the divisional route as these teams match up this
04:21weekend on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, who is it that you want to play?
04:28And that's going to be fun.
04:30Lead up to the divisional game will be fun.
04:32The lead up to the NFC championship game will be fun.
04:35The lead up to the Super Bowl.
04:36All of it is going to be fun, but it all has to end in a Super Bowl championship for it
04:43to be everything that the expectations say it should be.
04:48We had a text today, I think, that nailed it and they reduced it to a movie quote and
04:52it's a comedy, but it's a movie that the Midday Show uses.
04:58Ricky Bobby, if you're not first, you're last.
05:00Shake and bake.
05:02That's what this is.
05:03If you're not first, you're last.
05:05Ticket text phone calls will collect them 248-539-9797.
05:08Texter says, when did the Lions become the favorite over Philadelphia?
05:11John, I can answer it.
05:12When they secured home field throughout the NFC playoffs.
05:14Well, and here's the thing for 31 teams, this is going to be a disappointing season.
05:21It is every single year.
05:23The level of expectation for the Carolina Panthers was much different than it was for
05:29the Green Bay Packers than it was for the Kansas City Chiefs, the Buffalo Bills, the
05:34Ravens, and obviously the Detroit Lions.
05:37But there's going to be 31 teams and half the league, more than half the league, 18
05:42teams are already disappointed because they're not playing anymore.
05:47The fact that the Lions have secured the one seed, the fact that they've done everything,
05:51and Dan Campbell said, hey, let's work back from what our goal is, that is to win a Super
05:56Bowl.
05:57How do you get there?
05:58Well, you get the one seed.
05:59You win your division.
06:02You make the playoffs.
06:03You work your way back and they have checked all of those boxes.
06:07Now they have one less game to play than everybody other than Kansas City, and they get to play
06:11all of those games at home until they reach the Super Bowl.
06:14I'll give you an example.
06:16The Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
06:18They make the Super Bowl and lose.
06:19That's not a failed season for them.
06:21Oh yeah, they outkicked their coverage.
06:22Last year wasn't a disappointment, even though it felt disappointing.
06:26Disappointing, but it wasn't a disappointing season.
06:28The Lions outkicked their coverage.
06:30In a lot of ways, I'll use the comparison, it was the 06 Tigers.
06:35This run that no one saw coming.
06:36Now, 06 for Detroit was even more out of nowhere, but no one looks at making the 06 World Series
06:43as a failed season.
06:45But then the expectations were raised.
06:48And from that moment on until 2014 when they had their last shot at it, every season was
06:54defined by one goal, winning the World Series.
06:57They didn't.
06:59It forever changed it.
07:00It changed the expectations.
07:01It changed the outlook.
07:02It changed the mentality.
07:03And it was good.
07:04Good baseball teams, fun baseball teams.
07:07Super Bowl or bust doesn't have to be some negative thing.
07:09Some people take it that way.
07:11How do you feel about it?
07:12CBS Sports said it.
07:13They go, this is the best season the Lions have had, incredible season, but it's Super
07:16Bowl or bust.
07:17248-539-9797.
07:18Texter says, why do you guys do this failure of a season thing?
07:24I don't understand the point.
07:26Of course, everyone will be sad.
07:27What's the point of labeling it a failure?
07:29Maleny did the same thing yesterday.
07:31I've never understood the conversation.
07:33Season's been amazing.
07:34Everyone will be sad if we don't win it.
07:35Try again next year.
07:36It's as simple as that.
07:37It's not as simple as that.
07:40Next year, they might not have these coordinators.
07:42Next year, they're going to play a tougher schedule.
07:43They may not have home field throughout the playoffs.
07:46This is a golden opportunity.
07:47It's okay to acknowledge that.
07:49And why do people get so offended at the word failure?
07:53In sports, you succeed or you fail.
07:55You win or you lose.
07:56These are the options.
07:57I don't know why we run from it and act like little scared babies about it.
07:59Right.
08:00Yeah.
08:01There's no gold star like you wanted for the college football playoffs.
08:03Watch yourself.
08:07When you have an opportunity to do something special, you're built to do something special.
08:15Then you either go out and you perform and you live up to those expectations.
08:20And if you fall short, what is it called?
08:22Disappointment.
08:23Failure.
08:24Failure is a scary word for people.
08:26It's the same thing.
08:27They're interchangeable.
08:28And I want to put a little bit more positive spin on it in regards to you don't know if
08:33you'll be here next year.
08:34You don't know if you'll have the one seat.
08:35You don't know if you also may be better next year with Aiden.
08:40Right.
08:41I mean, you put another area next to it, you know, on the same defensive line, you get
08:45Carlton Davis, you know, people stay a little bit healthier than they are now.
08:49Like there's there's there next year will have its own obstacles, its own challenges
08:53and its own set of scenarios.
08:57It could be better.
08:58We don't know that because we don't we we're living in the moment.
09:01This is the hero.
09:02Now, I think the unknown is why people get nervous about, you know, beyond just this
09:07year, how it's going to look.
09:08You're right.
09:09Brett Holmes could draft another three or four all pros, put a full season of Aiden
09:12Hutchinson in his defense, hire good coordinators because, hey, Dan Campbell's done it once.
09:17I'm not telling you this is their only chance to win a Super Bowl.
09:19I'm just saying, like, this is where it is.
09:22I mean, this is good as it gets 15 and to one seed favorite to win the Super Bowl as
09:26the postseason starts.