Finally, A Win

Lions finally get ‘King Kong’ off their back

DETROIT – Some were half-dressed, others barefoot. None of them cared.

Coach Jim Schwartz addressed the Detroit Lions victorious (at last) locker room and in an unusual move told the team to get back on the field, find whatever fans were left and thank them for sticking with the team through the thinnest of thin times.

“We’re going to go back out the tunnel and celebrate a little with the people of the stadium,” he said.

So out they charged, 53 players strong, sprinting down the concrete ramp back to the Ford Field playing surface and into the waiting cheers and outstretched hands of the NFL’s most die-hard fans.

They offered hugs and jumped up on the wall and mostly shared this long-coming day of delirium. The players cheered the fans. The fans returned the favor.

Detroit 19, Washington 14. The game won, the streak done, the party just begun.

Since Dec. 23, 2007, the Lions had lost every game they played, 19 in all. Many were by lopsided margins, an exercise in futility and frustration that included the first 0-16 season in NFL history.

More of the article here.