Welp. The Lions have made the 2017 NFL playoffs.

And, like almost everything the Lions do, they did it in the least convincing manner; losing at home to the Packers and backing in due to the Giants beating Washington.

I don’t want to say I told you so, but I completely told you so. I can prove it, right here: https://champagneathletics.com/2016/12/30/prepare-for-s-o-l/.

But somehow they tricked me again. I’m not sure if it was the excitement of the city, the loyalty I have to the team, or the 8 beers and 2 whiskies I had in me at the time, but right before kick-off I went against my word and took the Lions at +3.5 and even tossed in a moneyline bet. I obviously lost them both.

S.O.L. is a shapeshifter. It takes on many different forms, attitudes, styles, approaches, and appearances, but always ends with the same result- disappointment. Whether it’s an angry, sad, helpless, frustrated, annoyed or indifferent kind, it is all rooted in disappointment.

What’s odd about the adage “Same Old Lions” is that the disappointment almost never repeats itself, it just finds new ways to do so.

Example. In the heart of my passionate adolescent to alcoholic fan-hood, let’s go with ages 10 to 21 (2001-2012), the Lions were just bad. Good ole fashioned BAD. They went 55-137 over that time, with one season (2008) where they didn’t win a single game. During that time, they had one winning season (2012) where they were 10-5 heading into the final game vs a…. you guessed it, Packers team that was sitting 90% of their starters, including Aaron Rodgers. Green Bay’s backup QB, Matt Flynn, threw for 480 yards and 6 touchdowns in a 45–41 victory over the Lions, both of which set single game Green Bay Packers records. That dropped the Lions to the 6th seed in the playoffs, where they were promptly routed by Drew Brees and the Saints in New Orleans.

This was the year I began to realize SOL doesn’t just mean they lose a lot. Not only do they lose a lot, but they lose when it counts (2017, week 17 vs Packers), they lose on shitty calls (2014, NFC Wild Card @ Dallas), they lose in dramatic ways (2015, Miracle In Motown) , and hell, they even WIN when they aren’t supposed to. In 2001 the Lions won their last game of the regular season to improve to 2-14, which dropped them to third pick overall as opposed to second in the 2002 NFL entry draft. (We picked Joey Harrington).

The Lions win the games that don’t matter.

And this past Sunday with history, standings, pride, and a championship on the line, the Lions did what they know how to do best.

They lost.

At home, with everything to play for, to kick off a brand new year of disappointment.

And to put the icing on the cake, this was a stat that came out of Sunday’s loss, posted on the NFL’s Instagram, for the world to see.

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See you Saturday in Seattle.