Remembering the 1942 Detroit Lions on Memorial Day, a team that lost more than just football games

It's Memorial Day, and this is a day that we remember and mourn those who were lost in battle. It felt right to tell the story of a Detroit Lions team and its players that have been largely forgotten by time. 

The Lions went 0-16 in 2008, and it was embarrassing, and is still imposing some trauma all these years later, despite the Lions being a really good team. But that wasn't the only winless team the Lions had. They went 0-11 during the 1942 season.

The reasons for this are significantly different. In 1942, we were a country that was at war. At this time, athletes would often go off to fight with their fellow countrymen. This meant just about everyone, even the good players. Like All-Pro running back Whizzer White. 

The NFL discussed suspending play, but didn't after it was decided that continuing sports would be good for the country during wartime. 

The Lions were so bad during this season. They got shut out five times and never scored more than seven points in a game. It was so bad that their head coach Bill Edwards, straight up quit after three games. 

Losses on the football field are bad, but there's nothing worse than losses on the football field. Multiple Lions players who left Detroit to fight in the war lost their lives. Two players did. 

• TE Charlie Behan: Died in Okinawa in 1945
• OT Alex Ketzko: Died in France in 1944
• HB Chett Wetterlund: Died in plane crash on Naval base in New Jersey

All these years later, there probably aren't a lot of people who remember this team that played 83 years ago, but it's just a reminder of how different things were at that time and how the whole country was able to come together. 

Thank you to all those who served.