Category: Film Room

4 things I learned from the Lions Week 13 film review

On Matthew Stafford’s brilliance, bad Lions run defense, OL play and more

The Lions knocked off the Chicago Bears in a thrilling comeback victory in Week 13. Detroit balled out for interim coach Darrell Bevell in upsetting the division rivals and finally beating Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky, the most celebrated foil of now-fired coach Matt Patricia.

There was a lot to discover from the all-22 coach’s film of the game. After poring over the coach’s film and another viewing of the broadcast feed, here are a few things I picked up on the Lions.

Film Room: Examining what Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions

Lions Wire is back in the film room, this time examining what newly acquired EDGE Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions.

Lions Wire is back in the film room, this time examining what newly acquired EDGE Everson Griffen brings to the Detroit Lions.

The Lions defensive philosophy has always centered around stopping the run first and pressuring the quarterback second. Their 3-3-5 scheme is designed to disguise where the fourth pass rusher is coming from, but for the first two years and four games of coach Matt Patricia’s tenure, their disguise has been fairly transparent.

But coming out of the Lions’ Week 5 bye, they shifted their approach upfront, have been extremely creative with their linebacker intentions/disguises and found ways to incorporate bigger defensive linemen on early downs.

This bigger approach to the defensive line has led to more success against the run and opened up more pass-rushing opportunities for EDGE rushers Trey Flowers and Romeo Okwara — and they’re getting to the ball.

In fact, the only flaw in the system right now is a lack of depth beyond Flowers and Okwara, as both reserve EDGE rushers are currently injured. Julian Okwara was placed on injured reserve and is out through at least Week 9 and Austin Bryant is practicing, but still on the PUP list while the team evaluates his health.

This lack of depth and re-focused attention for bigger bodies on the line led to general manager Bob Quinn searching the trade market for help, and he got it in a big way when he landed Griffen.

Griffen has a lot of similar traits to Flowers and Okwara, and his experience could fill a massive need with the Lions’ new approach.

In this film room, we’ve highlighted six plays from Griffen’s 2020 season with the Dallas Cowboys, that best illustrate a variety of ways he will be able to immediately contribute in Detroit.

Setting the edge against the run

  • Situation: 1st and 10, 4:28 into 1st quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Set the edge
  • Results: Sets the edge, reads the RB, pursues and makes the tackle

Note: Be sure to have your sound on the video for analysis 

Setting the edge against the pass

  • Situation: 1st and 10, 2:22 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Set the edge 1st, rush the passer 2nd
  • Results: Engages TE, sets the edge, keys on the QB/RB exchange, recognizes pass, disengages from TE, gets a QB hit

Pass rushing from the 9-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 4, 4:28 into the 1st quarter
  • Griffen: LDE, Wide-9
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Power to speed pass rush against the RT, pursue, and sack

Pass-rushing from the 7-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 13, 4:08 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 7T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Stresses the LT’s outside shoulder, gets upfield with speed to power, disengages, and sack

Pass-rushing from the 5-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 9, 8:06 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: RDE, 5T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Takes on LG with swim move, recognizes screen, tracks the ball, and makes the tackle on the WR

Pass-rushing from the 3-technique

  • Situation: 3rd and 16, 9:45 into the 3rd quarter
  • Griffen: 3T
  • Assignment: Rush the passer
  • Results: Attacks the A-gap, escapes the wash, redirects pursuit, pressures the QB, forces the incompletion with a QB hit

Conclusion

Griffen has the size (6-3, 273), speed (4.6 seconds 40 y/d), strength combination the Lions love to lean on in their edge rushers, and the positional versatility to allow the Lions to run the same scheme with him on the field.

Once he clears the COVID-19 protocols, he will likely find the field quickly, and as a 10-year veteran, he should have no time getting up to speed.

He will shift from a starting role in Dallas (roughly 55-percent of snaps) to a reserve role in Detroit, but he has the talent to be an impactful player — even if only as a pass rusher early. His 2.5 sacks and 18 quarterback pressures put him second on the Lions defense, behind only Okwara.

He may not be the havoc seeker we saw in Minnesota, but there is plenty of juice left in the tank, especially coming into a situation where he won’t be asked to hold down a starting role and can instead focus his efforts/energy on situational work.

Film Study: How Jarrad Davis is finding success in his new role

Detroit Lions linebacker Jarrad Davis was demoted from his starting job three weeks ago, but he has settled into a new role and is thriving.

