Once again, the Detroit Lions are cleaning house.
The organization confirmed Saturday that head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn have both been fired. The decision comes two days after a blowout 41-25 loss on Thanksgiving to the Houston Texans, which dropped the team to 4-7.
Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell will serve as the team’s interim head coach.
Neither move comes as a huge surprise at this point. Patricia simply has not succeeded as the Lions’ coach. He departs with a record of 13-29-1 over parts of three seasons. He did not post a winning season or make the playoffs during his tenure.
Quinn took over as the Lions’ GM in January 2016. The team went 9-7 and made the playoffs in his first season, but have not done so since, with the record getting progressively worse during his tenure. In addition, Patricia was his hand-picked coaching hire after the firing of Jim Caldwell on the heels of a 9-7 season in 2017. The Lions have not put together a winning season since.
Ownership made clear that Quinn and Patricia were expected to deliver a contending team in 2020. They did not come close to doing so. Judging by comments made by the team’s most prominent player, the writing was very much on the wall.
