The Detroit Lions appear to be on the verge of making the playoffs again and ending one of the worst current droughts in the NFL after a promising 2022 season, an excellent free agency period, and a quality draft that addressed many needs.

There are probably a lot of people out there that already count the Lions as a lock to make the playoffs in 2023 and go further than this baseline, but going into this with the history in mind is important.

The Detroit Lions don't need to buy in to their own fanfare and lose before the season starts because they believe the year will be a cake walk. With that being said, here are the three most important players for the Lions to make it back to the playoffs in the upcoming season.

Player 1-Jared Goff: There is no position in the sport more important than quarterback. The NFL has become a pass-heavy league that values offense above all else, so Goff stepping up to the plate under some of the brightest lights of his career is key.

2022 showed us that Goff is still capable of some very high level football when the stars align, and 2023 is going to show us whether or not this is the guy to lead the franchise into the future successfully. The Lions need Goff to be great if they really want to reach their truest heights.

Player 2-Cameron Sutton: In an NFL that values the pass and generally scores points at ease, having a good secondary to at least slow down opposing offenses is important.

Sutton appears to be the CB1 for the Lions heading into the season and is coming off one of the best years of his career. Assuming the new addition for the Steelers is able to conjure up anything close to the level of play he showed in 2022, this Lions team is going to be far closer to making the playoffs with a defense that doesn't get scored on every single series.

Player 3-Aidan Hutchinson: Sticking with value players and on the defensive side of the ball, a good pass rush is going to be vital to turning this defense around and making life easier for the secondary, so Hutchinson is going to have to build on his promising rookie year.

More consistency from the other players on the line will certainly help, but Aidan Hutchinson is good enough to carry the entire group on his own, and that may be what he has to do this year to make sure the Lions make it back to the playoffs.