Detroit Lions fans' confidence in team direction remains high, despite loss to Bills

Dec 3, 2022 - 6:00 PM

We have been tracking Detroit Lions fans’ confidence in the team’s direction all season via our SB Nation Reacts polls, and after a strong November, most remain confident the Lions are building for a successful future.

Detroit went 3-1 in November, and with each win, Lions’ fans’ confidence grew. After beating the Packers we saw an increase from 56% to 82%. After a victory over the Bears on the road, poll results jumped up to 91%. Taking down the Giants in New York saw the numbers jump again, this time up to 96%.

But the Lions closed November with a 28-25 loss to the Bills on Thanksgiving, so would there be a corresponding decline in confidence? We asked that question in our weekly survey, and it turns out the answer was: No.

Despite the loss to the Bills, the results from our latest SB Nation Reacts poll show that 96% of Lions’ fans remain confident the team is headed in the right direction.

So why was there no change in confidence?

It likely has to do with the fact that the Lions continue to improve as a team. Yes, they lost a heartbreaker to the Bills, but Buffalo is a Super Bowl contender and Detroit hung with them until the very end. That surely wouldn’t have been the case in late September/October when the team struggled to find any consistency but is certainly true of the team we have seen over the past month.

With six games remaining on the 2022 schedule, it’ll be interesting to see if and/or how much fans’ confidence changes between now and the end of the season.