Detroit Lions punter Jack Fox will sit down Sunday and join the of millions of people who will tune into Super Bowl 59 between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
But he's not looking forward to it and predicts it will be just as painful as tuning into the NFC championship game between the Eagles and Washington Commanders two weeks ago. The Lions earned the NFC No. 1 playoff seed after going 15-2 in the regular season but were upset at home by Washington in the divisional round.
"It's been tough," Fox said about the earlier-than-expected end to the season at the grand opening of a Raising Cane's fast-food restaurant in Canton. "Obviously, super disappointing how the season ended. For me, it's really tough to watch other teams play when our goal is to still be playing right now. It's always really tough when the season's over but it was probably a little bit tougher this year. ... I'll probably end up watching. It'll be tough to watch but I'll watch it."
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After overcoming each obstacle during the regular season, Detroit unraveled in the divisional round. The Lions battled through waves of defensive injuries, particularly in the front seven in the second half of the season, and survived a historically close division race that came down to Week 18 against the Minnesota Vikings. Against Washington, however, the offense turned it over five times, and the defense could not contain quarterback Jayden Daniels.
The Lions return most of their starters, Fox included, for 2025. Detroit will have to replace offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who both took head coaching jobs the week after the season ended, and find a way over the hump in the playoffs after coming up short of the Super Bowl the last two seasons.
Fox said he's "really happy" for Johnson and Glenn to receive the opportunity and has full confidence in new offensive coordinator John Morton, who joined from Denver after previously working for the Lions in 2022, and defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, who was promoted from linebackers coach.
"They are both excellent people, just like the last guys, and great football coaches," Fox said. "I'm really excited to see how they operate as coordinators and I'm sure they are going to be great at it."
Fox, kicker Jake Bates and long snapper Hogan Hatten are a few of the Lions' players who will maintain their primary coordinator in special teams coach Dave Fipp. At the end of the season, Fipp said he loves working as a special teams coordinator and his only aspiration was to maintain his current position.
"I get to coach every player on the team, I get to be involved with a lot of different aspects of the game, offensive, defense, or offensive plays, defensive plays, offensive players, defensive players, and I really can’t imagine not having that to be honest with you," Fipp said ahead of the divisional round. "It’s my passion. I’m trying to — my goal is to keep my job and I mean that."
"(Fipp) is just an incredible leader," Fox said. "And he really does a great job of just connecting with everybody, different situations, different positions."
Fox spoke on the aftermath of the Lions season after he served as the celebrity guest for the grand opening of the new Raising Cane's in Canton. He cut the red ribbon, served a drive-thru meal and helped announce giveaways at the new chicken join before accepting a $2,500 donation on behalf of the Kirk Gibson Foundation. The crowd, filled with Lions jerseys, roared when Fox emerged from the restaurant to announce the 20 winners of free chicken for a year.
"I had no idea that there's that many Jack Fox jerseys in the public," Fox said. "I thought my parents had all of them."
He just returned from Orlando, where he served as one of the Lions' six participants in the annual Pro Bowl. He lost his punting challenge to Jacksonville Jaguars punter Logan Cooke in double overtime but said he was happy to put on a show and enjoy the warm weather with his teammates.
It was the second time Fox has been named a Pro Bowler, who also made first-team All-Pro for leading the NFL in punting net average with 48.8 yards per kick. He first reached the NFL's All-Star game in 2020 as a rookie, but the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the event. This was the first year he got to experience the festivities and play with teammates like quarterback Jared Goff, who was named offensive MVP and running back Jahmyr Gibbs alongside the league's other stars.
"This one really felt like my first one," Fox said. "It was cool having five other guys there. It was incredible. We spent a lot of time together and it was fun."
The full Lions roster is officially on to their offseason after wrapping up their Pro Bowl responsibilities. They return to the field this spring to prepare for the 2025 season with added incentive from the playoff loss.
"Our team is made up of the right people and I believe everybody's motivated to finish this thing the right way like we know we can," Fox said. "I just think people are probably motivated more than ever now."
Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X @jared_ramsey22, and email him [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions punter Jack Fox plans to watch Super Bowl to use as 'motivation' in 2025
2025-02-04T18:15:00Z