general manager Brad Holmes wrapped up his team's season that ended in the and looked ahead to the future for the franchise, speaking for 11-plus minutes and delivering a me sage before taking a question."I dont want anybody to think that this was a one shot, Cinderella, magical journey that just happened," Holmes said Monday at his season-ending news conference. "No, its real. This is exactly what Atlanta Braves Blank Jersey was supposed to happen."I understand that based on history from whats happened in the past, I understand you have a season like this, its easy to feel like this was kind of a one shot, magical, lucky, cute story, which Im tired of hearing. It was none of that."ADVERTISEMENT The Lions were preseason favorites to win the NFC North, and lived up to Tom Glavine Jersey the hype with their first division title in three decades.Detroit won two playoff games in one postseason for the first time since 1957 before becoming the first NFL team to lose a 17-point halftime lead in a conference title game with a 34-31 lo s at San Francisco."Look, that was a disappointment that we didnt make it," Holmes acknowledged. "And again, that wasnt a, 'Man, we got lucky. No, thats what we expected and fell short, but still accomplished a lot."Detroit had its best season in generations largely because it had more hits than mi ses in the draft the past three years under Holmes, who began Luke Jackson Jersey reshaping the long-suffering franchise by selecting offensive tackle at No. 7 and and receiver No. 112 overall in the 2021 draft.Three years later, both players earned spots on ."We just finished the 2023 season, so thats when youre supposed to grade a draft not the day after a draft," Holmes said. "But when you look back at those picks, and those picks were not welcome by many in this room, you wanted us to pick a quarterback."You didnt want us to pick Penei Sewell. People didnt want us to wait until the fourth round to draft a wide receiver."The Lions, like all Jonny Venters Jersey NFL teams, will look much different next season after making additions in free agency, via trades and the draft. There will also be players leaving for more money or others simply won't have an option to come back.Detroit, though, will have both offensive coordinator Danny Santana Jersey Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn return after they were candidates to .Holmes will have some choices to make soon, deciding whether to re-sign free agents and on the offensive line along with in the secondary.Reporting by The A sociated Pre s. FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience Detroit Lions National Football League