Read Sports Geek and Loyal Homer’s arguments for which teams they think should be demoted from the NFL.
Happy Labor Day, everybody!
Because today is a holiday, we here at TSD decided we would have a little fun for the debate topic to kick off the week. While the debate for today regards the NFL, it was inspired by the English Football Leagues (I am speaking of soccer, of course).
For those of you who are unfamiliar with European soccer, the English Football Leagues have a very unique system in place to help make sure that every matchup within the highest levels of their competition (The English Premier League) remains as competitive and entertaining as possible. It is the process of team promotion and relegation (demotion).
Simply put, the worst teams in each league at the end of the season are kicked out (demoted into a lower level league), and replaced by the best teams from that lower level. Essentially, if you fail, you get kicked out of the league, it is as simple as that.
Can you imagine what that would look like in the NFL?! Imagine if teams like the Oakland Raiders, St. Louis Rams, or Detroit Lions – following their performances in recent years – were actually kicked out of the NFL, and had to play instead in the UFL (for example) until they “earned” their way back into the NFL! It would certainly make those week 17 snooze-fests between the Cleveland Browns and the San Francisco 49ers a lot more entertaining if one of those teams were actually facing League demotion!
So with that thought in our minds, the question we are arguing for this Labor Day is – IF the NFL were to adopt the English Football League system of promotion and demotion, which team in the NFL would be MOST deserving of getting demoted out of the league?
Loyal Homer will argue that the St. Louis Rams should be first to go, and Sports Geek will argue that the Oakland Raiders should be the first to the chopping block.
As far as Bleacher Fan is concerned, I think the argument should go no further than the Detroit Lions!
The first (and most obvious) reason to demote the Detroit Lions is the fact that they could not win a single game during 2008 season! Last season marked the first time in over 30 years that a team went through the entire football season having lost every regular season game, and when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did it in back in 1976 they were an expansion team, somewhat mitigating the impact of their winless year.
My point is that this was no pedestrian accomplishment, and if you were going to demote a team out of the league for poor performance, shouldn’t it be the one team that lost EVERY SINGLE TIME they set foot on the field? Who on earth could argue that the Lions DESERVE to remain in the NFL when they can’t beat any of the other teams IN the NFL?
My reasons for demotion, go MUCH further than the single performance of 2008.
You see, 2008 was no fluke for the Lions. In fact, with the exception of the Barry Sanders era during the 1990’s (which still had its share of disappointment), the Detroit Lions have been underperforming since the 1950’s!
In the 52 years since the Detroit Lions last NFL Championship (I will save you the hassle of pulling out a calculator… it was 1957), the Detroit Lions have appeared in the playoffs only nine times, five of which can largely be credited solely to the amazing talent of Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders during the 1990’s. They have also not won a division championship since 1993, and have not won a conference championship since 1957. By comparison, the Indianapolis Colts have reached the playoffs nine times in the last 10 years, the New England Patriots have accomplished that feat within the last 12 years, and you only need to go back 13 years for the Pittsburgh Steelers last nine playoff appearances.
When you look at the Lions’ history OUTSIDE of Barry Sanders contribution, you have the following results:
From 1957 to 1989 (when Barry Sanders joined the Lions), the Lions only appeared in the playoffs three times (1970, 1982, and 1983). Then, following Sanders’ retirement in 1998, they have only reached the playoffs once (1999).
The Detroit Lions are one of only THREE teams in the NFL that have not played a single playoff game since 2000. The other two teams are the Houston Texans (who have not yet reached the postseason in their short history as a franchise), and the Buffalo Bills. The Texans and the Bills can also credit SOME of their struggles since the turn of the millennium to the absolute DOMINANCE of other teams within their divisions (the aforementioned Colts and Patriots). The Lions, on the other hand, have played in the NFC North, which has been one of the weakest divisions in football since 2000. In fact, every other team in the NFC North (the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, and Chicago Bears) has managed to win the division at least TWICE within the last decade.
On the rare occurrence that they DO reach the playoffs, the Lions’ performance has also been very disappointing. Their record in those nine postseason appearances following their last championship in 1957 is 1-9. That means that the Detroit Lions have only won ONE playoff game in the last 52 years!
Over the past half-century, no team has failed to achieve more than has Detroit. When thinking about teams that do not deserve to play in the NFL, the name at the top of the list should be the Detroit Lions!
Demote! Add Florida Gators