Three weeks ago, Detroit Lions linebacker Jarrad Davis was demoted from his starting job, and while it took a week to adjust to his new role, he has settled in over the last two weeks and has been playing some terrific football.

Davis was a four-year starter as an off-the-ball MIKE linebacker but he has always struggled with the staples in coach Matt Patricia’s scheme. Over the last two seasons, he was often guilty of misreading gaps, overpursuing plays, and his missteps would often put him out of position.

There is no doubting Davis’ athleticism, and his leadership has earned him love from the coaching staff — he is a team captain once again in 2020 — but after the first two weeks of the season, it was clear there were other linebackers on the roster who were performing better and he was benched.

Davis has been relegated to a fifth linebacker role and has only been on the field a handful of snaps — 15 in Week 3, 19 in Week 4, and 11 in Week 6 — but he is making those snaps count.

Over the last two weeks, Davis has been Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded Lions player, earning a 94.5 grade in Week 4 and a 95.2 grade in Week 6 — both in the elite range. Currently, Davis’ season grade of 81.1 is the 7th best among NFL linebackers with at least 85 snaps (He has 126 on the season).

So what has changed?

I took a look at all 11 plays from Davis game against the Jacksonville Jaguars and will break them down in this film study.

Setting the table

Davis didn’t enter the game on defense until the eight Jaguars drive and when the Lions were up 24-3 with 7:39 remaining in the third quarter. He played on five snaps on the eighth drive, one snap on the ninth drive, zero snaps on the tenth drive, and five more on the final drive of the game.

Snap 1

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position LB Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
8 1st and 10 WILL Tavai – MIKE Cover 3 Man coverage versus Tight End

Play result: Davis covers the tight end well, Jaguars QB Gardner Minshew takes a shot downfield for an incomplete pass.

Snap 2

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
8 2nd and 10 MIKE Tavai – WILL Cover 3 5-yard drop Zone coverage

Play result: Davis drops 5-yards deep in the middle of the field and Minshew finds the running back in the right flat. Tracy Walker gets outside contain on the back and Davis shows his range, pursues hard, properly breaks down, and squares himself for the tackle. The Jaguars gain just 3-yards.

Snap 3

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
8 1st and 10 WILL Tavai – MIKE Cover 2 man Man coverage versus Fullback

Play result: Davis shadows the fullback during his route and when Minshew hits the running back underneath, Davis breaks off his coverage, squares the back, and sticks the tackle, forcing a fumble that lands out of bounds. Jaguars gain just 2-yards.

Snap 4

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
8 2nd and 8 MIKE Jones – JACK Cover 1 Man A-Gaps

Play result: Davis takes on the block from the center and holds his ground but he is not involved in the play as it goes to his left. Jaguars gain 0-yards.

Snap 5

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
8 1st and 10 WILL Tavai – MIKE Cover 3 Backside A/B Gap

Play result: Davis takes on the left guard, shows his burst with a quick lateral shift to his left, all the way over to the frontside A-gap, and makes the tackle on the running back. Davis’ stop is wiped out after Romeo Okwara was ruled offsides and the Jaguars accepted the penalty.

Snap 6

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
9 3rd and 10 JACK Collins – MIKE Cover 2 Zone Pass Rush

Play result: Collins bluffs the left guard leaving him blocking air and everyone else in one-on-one matchups. Davis is locked up on the right tackle, uses a bull rush to walk him back into Minshew, who has to escape a collapsing pocket. When Michshew scrambles, Davis disengages the tackle with a stiff arm, dives for the sack attempt, but just misses. He was awarded a QB hurry.

Snap 7

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
11 2nd and 2 JACK Collins – MIKE Ragland – WILL 2-3-6 Shell Pass Rush

Up 34-16 with just 4:32 remaining, the Lions are in a 2-3-6 shell the rest of the way, with Davis asked to only rush the passer.

Play result: Davis is stalled by left tackle and Minshew throws an incomplete pass.

Snap 8

Drive Down and Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
11 3rd and 2 JACK Collins – MIKE Ragland – WILL 2-3-6 Shell Pass Rush

Play result: Davis begins his rush upfield, stab-steps and drops inside the left tackle’s inside shoulder. Davis gets past him but the tackle gives him a shove in the back and it throws Davis off just enough to push him off his pursuit line. Minshew escapes the pocket and scrambles for the first down, but once again, Davis should get credit for a QB hurry.

