Though the Lions did not get the chance to take on the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, fans can find some solace in knowing they were good. There is finally hope for the future.

Before this season, Lions fans were some of the saddest people out there. I can sympathize somewhat, being a fan of the Washington Commanders, who last won a playoff game when I was four years old. 

But now the difference between the Lions and Commanders fans is that Detroit fans can see a future in sight. 

So let’s not focus on the 32 years the Lions went without a playoff win, or the 67 they went without two playoff wins. 

Pay little heed to the 2008 Detroit Lions who made history by being the only team to not win a single game in a season since the schedule was expanded in 1978. 

Do not trash the Lions for their quarterback of 12 seasons winning the Super Bowl as soon as he left Detroit. 

And no, do not say “the Lions stink!” because they are among only four NFL teams who have never played in a Super Bowl. Also, just because they are the oldest of those four teams does not make them the worst team in NFL history. 

Did you see the six-time Super Bowl champion Steelers and Patriots in the playoffs this year? No, they were not there. But Detroit was.

Did you see the Dolphins, the only team to have ever gone undefeated for the whole season and postseason, win a playoff game this year? No. But Detroit won two.

Did you see the so-called best team of the season, the Baltimore Ravens, in the divisional championship? No. But I saw Detroit. 

As they led the San Francisco 49ers 24-7 at halftime in the NFC Championship, I thought I would see Detroit in the Super Bowl for the first time in their lifetime and mine.  

Unfortunately the Lions blew it. But they are not taking that lightly. Lions head coach Dan Campbell knows the challenge and said he is staying humble. 

“If we don’t have the same hunger and the same work,” Campbell said after the game, “which is a whole ‘nother thing once we get to the offseason, then we’ve got no shot of getting back here.”

Campbell knows the stakes, what the team has done, and what they will have to do.

Though defeated this year, Detroit fans get to have that new feeling of hope. The Lions will no longer be written off as a bad team — they are now contenders. They were No. 1 in the NFC and No. 2 overall, winning 12 of their 17 games. 

Lions tight end Sam LaPorta scored the most touchdowns among tight ends this season, hitting the endzone with 10, which is twice as many as Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. 

Lions quarterback Jared Goff was second-best in total yards and passed for the most yards in the postseason through the championship games. 

The Lions had the third-best receiver in total yards — “sun god” Amon-Ra St. Brown — who had 1,515 yards and 10 touchdowns on the season. 

David Montgomery tied for third place among running backs for most touchdowns in the season, taking 13 into the end zone. 

The Lions had the third-best offense, according to Fox Sports, and the 19th-best defense. At least the latter was still better than my Commanders, who were given that honorable last place among defenses. 

People can hate on the Lions for being comically bad in years past — and justifiably so. Just three years ago they went 3-13-1. But they were undeniably good this year, and it was not just a fluke.

Next year, the Lions will still have to prove they can make a lasting legacy of greatness past just this year. 

But this time when Detroit fans say “Hey, maybe the Lions will be good this year!” it is not just some self-deprecating joke or some illogical cope — it’s real. 

The Lions are young, healthy, talented, and finally motivated with past success. 

Here’s to a new dynasty. 

Here’s to the Detroit Lions.