We now know which team the Lions will close out their 2026 season with, and if you’re a longtime fan, you already know exactly how this is going to make you feel.
The news comes from Minnesota beat writer Ben Goessling, who reported that the Vikings will host the Bears for their Week 18 finale. Since every Week 18 game is divisional, that means the Lions will close out their 2026 regular season against the Green Bay Packers.
We don’t know yet which team hosts. Both Detroit and Green Bay finished last season on the road and had home finales in 2024. The NFL schedule gods will decide that particular brand of torture when the full slate drops Thursday night.
A Familiar December Dance
Here’s what makes this interesting beyond the obvious rivalry implications. Despite the league mandating divisional finales, the Lions and Packers haven’t closed out a season against each other since that iconic Sunday night game in 2022 when Detroit kicked Green Bay out of the playoff race with nothing to play for themselves.
That win was beautiful. The Lions had zero postseason hopes, but they showed up anyway and delivered a 20-16 gut punch that ended the Packers’ season. It was peak Dan Campbell football before we even knew what that meant.
Before that? These two teams made a habit of ruining each other’s Januaries. They met in Week 18 six times in a seven-year stretch from 2016-2022. Some of those games mattered. Some of them hurt. All of them felt like playoff games whether they were or not.
Campbell’s Finale Magic
The numbers tell a story that might actually make you optimistic, which should scare every Lions fan reading this. Since Campbell took over in 2021, Detroit is 6-4 against Matt LaFleur’s Packers. More importantly, the Lions have won every single season finale under Campbell. Five straight.
That streak includes games where they had everything to play for and games where they were playing spoiler. Campbell’s teams just show up in Week 18. They don’t mail it in, they don’t rest guys when they shouldn’t, and they don’t play scared.
The all-time series still favors Green Bay 108-78-7, because of course it does. This is Detroit Lions fandom. But the recent trend suggests something has shifted in Allen Park. These aren’t the same Lions that used to fold when the lights got bright.
The full schedule drops Thursday night. Until then, we get to sit here and imagine all the ways a Lions-Packers finale could go right or wrong. Knowing this fanbase, we’re probably already planning for both.
Are you ready for another December showdown with the Packers, or are you already stress-eating about Week 18? Let me know in the comments.
Ok so Dan Campbell hasn’t lost a season finale? That’s the kind of thing that actually makes me believe this team is different now. I’m not gonna lie, I’m fired up about this matchup already and it’s not even scheduled yet.
I like the optimism but let’s pump the brakes a bit. One season finale streak is cool but Packers in Lambeau if we end up there is always gonna be tough. I hope Campbell’s magic works but I’m not getting my hopes too high either.
Man you know what, this feels different than it used to. Back in my day we’d dread these games no matter what but now I actually feel like we can win this thing. Holmes and Campbell have done something special with this team that we haven’t seen in decades.
Week 18 against Green Bay is gonna be WILD. Campbell showing up in those big moments is exactly what this franchise needed. I’m nervous and excited at the same time which honestly feels pretty good for a Lions fan.