Lions face 'year of reckoning' in 2025, David Montgomery says - ESPN

ALLEN PARK, Mich. — David Montgomery says the Detroit Lions are «tired of being close» to winning a Super Bowl and declared the 2025 season as a «year of reckoning.»

After a franchise-best 15-win season in 2024, the top-seeded Lions fell short of their Super Bowl goal with a shocking loss against the Washington Commanders in their playoff opener.

«Everybody's tired of being close,» Montgomery said Sunday. «It's cool to be close at first, but you don't want to get comfortable with being close all the time.

»That's not what you want to be known for especially when you know you've got the guys you've got on this team. You want to finish it, so this is the year for us. The year of the reckoning and the year that we choose that we need to finish."

The Lions opened training camp Sunday at the Meijer Performance Center with a chip on their shoulder, despite coming off back-to-back NFC North titles.

The sting of last season's disappointing ending — a 45-31 home loss to Washington in the NFC divisional round — still doesn't sit well within the group, especially Montgomery, who has big goals this upcoming season.

«This is probably the hungriest that I have been because I feel like a lot of people kind of forget that I'm here in the offense, too,» said Montgomery, who rushed for 775 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. «So, I'm not here to prove anybody wrong, I'm here to prove myself right and be the best teammate that I can be

»But I've definitely got a big chip on my shoulder."

The Lions say they now share a common understanding of what it takes to complete the mission in Detroit, as head coach Dan Campbell has emphasized the importance of sacrificing early on to win it all.

«You don't work for almost. You work for the whole