The Detroit Lions dropped their fourth Thanksgiving Day game in a row, this time to the Houston Texans, and the coach Matt Patricia era looks like it is slowly coming to a close.
When Patricia was hired, he was touted for his defensive acumen. His multiple look defense was designed to confuse offenses and be capable of adjusting on the fly — constantly playing matchup football.
Unfortunately, outside of a few sporadic events, the defense has failed to deliver on its potential.
Last week against the Carolina Panthers, the Lions shifted from a heavier defensive front to more linebacker looks. The defense gave up 20 points to an offense relying on a backup quarterback and running back. Injuries played a part in this move, but this is a shift we have seen from Patricia in the past.
Yesterday, the Lions marched out the same exact defense, and unsurprisingly, they were gashed again — this time to the tune of 41 points.
The biggest flaw in this adjustment: The Lions linebackers are arguably the worst part of this defense and are routinely exposed in the passing game.
The Texans, who are one of the worst rushing offenses in the NFL, simply moved away from the run and put the ball in quarterback Deshaun Watson’s hands allowing him to throw the ball all over the field.
The frustrating part of this approach by the Lions is that this was entirely predictable. On last week’s Detroit Lions Breakdown podcast, I correctly predicted there would not be a change in the Lions defensive game plan — and it was this obvious to me, it was absolutely obvious to the Texans coaching staff.
Is this a sign that the Lions coaches are failing to adjust their game plan because they aren’t aware they need to or does this point to a staff that is worn down and slowly giving in to a lost season? Either way, it looks like it’s going to be a long December.
On to this week’s snap counts.