Our NFL report card for the 2015-2016 season will be assigning a letter grade to each of the 32 teams and offering an explanation why that grade was chosen. After the evaluation, we will point out one specific area the team will need to address this off-season. Want some extra credit? Comment down below what grade YOU would give the team, and tell me on Twitter (@FantasyFlurry) your thoughts on the team’s report card for that day!

This was an up-and-down season for the Lions. They started the year 1-7 and seemed to have no hope. They decided to clean house a bit by firing three coaches, the general manager, and the team president. This seemed to help since they finished the season by winning six of their final eight games. Statistically, the offense was middle-of-the-road. The main reason for this was the overall good health of Matthew Stafford, Calvin Johnson, the running backs, and most critical players on the offensive line. Rookie running back Ameer Abdullah showed his explosiveness early, but ball security became a major issue. Now that Calvin Johnson is retired, this offense will finally be able to develop an identity outside of just throwing the ball to Megatron.

This defense really missed the play-making ability of DeAndre Levy at linebacker this season. The only consistent big-play producer was defensive end Ezekiel Ansah. He had the best season of his career with 14.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. Interceptions were hard to come by for the Lions since they finished with only nine.

Final Grade: C

Biggest Off-Season Need?

The Lions need to find an offensive tackle to help protect Stafford, who was sacked 44 times (10th-highest in the league). It’s hard to get in a rhythm when you are always hit behind the line of scrimmage. That goes for both quarterbacks and running backs.

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