ALLEN PARK – Sitting at 7–5 and third in the NFC North, the Detroit Lions are not where they expected -- or wanted -- to be heading into Week 14.

Entering the season, the Lions were one of a select group of teams viewed as legitimate Super Bowl contenders.

Instead, they now find themselves on the outside looking in at the NFC playoff picture, sitting eighth in the conference with the Dallas Cowboys (6–5) right behind them at ninth -- a team they host in a pivotal Thursday night matchup at Ford Field.

Despite the hurdles ahead and the shrinking margin for error, Lions coach Dan Campbell insists the sky is not falling.

“Yeah, I don’t think in those terms. I just, I don’t, I can’t. I’m just — that’s not how I think. The guys that we have here are here for a reason,” Campbell said Tuesday.

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