Detroit Lions Play Chicago Bears in First Monday Night Football Game in 10 Years

It’s been a decade since the Detroit Lions have appeared on Monday Night Football. Why? Well, no one really wanted to see them play. But now the Lions are 4-o and if they beat the Chicago Bears tonight, they’ll be off on their first 5-0 start in more than half a century.

Kicker Jason Hanson, who will be playing his 300th game with the Lions tonight, was on the Lions the last time they play on Monday Night Football in 2001 against the St. Louis Cardinals. In that game, the Lions lost 35-0.

Hanson said:

“Wow, it has been that long… Monday Night Football is the NFL’s showcase game and it’s exciting that people want to see us play on it again.”

The Lions are just one of six teams to have four wins so far this season. The Lions and division rivals the Green Bay Packers are the only teams to currently be undefeated. The Associated Press reports that if the Lions win tonight, it will be their first 5-0 start since 1956.

But the Lions could have a tough time against the Chicago Bears. The Bears are just 2-2 at the moment, but they do have history on their side. The Bears have defeated the Lions in their last 6 match-ups. The Bears are also in a dire need for a win if they want to get back to the NFC title game.

Chicago Linebacker Lance Briggs said:

“It’s a game that puts us right in the mix or will set us back three games. This is a must-have. We have to have it. Period.”

Win or lose, it looks like the Lions are going to be heading to the playoffs this year for the first time since 1999. STATS LLC reports that 70 percent of teams who have won their first four games have made the playoffs since Chicago’s 4-0 start in 1933.

So will the Detroit Lions be able to earn their first 5-0 start in more than a half a century? Or will the Chicago Bears break the streak tonight on Monday Night Football? Or has the abrupt dismissal of Hank Williams Jr. left you too depressed to even think about football on a Monday night?