Snap 9

Drive Down/Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
11 1st and 10 WILL Collins – Mike Ragland – JACK 2-3-6 Shell Delayed  pass rush

Play result: Davis drops back off-the-ball to the WILL, delays his pass rush, and is easily picked up by the right tackle.

Snap 10

Drive Down/Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
11 2nd and 10 JACK Collins – MIKE Ragland – WILL 2-3-6 Shell Pass Rush

Play result: Davis rushes the right tackle but instead of making a pass rush move, he disengages and plays contain. Minshew throws an incomplete pass, but Davis didn’t have an impact on the play.

Snap 11

Drive Down/Distance Davis Position Support Coverage Scheme Assignment
11 4th and 10 JACK Collins – MIKE Ragland – WILL 2-3-6 Shell Pass Rush

Play result: On the Jaguars’ final offensive play of the game, Davis lines up outside the right tackle and stunts inside through the frontside A-gap. Davis once again will get credit for a QB hurry but he misses his clean shot for a sack and Minshew escapes the pocket. The play is not over for Davis though, as he illustrates his relentlessness by getting up after his miss, pursuing Minshew with aggression, and forcing him to throw an incomplete pass.

Summary

Davis’ 11 snaps were split between the WILL (4), MIKE (2), and JACK (5) and he found success at each spot. Both of Davis’ tackles came from an off-the-ball position, one at the WILL and one at the MIKE, while he also managed to get credit for three QB hurries on five rushes from the JACK and one from the WILL.

Of course, some of his production can be attributed to the situations in which he is taking the field, but production is production. The Lions had 21 pressures on the day, Okwara had the most with four but he rushed the passer 35 times. Davis was second on the team and got his three on just six pass-rush opportunities.

Davis has shown more patience in coverage, has done a nice job squaring up for tackles, and discovered a couple of pass rushing moves for his toolbelt. He is still earning back his playing time, and while the Lions waited until they were up three scores before deploying him on the field, he is proving he deserves more playing time.

Lions rookies stayed quiet in season opener versus Bears

It was a quiet debut weekend for most of the Detroit Lions draft class of 2020

The Detroit Lions suffered an all-too-familiar loss to the Chicago Bears, leading for most of the game only to sputter out in the fourth quarter.

In the 27-23 loss, the bulk of the Lions’ rookies failed to make any positive impact on the field.

Right guard Jonah Jackson contributed the most out of anyone in Detroit’s 2020 rookie class, as he was the only one of that group to start against Chicago. He allowed a sack on Matthew Stafford and committed one penalty,  but ultimately held his own against Chicago’s fierce front seven.

Rookie running back D’Andre Swift didn’t see much action on offense, with just three carries for a mere eight yards, though one of those three carries did lead to a goalline touchdown to close out the first half. He also added fifteen more yards on three receptions. Though he helped the Lions early on, his dropped touchdown reception in the last moments of the game is all anybody will remember.

Quintez Cephus earned something extra playing time while Kenny Golladay sat out with an injury. The rookie was on the field for 79-percent of offensive snaps, the second-most of all skill positions on the team. Cephus was targeted ten times throughout the game but only was able to haul in three of those passes for a total of 43 yards.

Both Julian Okwara and John Penisini were used sparingly against Chicago, with neither of them being in the field for more than nine snaps on defense. The two rookies kept their names clear from the stat sheet as well.

Jeff Okudah and Hunter Bryant both missed out on the action due to injuries suffered during practice. Logan Stenberg was a game-day inactive.

 

What Bears can learn from Patriots to optimize Cordarrelle Patterson

As the Chicago Bears move Cordarrelle Patterson to running back, Matt Nagy should emulate how the New England Patriots used him in 2018.

Matt Nagy called himself “a kid in a candy store” when the Chicago Bears signed Cordarrelle Patterson last offseason.

Coming off of a season of “Willy Wonka” trick plays and refreshing creativity, Nagy’s system looked like a perfect fit for the do-it-all offensive weapon.

But the head coach lost his sweet tooth by Week 1, and Patterson had one of the least productive seasons of his career.

Nagy seems to have found his way back into the chocolate factory this summer, working Patterson with the running backs instead of the wide receivers, but optimizing this dynamic athlete takes more than a position switch.

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Josh McDaniels and the New England Patriots were the first to leave Patterson in the backfield, and Nagy doesn’t need to reinvent the licorice wheel.

