'Super Bowl-or-bust': After heartbreaking loss, Lions confident they'll be back

Santa Clara, Calif. — Detroit Lions fans are used to holding on to the idea of next year — but not like this.

No, this is a different, fresh kind of pain. The kind of pain that only comes with accomplishing a lot, but not enough. The Lions were two quarters away from reaching the first Super Bowl in franchise history and let the opportunity slip away, allowing the San Francisco 49ers to erase a 17-point, halftime lead at Levi's Stadium in the NFC Championship before the home team finished the comeback, 34-31.

In what's been a once-in-a-lifetime season for many, Lions players were confident their accomplishments this season will become the standard.

"It's Super Bowl-or-bust. That was our mindset this year," linebacker Alex Anzalone said. "Even though the outside people didn't necessarily think that or believe that, inside, our team knows that's our standard, and that's going to be our standard going forward."

Lions running back David Montgomery, who never played a playoff game over four seasons with the Bears before signing in Detroit this offseason, reflected on what this season must have been like for fans while adding a promise to return to stakes like this.

"They deserve it," Montgomery said. "When it's a will to want for so long, been forever since they've had that feeling, when it comes afloat, you've gotta be sure you cherish it, but it's definitely not the last time they're going to feel it, because we'll be back."

Nothing about reaching the NFC Championship, snapping a 30-year division title drought, or winning two home playoff games was easy. But even so, Lions head coach Dan Campbell was a realist about the road ahead, saying reaching the NFC Championship will be twice as hard next year.

"I told those guys, this may have been our only shot. Do I think that? No. Do I believe that? No. However, I know how hard it is to get here," Campbell said. "I'm well aware. It's going to be twice as hard to get back to this point next year than it was last year. That's the reality. And if we don't have that same hunger, and the same work, which is a whole nother thing once we get to the offseason, then we've got no shot of getting back here."

Something would indicate the Lions plan on putting in the work. When offensive tackle Penei Sewell, the first draft pick of general manager Brad Holmes, was asked how this loss is going to motivate him, he said, "This s--t on, bro. That's all I gotta say."

nbianchi@detroitnews.com

@nolanbianchi