The Detroit Lions suck. That’s stating the obvious, and Lion’s fans would probably agree with that statement as much as the next guy. Their franchise has been mired in mediocrity for what seems like their entire existence, with very few highs and many lows. We are one day closer now to the start of the 2021 NFL season, and with the beginning of a new season comes either optimism or pessimism for fans of many NFL squads. Fans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Buffalo Bills are probably raring to get things going since their teams are all top favorites to win the Super Bowl this upcoming season.
Then, of course, you have the teams that are either tanking for draft position or just plain incompetent. The Lions would probably fall in both of these categories, but there is actually one team that is projected to be even worse than Detriot this upcoming year, which is remarkable to say. Let’s go through the top five teams that are supposed to leave their fans with bags on their heads by season’s end.
Houston Texans +250
The one team that has better odds than the Lions to finish with the worst record is the Houston Texans. They earned this honor by way of the controversy surrounding QB Deshaun Watson. The superstar has already asked to be traded and say’s that he will not play for the Texans organization. This is all in addition to the fact that he has several sexual assault allegations being thrown against him. The likelihood he actually plays for Houston next season is minimal and seeing as how that is the case, this Texans team will be god-awful without him. If he somehow does play, these odds will get much longer. If you think the Texans go 0-17 this season, you can get them at +1700. Make no mistake, this is a terrible team that will lose many games without Watson should he not play.
Detroit Lions +350
Here they are, the lovable Lions. They finished last in the NFC North last season with a 5-11 record, and that was with Matt Stafford at QB. Imagine how bad this is going to get with Jared Goff at the helm. This is a team that was so atrocious last season that they had three different head coaches in a single season, as Matt Patricia was fired in November and interim coach Darrell Bevell missed a game with COVID-19 which caused Robert Prince to fill in for him. Dan Campbell was hired this offseason to try and rebuild this franchise, and he’s gonna start by having his players eating people’s kneecaps, as he so kindly put it. Oh lord, help this team. If you think this disaster waiting to happen goes 0-17, take them right now at +2400.
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New York Jets +850
The odds jump quite a bit here, and that’s because the two worst teams in the league on paper are clearly the hopeless ones above. The Jets were horrendous last season, finishing last in the AFC East with a 2-14 record. They have made several improvements this off-season by hiring Robert Sallah as head coach, a man many think will be the first Jets head coach that will not be incompetent in quite some time. They also drafted a QB, Zach Wilson out of BYU, to lead their franchise for the foreseeable future. The Jets will almost certainly still be bad next season, as they will need a lot more if they want to compete, but they aren’t as bad as they were. I could see a 6-11 or 5-12 type of season upcoming for them.
Cincinnati Bengals +1000
The Bengals sit here based on pretty much two reasons. 1. Will Joe Burrow stay healthy all season with that bad leg injury he sustained last season and 2. How bad will this defense be in 2021? Burrow is expected to be out there for week one, but gosh, that injury looked devastating last year and his scar looks scarier than the one in Lion King. The Bengals also didn’t exactly improve significantly on their porous offensive line, which makes this even scarier. The defense was also atrocious last year, with the possibility of being just as bad this season. They will have to score points by the boatload if they want to win, and without Burrow, they would be stuck in the bayou.
Jacksonville Jaguars +1200
The Jags finished last season with the worst record in the NFL at 1-15, and as such, received the number one pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. That pick was QB Trevor Lawrence, one of the most sought-after and highly decorated recruits to come out of college football in a decade. He immediately improves the team with his skill set and leadership abilities. Now all he has to do is avoid injury while the Jags build around him. Their O-Line is pathetic, so expect Lawrence to be running around quite a bit, which can lead to injury. Also, Tim Tebow is now a TE on this team. So, there’s that.
Pick your poison here, or maybe take a team with longer odds you think will be terrible. Personally, I’m taking the Lions. Not just because they are bad with a hilarious clown at head coach, but because they are the Lions. That’s enough for me.