Bill Belichick is known for simplicity, and Patterson’s success in 2018 was a direct reflection.

New England didn’t make him learn every aspect of the running back position. He was never used in pass protection and really only ran two different run concepts consistently. They didn’t ask him to do too much.

Patterson’s volume is always going to be limited as a result, but his game is about efficiency. The Patriots were picky about when and how to deploy him, but he finished 2018 among the NFL’s leaders in yards per carry.

The majority of his work at running back came across four games in the middle of the season. 30 of his 42 rushing attempts came in Weeks 8, 9, 10 and 12, with a bye week in between.

They came out of the gate in Week 8 against the Buffalo Bills with Patterson as their starting running back and leading rusher, to the surprise of Sean McDermott and the national television audience.

The Green Bay Packers spent the week preparing for Patterson in their Week 9 matchup, but Belichick and McDaniels waited until the end of the second quarter to unleash him again to try and catch their opponent off guard.

Most of Patterson’s runs from the backfield fit the same mold: some variation of the I-formation, running outside zone behind a fullback.

This combination of run concept and formation recreates the kind of situations where he is his best.

Once Tom Brady puts the ball in Patterson’s hands, it becomes a kickoff return. He builds up speed, his blocks are flowing horizontally, and he follows his lead blocker through the hole.

From that point, he’s running in the open field, and his Pro Bowl-caliber instincts take over.

The other concept the Patriots had Patterson run is a gap scheme commonly called Duo.

The offensive linemen block a man, rather than flowing together in zone, and the ball-carrier has one predetermined gap he runs through.

This allows a return man like Patterson to run downhill, again behind a lead blocker, to burst through a hole.

At 6-foot-2, 238 pounds, he wasn’t afraid to lower his pads and churn his feet for extra yards. It gave New England the confidence to use him as a goal line back.

These two run concepts, duo and outside zone, accounted for the majority of Patterson’s work as a running back, and most of those runs came out of the I-formation with James Develin leading the way.

Patterson’s return to the backfield in Chicago could be a sign that more I-formation is coming to Nagy’s offense. When he tried it out last season against the Los Angeles Chargers, David Montgomery had a season-high 135 yards on 27 carries.

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But maximizing Patterson’s value to the offense takes more than just a fullback and two run concepts. What made him so effective for the Patriots was knowing when not to use him.

Patterson can’t be an every-down running back. He can’t even be an every-game running back. Even New England used him more at wide receiver than in the backfield.

He needs to be used when the defense isn’t expecting him, and when they are expecting him, he needs to be deployed differently.

His explosiveness makes him a threat on every play, and McDaniels knew exactly how to use him as a decoy.

Once the Bills recognized him as the Patriots’ primary ball-carrier, Brady stopped giving him the ball. They didn’t want to become too predictable.

Instead, he would run pre-snap motion and fake the handoff. Multiple Buffalo defenders would follow him instead of the ball, and it created plenty of room for James White.

Patterson started 2018 as a wide receiver running screens and jet sweeps. Then he moved to running back when injuries depleted the Patriots’ backfield.

When Sony Michel and Rex Burkhead were healthy again, Patterson moved back to wide receiver and started running deep routes to stretch the field vertically.

Defenses never had enough time to adjust to what Patterson was doing before his duties would change again, but each of his roles were simple enough for him to learn quickly and execute at a high level.

It illustrated the simplistic genius of the Belichick system that keeps them one step ahead of their opponents.

The Bears were clearly a step behind with Patterson and their entire offense last season.

As Nagy again browses the candy shop, he shouldn’t load his goodie bag too full, but he needs to come back to Soldier Field with a few sweet treats to realize Patterson’s full potential.

For more discussion on Cordarrelle Patterson in the Chicago Bears’ offense, listen to today’s episode of the Locked on Bears podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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2019 Lions rewatch project: Week 14 notebook from Minnesota

One of the weakest efforts by a Lions team in the post-Millen era

After a bit of extended rest following the Thanksgiving loss to the Chicago Bears, the Lions packed up their game and headed out west to Minnesota. The 3-8-1 Lions limp into the beautiful new home of the Vikings in a rematch of Detroit’s most lopsided loss of the season.

The 8-4 Vikings enter the game coming off a tough loss to Seattle. They’re chasing the 9-3 Packers in the NFC North while also trying to stay above the 7-5 Rams in the race for the final NFC Wild Card spot. Detroit was officially eliminated in Week 13.

