I can't light no more of your darkness All my pictures seem to fade to black and white I'm growin' tired, and time stands still before me Frozen here on the ladder of my life Too late to save myself from falling I took a chance and changed your way of life But you misread my meanin' when I met you Closed the door and left me blinded by the light Don't let the sun go down on me Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free But losin' everything is like the sun goin' down on me
There doesn’t seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel for Detroit sports in the foreseeable future.
Another Lions season is in shambles. Matthew Stafford is hurt, and the roster has a TON of questions and holes that won’t be corrected in a single offseason.
The Tigers just concluded the second worst season in franchise history, losing an abysmal 114 games. The backloaded contract of Miguel Cabrera, paired with the loaded salaries that the team payed veterans in years past, has decimated the farm system.
The 4-10 Pistons haven’t won a playoff game in over 11 years, and with the way this season is shaping up, 12 in a row looks like a very promising bet. A longtime history of horrible drafts and an undesirable small market free agency destination have damned the franchise to eternal purgatory.
Then there is the Red Wings, who currently sit in last place in the Eastern Conference. They were severely screwed in the most recent draft’s lottery, losing 4 or 5 spots from where they should have picked. However, the glorious return of Steve Yzerman provides a sliver of hope for a rebuild.
Depressing enough? You betcha, which is why I decided it was time to look at the positives of Detroit sports over the years, no matter how few and far between they might be. I comprised a list of the greatest team for each of the franchises from 1997 to the present. Some may be obvious, some may be debatable, but all of them I have had the opportunity to watch in some sort of capacity during my lifetime.
The 2014 Detroit Lions
Although this team, like all other former Detroit football teams, ultimately suffered gut-wrenching playoff defeat courtesy of the Lions curse, it was one of the most fun and electric products of the franchise in recent memory. Matthew Stafford led an underrated offense that flaunted the great Calvin Johnson, newcomer Golden Tate, resurging star Reggie Bush, and the gritty Joique Bell. Additionally, the roster touted two first round tight ends in Brandon Pettigrew and rookie Eric Ebron. The group did suffer from inept playcalling at times, as Offensive Coordinator Joe Lombardi proved to underutilize the talent he had and used some headscratchers for plays as well.
The defense, on the other hand, was one of the most feared and talented units of the decade in the NFL. Ndamukong Suh, Ziggy Ansah, DeAndre Levy, Glover Quin, and Darius “Big Play” Slay are only a handful of names that comprised this awesome group. They finished 2nd overall in the league in yards allowed and stepped up on numerous occasions to help the team seal victory after victory.
Had kicker Matt Prater joined the team at the start of the season, the 2014 Lions very well could have two more games in addition to their 11-5 finish, which would have won the NFC North and sealed homefield advantage during the playoffs. This team also embarrassed the Packers in Week 3, handing Aaron Rodgers just his second loss against Detroit in the past 11 games against them. They will unfortunately go down as the team that never was due to outrageous officiating against the Cowboys in the playoffs, but there is no denying the talent and success they had.
The 2012 Detroit Tigers
The 2006 Tigers gives the 2012 team a run for their money, but there is no denying how talented this roster truly was. Triple Crown winner and AL MVP Miguel Cabrera could hit any pitch thrown within his swing radius. And if you tried to walk him? On deck sat Prince Fielder, who hit for a .313 average with 30 HRs and 108 RBIs. The lineup also had six additional batters with an average of .260 or better and depth at all positions in the field. Even more incredible is the fact that this team was without DH Victor Martinez, who suffered a torn ACL before the season in the prime of his hitting career.
The starting rotation of pitchers could go down pound for pound as one of the most talented rotations in MLB history, even if some didn’t play up to their full potential during the year. Cy Young runner-up Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer made up the strikeout tandem in the league, while now-Cy Young winner Rick Porcello, Doug Fister, and recent world champ Anibal Sanchez rounded out starters. Averaging almost 5 strikeouts per game, this group put on a show every time they took the mound.
Like the 2014 Lions, the 2012 Tigers are yet another team that never was after getting swept in the World Series by a San Francisco Giants team that just seemed to have Detroit’s number. The bullpen, like all Tigers bullpens, was the ultimate Achilles heel and developed a notorious reputation for blown games. Regardless, this roster extremely fun to watch take the diamond for all 162 games and put on a show for fans to remember.
The 2004 Pistons
While the rest of the teams on this list may be up for debate, there is no denying that the 2004 Pistons are undoubtedly the best team that the franchise has had in my lifetime. The starting five of Chauncy Billups, Richard “Rip” Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, and Ben Wallace redefined the pro game of basketball and are the last professional team that truly prided itself on defense and team, not individual, success. They would trash talk you to death, but also had the effort and the hard work to back it up on the floor as well. No shot was an easy shot. Conversely, any player in the starting lineup was capable of hitting a big shot at any time, especially Mr. Big Shot himself.
The team got off to a relatively slow start at the beginning of the season, but the addition of Rasheed Wallace propelled the team to new heights. They were a testament of outstanding front office management and ownership, who concocted the perfect formula of drafts, free agent signings, and trades. The Pistons absolutely dismantled the Eastern Conference in the playoffs and swept the Lakers en-route to a World Championship despite the duo of Kobe and Shaq. This kicked off the “Go to work” era in Detroit that lasted for another 5 years to come, with the players touting sledgehammers and hardhats in the pregame intro videos. From Chauncy’s 35 foot three pointers to Rip’s facemask to Big Ben’s luscious afro and cornrows, the 2004 title team is a truly unforgettable group.
The 2002 Detroit Red Wings
The Wings are the one franchise that has truly garnered a long stretch of success since 1997, making it difficult to pin one team as the best during this tenure. However, its nearly impossible for me to pass on the 2002 Red Wings. This roster was star studded from top to bottom. Teams had no chance at scoring with Dominic Hasek in net and Chris Chelios and Nicklas Lindstrom on the ice. It would be useless for me to go down the list of forwards and centers, strictly because every single one of them was good enough to warrant mentioning. The fact that “Magic Man” Pavel Datsyuk is considered an afterthought when compared to the rest of the stacked lineup is all you need to know when talking about these champions.
Captain Steve Yzerman proved to everyone that he still had gas in the tank while also showing that he was a once in a generation leader. The Wings’ constant onslaught of a rotation with its attackers gave the opposing team’s defense absolutely no time to rest. Anyone in the lineup was capable of putting the puck in the back of the net. My personal favorite aspect of this team was their success against the bitter rival Colorado Avalanche. After winning the regular season series against Sakic, Roy, and company in the regular season, the 2002 team capped off a seven game playoff series against Colorado with a 7-0 no doubter victory in Game Seven. The Carolina Hurricanes had no chance at the Stanley Cup with this wrecking ball of a roster coming through. It will be difficult for any NHL franchise to ever recreate the caliber of talent that this Red Wings team had.
Hopefully this little stroll down memory lane helped take your mind off the black hole that is the current Detroit sports teams! Embrace debate! What did I miss? Do you have another team in mind to replace the ones on this list? I’m open to all dialogue on the matter, especially since it means talking about the good, not the bad, in Detroit.
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