NFL: It's time for the Detroit Lions to fire head coach Matt Patricia

'The Man with the Pencil Behind His Ear' was acclaimed as a defensive genius when he arrived as head coach of the Detroit Lions in 2018.

Those were the days.

Heading into the 2018 season, the Detroit Lions franchise thought they had found a savior who would finally take the long-beleaguered team to The Promised Land.

As a prized pupil of Bill Belichick, Matt Patricia was one the most highly coveted coordinators in the NFL. He already had three Super Bowl rings as an assistant in New England. He'd been an architect of some of the most ingenious plays in post-season history, and was considered a natural choice to eventually become a head coach.

So when the Lions thought that Matt Patricia could bring that same Boston brashness to Detroit, they quickly handed him the keys to the Motor City's football team.

NFL: Hopes were high when the Detroit Lions hired Matt Patricia

Patricia, although highly regarded, was a controversial pick when he took the reigns of the Detroit Lions. Outgoing coach Jim Caldwell had been pretty successful, compiling a 36–28 record, and had been a stabilizing force for the franchise.

But the Lions were never great or particularly exciting during Caldwell's tenure, and so he was let go and the team brought in the decorated Patricia from the dynasty that was the Patriots.

Patricia was also inheriting a pretty good team. Led by quarterback Matthew Stafford, the Detroit Lions had gone 9-7 the season before. So any fuel that Patricia could add to the fire would be only be good, right?

That was then. This is now...

Following an embarrassing 41-21 thrashing at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, the Lions are a pathetic 12-26-1 under Patricia's watch. They're also 3-4 this season and look nowhere near close to being a legitimate contender.

There have been many dark days in Detroit since Matt Patricia became head coach in 2018

NFL: The Detroit Lions have another overhyped Bill Belichick assistant

Like many of Bill Belichick's former assistant coaches, Patricia appears to be all hype, and no hope.

Following in the footsteps of names like Josh McDaniels and Eric Mangini, it looks like he was only effective when he had 'Papa Bill' standing next to him.

In his short tenure, Patricia has been a total breakdown for the Detroit Lions. He was supposed to be a savior for a team in need of one. But, he's done nothing to jump-start the organization since Caldwell's departure.

His time on the sidelines has been something worse than mediocrity; it's been an era in which there's been no charge in the battery, and no reason to even bother kicking the tires.

So after watching the broken-down 'Matt Patricia Experiment' for the Detroit Lions, it's time to scrap it now.

For a team that prides itself on being from the "Automotive Capital of the World," it's pretty clear that they bought a lemon.