‘4 Downs’ with Rich: the Detroit Lions’ Biggest Questions Heading into the ‘26 NFL Season

Jahmyr Gibbs got paid, and he got paid a titch more than Bijan Robinson, which makes him the highest-paid running back in the National Football League.

That is the backdrop for Rich's four downs on the Detroit Lions from the Friday of Hall of Fame weekend in Canton, and it runs through nearly every question the Lions have.

First down is the new offensive coordinator. Drew Petzing arrives from Arizona, where his services stopped being needed once Mike LaFleur got there, and he inherits a job that has already chewed through one plan. Detroit went into last season saying John Morton was the guy to take the baton from Ben Johnson, then dropped a 50 burger on Johnson's Bears in week two, and then watched Dan Campbell take over the play-calling midseason. That was not the plan.

So the question for Petzing is whether this offense hums like it did in the Ben Johnson years, or whether it looks more like what Detroit saw last season: problems up front, a run game that was not as good, Jared Goff less protected, and leads that were hard to get and harder to hold.

Second down is Gibbs 2.0, which means Gibbs with the bell cow around his figurative neck. How many more touches does he get? How many can he handle? How many do the Lions want to give him, and how many does he want? Rich framed the tradeoff honestly: more of number zero in the end zone, or more of number zero unavailable because of the workload. Isaiah Pacheco's role inside the 20 is the other half of that math.

Third down moves to defense, and it is less a football question than a plea to the football gods. Detroit had 16 players on injured reserve in 2024 and was once again the most injured defense in the league last season. The secondary gets tested, the front gets tested, and somebody always goes down.

Terrion Arnold is off the field as well, so the depth chart is already getting a workout before anyone gets hurt. Rich's ask is simple. Stop kicking this defense.

Fourth down is the one Chris asks all the time. Has the Lions window closed?

Rich hopes not, partly because of the fan base, which he believes would turn Detroit into something louder than the New York sports scene celebrating the Knicks if the Lions ever won a Super Bowl. But the stronger argument is the ledger.

Over the last couple of years, Brad Holmes has extended Goff through 2028, Aidan Hutchinson through 2030, Amon-Ra St. Brown through 2028, Penei Sewell through 2029, Alim McNeill through 2028, Kerby Joseph through 2029, Jack Campbell through 2030, Jameson Williams through 2029, Gibbs through 2030, and Derrick Barnes through 2027.

That is a billion-plus dollars of commitment, and Dan Campbell is the coach for a long time as well. Nobody spends like that on a group they think is finished.

Detroit regressed last year. The front office has already voted on whether the window is open. Now the 2026 season gets to rule on it.