Pregame notes

The Lions still have Matthew Stafford on the active roster but placed Jeff Driskel on IR. He’s replaced as David Blough’s backup by Kelly Sloter. CB/RS Jamal Agnew and DE Da’Shawn Hand are the only regulars who are inactive, though CB Rashaan Melvin is sitting out despite being active.

Minnesota is still without WR Adam Thielen, who injured himself catching a TD in the Week 7 matchup in Detroit.

Walt Anderson is the referee for the indoor game. The Lions are clad in their road white jerseys with blue pants, while the Vikings are in the purple tops and white pants.

Because this game was (spoiler alert!) never really competitive, I’m cutting back more on the play-to-play analysis and offering a more general vibe of who is playing well and what is/not working for Detroit.

First quarter

David Blough’s first two passes are batted down at the line of scrimmage. He’s sacked quickly on 3rd-and-10 when Jesse James flat-out fails in trying to block Danielle Hunter. Sam Martin’s booming punt is poorly covered, allowing a 17-yard return by Mike Hughes as both Tavon Wilson and Steve Longa got caught out of their lanes. The “uh-oh” feeling is already creeping up.

At least the Lions defense comes out sharp. Christian Jones nicely blows up a screen pass. A’Shawn Robinson smothers a stretch run where Jarrad Davis nicely sealed off the cutback lane. Darius Slay breaks up the final pass, a back-foot heave by Kirk Cousins who was under heavy pressure from a sweet A-gap blitz by Davis.

We see a bit of creativity on 2nd-and-10 during this drive. The Lions have all three DTs in the game–Damon Harrison, A’Shawn Robinson, John Atkins–all aligned right of the center and inside the tackle box. Devon Kennard is the lone EDGE on the left. Cousins simply rolls gently to his left and easily completes a short pass to TE Kyle Rudolph.

Another poor 3-and-out from the Lions offense. James again loses badly on a block, Blough misfires behind Marvin Jones.

The next Vikings drive is aided by Lions penalties. Slay gets flagged for holding (valid call) and later Tavai gets called for lowering the head to initiate contact as he ran into a scrum late. It’s a letter-of-the-law penalty and it sets up the Vikings TD.

The touchdown is a pass from Cousins to Bisi Johnson, who beat Amani Oruwariye in man coverage on a crosser in the back of the end zone. It’s not a great throw and the rookie CB gets a contest on it but Johnson hangs on and scores. Cousins had enough time to order a tea set in the pocket. The conversion makes it 7-0 Vikings.

The Lions finally get a first down on offense! A nice catch by Marvin Jones on a contested throw gains 18. Minnesota follows that up with a penalty to keep the chains moving but the Lions cannot capitalize. Receivers are not open and Blough has no time to throw, and it’s that way every snap.

Second quarter

I will not question effort, but I’ll just say this: the Vikings offensive line is not nearly as dominant as what the Lions defensive line is making them out to be. Watching Harrison, Mike Daniels and Robinson get pushed around and staying blocked in the run game is very frustrating. It’s especially notable on the first Vikings drive of the second quarter.

Robinson does make a nice TFL but it’s almost entirely RB Dalvin Cook’s own fault for ignoring the hole and bouncing the cut directly into big No. 91, with Wilson there to finish him. A similar thing happens on his next run; Cook tries to cut back inside and that gives a lining Harrison enough time to catch up and drop him at the line. If Cook keeps his line outside and follows his blocking he’s got a first down. That is where this game is at already–the only real Lions positives are when Vikings players screw up.

Scarbrough continues to be a bright spot. He gets nine yards on three carries on the Lions’ next 3-and-out. While that doesn’t seem successful, he’s maximizing yards. Isaac Nauta is in at fullback and on second down he throws a very nice cut block. The 3rd-and-1 is an uncreative nightmare. With 10 (10!) Vikings in the box and the Lions in a 3TE set, Scarbrough plows headlong into a scrum of bodies. Ragnow and Decker get push but the other OL-men are knocked backward. Easy stop on a bad offensive call.

