Something's Gotta Give, Right?

Well, the Lions are now 2 and 0 and one of the big stories of the young NFL season (thank you Buffalo Bills for sharing the "surprise" spotlight - without you I think Ford Field may have melted under the scrutiny), and the Tigers have won their first Division Title since 1987 (and first ever as a part of the AL Central).

We, Detroit sportsfans, find ourselves in increasingly foreign waters. As unfamiliar as this situation is, however, we should soon learn how to react.

By the time the Lions host the Bears for a Monday Night Football game - the first time the Lions will feature on MNF since 2001 - on October 10, we'll have a better understanding of how to behave. By that time, baseball's divisional series should be over and the ALCS will have just begun. The Tigers will either have ended their season without an August collapse and made it to the playoffs only to fall to a hotter/better team, or we'll be treated to yet another possible run to the World Series. Jim Leyland, having lost his bid in 2006 to become the 2nd manager to ever win the World Series with an AL and NL team, will either still be chasing that honor - and we'll all be smoking and crying with him - or he'll have survived another contract year and we can spend the off season thinking about what could have been (like we're used to).

The Lions will have had away games at Minnesota and Dallas to let us know whether they can actually make waves in the NFC or if we'll once again be looking at a top 10 draft pick (read: whether or not Stafford, Johnson and Best are still healthy)

So, while we are stunned and enjoying the view from the couch with silly confused smiles - not knowing whether we should dare dream of further glory - very soon we'll know whether we can legitimately expect continued competitiveness (Lions) and another shot to add to Tiger lore (statue of Verlander, anyone?) or if we can slump back to television black outs and woulda-coulda-shouldas. Till then, folks, let's just keep smiling and enjoy being in the national press every week.