Every Lions fan has heard it before.
SOL.
No, that doesn't stand for Shit Outta Luck.
It stands for Same 'Ol Lions.
Whether it's referee incompetence, poor decisions, or some combination of both, the Detroit Lions just never seem to lose in a ho-hum, regular fashion. Nope. Every loss has to be creatively horrifying in its own way.
(I'm internally screaming as I write this article.)
Here are the 5 most painful ones.
5. Matt Flynn's Career Day (January 1, 2012)
On New Year's in 2012, the Lions traveled to Green Bay to take on the Packers for the last game of the regular season. Seeing as they were 14-1 with the #1 seed in hand, the Packers opted to rest superstar QB, Aaron Rodgers. In his stead, Matt Flynn came in to run the Packers offense.
At this point in the season, the Lions were guaranteed a playoff spot by virtue of their 10-5 record. A win would guarantee them the #5 seed and a game at the New York Giants. A loss clinched them the #6 seed and a game at the New Orleans Saints, who were the hottest team in the league at the time.
Beat a Green Bay team resting several starters, and you get to avoid the offensive juggernaut that was New Orleans. Simple, right?
Not for Detroit.
Matt Flynn threw for 480 yards and 6 touchdowns on the way to a 45-41 Packers victory(It's worth noting that the Lions had two should-be touchdowns disallowed because as we'll see later in the list, Detroit doesn't get any calls).
The Lions were forced to travel to New Orleans the next week to play the Saints, who ended up setting a record for most yards in a playoff game en route to a 45-28 win.
P.S. Silver lining? The Giants ended being the Super Bowl champs this year. Maybe it was good we avoided them?
4. Miracle in Motown (December 3, 2015)
The Lions came into this game at 4-7. They still had a shot at securing a playoff spot, but to do that, they more or less needed to run the table.
Imagine how encouraging it was to watch them pull out to a 20-0 lead against the Packers.
Then imagine how awful it was to watch them slowly give that lead back.
The Packers managed to make a game of it, making it a 23-21 game. With 6 seconds left, the Packers ran one final play from their own 21-yard line, hoping to create some kind of magic and score a touchdown.
Time expired, and as Rodgers was scrambling around, trying to make something happen, Lions defensive tackle Devin Taylor tackled him.
Unfortunately, the refs threw a flag on Taylor for committing a facemask penalty. Was the call correct?
No. Not even close.
Because a game cannot end on a defensive penalty, the Packers received a untimed down. And...
Touchdown. Ballgame.
I basically reacted the same way that star Lions wideout Calvin Johnson did.
3. The Calvin Johnson Rule (September 12, 2010)
In Detroit's 2010 season opener, promising young QB Matthew Stafford suffered a right shoulder injury, forcing backup Shaun Hill into action. As a result, Detroit's offense sputtered.
With 29 seconds left, Hil dropped back to pass, looking for an open receiver. Hill decided to throw a jump ball to Johnson, who came down with the spectacular catch.
Or did he?
After reviewing the play, the referees, citing a previously-unknown rule, determined that Johnson hadn't "completed the process" on the play. The result: no catch. The Lions would lose this one 19-14.
2. Sleepless in Seattle (October 5, 2015)
Trailing the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks 13-10 with under two minutes left, Stafford drove the offense down the field, bringing them closer and closer to scoring a potential game-winning touchdown.
On a 3rd and 1 from Seattle's 11-yard line, Stafford found Johnson open on a smoke route. Johnson fumbled toward the end zone, attempting to score a touchdown. Just as he was about to break the plane and score, this happened:
Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor came from behind and punched the ball out, causing a fumble. Seattle linebacker K.J. Wright deliberately knocked the ball out of the back of the end zone, which is illegal. The play should've resulted in the Lions receiving the ball at the Seattle 1-yard line, where they almost certainly would've scored. The actual result? Seattle received possession of the ball and broke the hearts of Lions fans in the process.
1. Distress in Dallas (January 4, 2015)
The Lions went into their 2014-15 NFC Wild Card game against the Dallas Cowboys attempting to snag the first Lions playoff win since 1991.
They started very well, grabbing a 17-7 lead at halftime. However, with 8:25 left in the game, the Cowboys had cut the lead down to 3, 20-17.
On 3rd and 1 from the Dallas 46, Stafford threw a pass to tight end Brandon Pettigrew, who was clearly interfered with by Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens. The refs properly threw a flag, signaling their intent to call pass interference.
The refs announced the call via their microphones. The pass interference granted the Lions a fresh set of downs. Simple enough, right?
The refs, without warning or explanation, rescinded the call.
At this point, you're probably wondering: How can they just pick the flag like that?
To this day, no one knows.
The Cowboys would later score a touchdown and pull out a narrow 24-20 victory.
The best part about all of this?
The NFL sent the Lions an apology letter for an officiating mistake.
Except it wasn't for the pass interference call.
On the Cowboys' game-winning touchdown drive, they converted on a 4th and 5 where then-Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was clearly held. Holding is a 10-yard infraction, so the Cowboys should have had a 4th and 15, which would have led to a punt.
Instead, the Cowboys got the first down, the touchdown, and the win.