Spotlight play on Jahlani Tavai: 2nd-and-8, 8:19 on the clock. Tavai is lined up as a JACK over left tackle but feigns (poorly I might add) a rush. He drops 3-4 yards deep and his assignment on the play is the RB Mattison, who holds in initially as a potential pass blocker and then released when Tavai doesn’t rush. Tavai is on top of it, flows well as Mattison starts to circle out to the left. But the rookie LB can’t take his eye off Cousins, who would have a wide open lane to run through between C and LG as the DL has been pushed aside. Tavai takes a full step inside to quell that notion, but it gives Mattison enough room to get free for the outlet pass. A diving Tavai cannot reach him to make the tackle, and Mattison rumbles for a first down, leaping over a terrible Wilson tackle attempt in the process. To make matters worse, Robinson gets injured while showing great hustle to chase the play down.

Cousins was never going to run. He wasn’t even thinking about it. When Tavai hedged inside, Cousins was looking for his TE down the middle (good bracket coverage by Jones and Will Harris here). If Tavai just stays on task with Mattison, this play almost certainly goes nowhere. Based on Cousins’ inside throw, Tavai might have even had a shot at an INT. Alas, none of that happened.

A nice red zone stand, aided by a Vikings penalty, keeps the damage to a field goal and it’s 10-0.

Detroit’s next drive is Minnesota’s chance to prove they can screw things up. Three separate defensive penalties, a great contested catch by Kenny Golladay and two nice Scarbrough runs behind Ragnow and Glasgow set the Lions up nicely in the red zone.

That’s where Blough shows his inexperience. On 3rd-and-2 from the MIN 15, Blough looks around from the shotgun. And looks. And looks. Nobody is even close to being open. After 4.4 seconds (I timed it twice) he gets sacked back at the 27. He has to throw the ball away. The lost yards prove critical when Prater slices the kick wide right. It would have been good from 33 yards but wasn’t at 45.

The Vikings pounce. Cousins finds Stefon Diggs deep against Slay. It’s been a pretty even battle on the day between these two but Diggs wins this one. It appears Slay played inside technique instead of outside, which nullified Harris’ over-the-top coverage help. The outside shoulder throw is where Slay should have been based on the help.

The 44-yard gain sets up a too-easy Cook TD off right tackle and it’s 17-0 hitting the half.

Third quarter

Both teams come out in the second half with the energy of a game that is already decided. The Vikings harmlessly and unaggressively run 3-and-out, and the Lions follow suit with a Jones drop on a low throw on third down. Then another 3-and-out for both teams, the Lions losing a conversion due to a (legit) Golladay illegal block penalty. The gnawing feeling that I should be doing something more constructive than watching these two teams go through the motions creeps in heavily.

We get some real action with a Blough interception. The rookie QB rolls to his left despite being under no real pressure and throws an off-balance wobbler over Golladay’s head. Easy pickings for Harrison Smith, who somehow injured CB Xavier Rhodes with a ninja kick while making the catch.

The Lions A-gap run defense continues to be a problem. The RB is getting to the second level too cleanly. Walker and Wilson are making first contact well past the line of scrimmage. The defense eventually holds when Harrison blows up a draw, forcing a 50-yard FG attempt. It’s good and it’s 20-0 at the end of the third, technically on the first play of the fourth quarter. This was Tavai’s best drive in weeks, including a devastating TFL where he perfectly shot the gap at the snap.

Fourth quarter

Blough and the Lions continue to try the quick-hit pass plays. He’s very accurate with his feet set on the short throws to the outside. THe drive stalls when Everson Griffen screams around Decker from a Wide-9 stance and sacks Blough untouched. Tyrell Crosby, in at right tackle, also got beaten badly on the play. After the play Decker and Ragnow discuss the protection like there was a miscommunication. At least Sam Martin’s punt is fantastic and pins the Vikings at their own 5.

Will Harris has generally had a strong game to this point, but he’s on the wrong end of the highlight reel on the ensuing drive. In Cover-3 zone, Harris closes too late on Laquon Treadwell, who makes the catch. Harris’ tackle attempt winds up with him being thrown to the ground after clinging to the big WR for 3-4 yards. Slay was within reach to help but just watched it happen.

Trey Flowers bags the Lions’ first sack by bulling right through ex-Lion Riley Reiff, now the Vikings’ LT. Really nice tight press coverage by Oruwariye forced Cousins to eat the sack instead of trying a throw.

It’s now the peak of garbage time and the Vikings defensive effort reflects that. With about five minutes to go, it’s clear the Lions want to avoid being shutout more than the Vikings care about shutting them out. Blough to Amendola on 1-2 read throws continues to move the chains. Decker and Joe Dahl at LT/LG make a couple of nice switch adjustments on rushes.

