Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Through the first four weeks, the Detroit Lions aren’t a perfect team. In the first part of a new series, here are 5 reasons they could fall short of the Super Bowl. The NFL season lasts from September until February, and anything can happen. Things can change week in and week out. With the Detroit Lions on a bye week, I wanted to look at the team and where they stand a month into the 2024 campaign on the road to the Super Bowl. To get that out of the way, I wanted to start with the negatives and explain why the Lions may not win the Super Bowl this year. Don’t freak out just yet, I like to end things on a positive note and expect the opposite article to be out later in the week. You can put your pitchforks away once you look at both sides. You can’t just look at the negatives alone, and the same goes for the positives; you need to be balanced. Let’s go into what could trip up the Detroit Lions from winning their first-ever Super Bowl. Injuries Yes, every team deals with injuries, so this isn’t only an issue Detroit has. Hell, look around the league and see some teams have more significant problems than the Lions do for injuries. Nonetheless, Detroit is still dealing with a banged-up roster. The biggest piece out right now is center Frank Ragnow, who is a key cog in their offensive line. They did win without him against the Seattle Seahawks, but there are more games left to be played, so there is not much data to compare how the team does with and without him this season. Another big piece out is linebacker Derrick Barnes. I didn’t think his loss would have an impact, but it does seem to hurt the pass rush a bit with Barnes out because he isn’t alone on the injury front. The Lions are down starting defensive end Marcus Davenport for the season, and defensive lineman John Cominsky is on IR with a slate to return late this season. With three pass rushers down on the roster, someone else opposite Aidan Hutchinson will have to move up the depth chart and impress. The secondary has seen some hits, too, with cornerback Emmanuel Moseley and safety Ifeatu Melifonwu on IR with a slate to return. Melifonwu had a solid finish to 2023 with his playmaking ability, but his absence could be missed later this season when the team needs someone to step up. Tough schedule Coming off the bye week, Detroit goes down to play the Dallas Cowboys, a team they haven’t beaten since 2013, in a place they haven’t won since 2011. Even if Dallas is missing some key players, things seem to go awry when the Lions travel to Jerry’s world. Shifting focus to the NFC North now, and it will be more challenging than initially thought heading into this season. I thought Detroit would sweep the Minnesota Vikings and split with the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, but now things could change. The Vikings are undefeated, and quarterback Sam Darnold is playing the best he has ever played. Former Lion T.J. Hockenson will return to the team soon to give them another weapon in the passing game. The Lions could split the series with the Vikings this season after all. Despite being 2-2, Green Bay kept it close with the Philadelphia Eagles and almost came back down by 21 to beat Minnesota. They don’t give up, and they have a formidable roster. The Bears still seem to have more questions than answers, so maybe they’re the team Detroit could sweep. While the Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Indianapolis Colts are .500 or worse, they won’t be easy to take down. The Titans have a tough defense, the Jaguars have some weapons on offense, and the Colts have a dual-threat quarterback in Anthony Richardson, who isn’t afraid to take the deep shot. That leaves you with the Houston Texans, a team that is young, rebuilt, and gas a good head coach. The Buffalo Bills are surprising me, as I figured the offense would take a step back, but they still have quarterback Josh Allen, who is doing his best to win those team games. Even though the San Francisco 49ers are banged up right now, they will get healthy and back on track when the teams play near the end of the season. Detroit is a good team, but their schedule isn’t a joke the rest of the way. It’s a good thing they started 3-1 because every win matters, and it’s good to get them early and get ahead rather than come from behind. Secondary woes One of the big storylines for the Lion’ defense this season so far has been rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold’s struggles. While he has done well with some pass deflections, he has gotten a bit handsy and called for eight penalties. If teams know they can get a free first down and a big chunk of yardage, they could target his assignment often and see what they can get. Detroit’s passing defense is their weakness, as they have allowed the fourth most passing yards in the NFL. This isn’t the same secondary the Lions have had in 2022 and 2023. There IS improvement, but there are some issues right now that must get cleaned up soon, or else it could end up costing the Lions several games. With teams knowing they can’t run the football on Detroit, they might throw it more often and target a secondary that seems to be struggling. Lack of discipline One of the biggest issues the Lions collectively have is that they can’t seem to escape the officials with penalties. Last season, the Lions were called for 107 penalties, ranked 13th in the NFL. This season, the Lions have already been called for 31. With the team averaging just under eight a game, they are on pace for 132, up 25 from the previous season. Despite the flags, there has yet to be one that decided a game. But a game with a bunch of penalties can add up and be a factor in the end. It shouldn’t be a weekly thing for the Lions to overcome bad officiating or several penalties they commit; they need to play smarter and cleaner football. Part of that falls on the coaching staff teaching the players to play smarter. The coaching staff themselves are the reason for two of the flags, too. Against the Seahawks, they had too many men in the huddle. Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, too many men were on the field before halftime, which eliminated the chance for the Lions to kick a field goal—three points that arguably cost Detroit the game. Offensive line step back Despite being one of the best offensive lines last season and upgrading with the addition of Kevin Zeitler at right guard, the Lions offensive line seems to have taken a little step back. Sure, the running game is doing well, but overall, it doesn’t seem like the offensive line is as good as it should be. The urgency for the offensive line to perform at its best is heightened by its crucial role in the team’s success. It doesn’t help that the team is without Ragnow due to an injury, but even before the injury, Ragnow wasn’t at his best. According to PFF, Ragnow had a 71.8 offensive grade, 82.2 run-blocking grade, and 47.1 pass-blocking grade. That is a big step back from last season when Ragnow had an 88.8 offensive grade, 91.3 run-blocking grade, and 70.3 pass-blocking grade. Left guard Graham Glasgow is another player that has taken a small step back in his PFF grades, down from 74.9 to 66.9 overall, down from 82.1 to 66.9 on run blocking, but his pass blocking has improved up from 54.8 to 65.7. Left tackle Taylor Decker, despite his grades taking a small step back too, has already allowed three sacks this season, compared to eight last year. He is on pace to allow 12 this season, which would be a career-high. Overall, the offensive line has some work to do, and they need to improve to get back to where they were last season—most importantly in the pass-blocking game. With an upgrade on the offensive line, those numbers should improve, not stay what they already were. If the Lions run into a strong pass rush soon, it could cost them a game if they can’t keep quarterback Jared Goff upright.