I don’t think there is a word to describe how I and every other Detroit Lions fan were feeling last night when the Lions sealed the deal. There were tears flowing, shared hugs between strangers, and an unfamiliar feeling of all the pain watching the same old Lions fading away. For the first time in 30 years, Detroit is going to the second round of the playoffs.

Yes, we did win the game over the Los Angeles Rams 24-23, but it was the most stressful game that I have ever watched. Questionable calls from the officials were given but it went both ways if I’m being honest. It came down to brass tacks, and the Lions were the better football team that day. That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.                                                               

Before I get into the game statistics and all that jazz, I want to talk about the whole Matthew Stafford situation. If you’re not familiar, people said that there shouldn’t be anybody wearing Stafford Lions jerseys and Matt Stafford is no longer our quarterback. Some people took it a little further than others, but in all honesty, it’s playoff football. In this case, all courtesies go out the window.

When Stafford walked out for the game, the stadium raised a hefty number of boos for the former Lions quarterback. If you look at the comments on social media videos, people weren’t happy with Lions fans. But let me ask you this, what do you want us to do? You can’t cheer for the opposing quarterback and you can’t have any reaction at all, so might as well let the guy have it all.

To be fair, it didn’t really phase the guy at all. Stafford threw for 367 yards and two touchdowns, connecting with Puka Nacua for 181 yards and a score. Tutu Atwell also had 38 yards and a trip to the endzone in the second quarter. Shoutout to the Rams kicker for putting up 11 points. Respectfully, the guy is a legend.

Speaking of legends, let’s just take a minute to thank Jared Thomas Goff. ‘Twas a clean game from the man. 277 yards on 22 completions for a touchdown is efficient as all get out. Think about how Goff is the first quarterback to lead this team to an NFC North Championship, break the seven-year playoff drought, and finally get the first playoff win in 30 years. That’s my quarterback!

Sam LaPorta had the only receiving touchdown for the Lions along with 14 yards. The real work horses were Amon Ra St. Brown, Jahmyr Gibbs, and David Montgomery. St. Brown picked up 110 yards on seven catches, Gibbs scampered into the endzone to go with his 25 yards, and Montgomery chalked up a touchdown and garnered 57 yards.

Talking defense, if you look at the stat sheet, you would be worried for this upcoming week. No sacks on the board, which is not the worst thing; but there was some solid pressure and the defense was able to hold the Rams to field goals. When Los Angeles was driving, the red zone defense stepped up. That side of the ball will be a huge factor in this upcoming week.

As I am writing this, it’s Monday morning on the 15^th, so I don’t know who we’re playing just yet for sure. It could be either the Philadelphia Eagles or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Personally, I would rather play the Bucs since we beat them in the regular season, but I’m not too scared to play the Eagles. They had one of the easiest schedules in the NFL this season and they still finished in the wild card spot.

We live to fight another week and we live to see another playoff game coming to Detroit. I fully expect this next week to be even louder, more passionate, and more ruthless for whoever comes to town. If I had to predict, I would say that we’ll be facing Philly, but only time will tell.

It’s going to take all of us to notch another ‘W’ in the column. Whether you’ll be in the stands at Ford Field, at a bar watching the game with fellow die-hard fans, or parked on your couch, get ready to back the Honolulu Blue. History has been made ladies and gentlemen, but the ink hasn’t dried up, and the Lions are still writing their story.