Coming off a 10-victory season and a berth in the playoffs, the Detroit Lions have compelled some fans to believe they are capable of being one of the NFL's better teams for a few years.
Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times thinks so, too.
Jensen published in late December a list of 30 key NFC Central Divison players under the age of 30. The Green Bay Packers led the way with 11 names on the list. The Lions were next with eight.
The Lions who made Jensen's list, with the writer's ranking of each player in the division.
WR Calvin Johnson (2)
QB Matthew Stafford (pictured) (5)
DT Ndamukong Suh (7)
DE Cliff Avril (11)
CB Chris Houston (19)
TE Brandon Pettigrew (21)
LB Stephen Tulloch (22)
S Louis Delmas (30)
No. 1 on Jensen's list was Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The Chicago Bears had six players on his list, and Minnesota had five.

Ray McCallum of Detroit and Trey Burke of Michigan are among the 20 finalists for the Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year award.
The honor, named for former Boston Celtics star Bob Cousy, recognizes the top point guard in college basketball.
The list of finalists will be trimmed to 10 in early February, and then to five by early March. The winner will be announced April 2 at New Orleans as part of the Final Four weekend.
McCallum (pictured) is a sophomore. He averages 14.6 points and 3.6 assists per game.
Burke is a freshman. He averages 14 points and five assists.