The Lions find the end zone when Blough zips a pass to a well-covered Golladay in the back of the end zone. CB Trae Waynes stumbled (Golladay got away with some pushing here) and it allowed Golladay to reach around him and catch it. Prater banks the extra point in off the left upright and it’s 20-7.

The onside kick–a good try by Prater–fails. So does the Vikings offense, inexplicably going for it on 4th-and-2 from near midfield. Robinson absolutely devours 4th-string RB Mike Boone in the backfield. The Lions get another shot.

Once again the first-read throws by Blough are very effective. The up-tempo offense finds first downs with completions to Golladay, Logan Thomas and Jones. Decker’s pass protection in obvious passing situations here deserves respect, he’s great on Griffen this entire drive. Blough gets greedy looking for Thomas up the seam and safety Andrew Sendejo picks it off in the end zone. Game over, thank goodness.

Good games

Tracy Walker, Bo Scarbrough, Danny Amendola (except for one drop), Taylor Decker (outside the miscue sack), Ty Johnson, Frank Ragnow, John Atkins, Amani Oruwariye in coverage, Jahlani Tavai vs. the run, Sam Martin

Bad games

David Blough, Marvin Jones, Matt Prater, Rick Wagner, Jesse James, Jahlani Tavai in coverage, Damon Harrison (mostly), Romeo Okwara, A’Shawn Robinson outside of two great plays, Kenny Golladay aside from his TD catch

If you’re down on Blough as the potential Lions backup QB, this is probably the game that you point to in validation. The rookie was very rough in his second start, taking coverage sacks instead of throwing the ball away and leaving some opportunities on the field. The line was a lot better than Blough made it appear in this one, too.

Film Room: Why Reggie Ragland is a perfect fit in the Lions scheme

With training camp practices on the horizon, it’s time to take a second look at LB Reggie Ragland and project how he will be used in the Lions scheme.

All offseason you’ve heard the expression, “Reggie Ragland is a perfect fit in the Detroit Lions scheme”, but I’m not sure I realized how good a fit he was until I dug deeper into his game film.

As a MIKE linebacker coming out of Alabama in 2016, Ragland (6-2, 252) gained Top-50 notoriety as an instinctive player who could line up at almost every linebacker spot on the field regardless of scheme, but his lack of athleticism and coverage skills would likely keep him out of the first round.

Sure enough, that scenario played out and the Buffalo Bills traded up to the 41st pick selected Ragland. They immediately plugged him into a starting at inside linebacker role in Rex Ryan’s 3-4 scheme, but an unfortunate ACL injury cost him his rookie season before it even began.

To make matter worse, Ryan was fired mid-season, replaced with Anthony Lynn who was let go at seasons end, and the Bills turned to Sean McDermott (their current coach) who runs an entirely different defensive scheme. It didn’t take long to realize Ragland wasn’t a fit in McDermott’s 43 scheme and he was traded to Kansas City during the Bills’ 2017 training camp.

Just three games into the Chiefs season, Ragland earned a starting role at inside linebacker and he would go on to start 10 games in 2017. In 2018, the Chiefs moved on from Derrick Johnson and asked Ragland to take on a bigger role. While he started 15 games, he struggled without Johnson, and his exclusively off-the-ball role proved not to be an ideal fit.

Here’s a look at where Ragland lineup pre-snap in 2018 via ESPN’s Seth Walder using Next Gen Stats:

In 2019, the Chiefs switched from defensive coordinator Bob Sutton’s 34 scheme to Steve Spagnulo’s 43 under scheme, and Ragland once again looked like the odd man out. To his credit, Ragland took the demotion in stride and worked his way into a rotational role, starting seven of the 14 games he played.

A new set of roles and responsibilities came with the scheme change and the Chiefs asked Ragland to spend less time strictly off-the-ball, and more time at the line of scrimmage stopping the run and pass-rushing.

Here’s a look at how his pre-snap role changed, via Walder:

To get a better understanding of the plots, here are four snaps from the first series Ragland played in the Super Bowl. In the first picture, he lines up at what would be the WILL in the Lions scheme — keep an eye on No. 59:

In this next picture, he is at the WILL at the LOS (line of scrimmage) outside the left tackle’s shoulder:

Here the Chiefs switched to a traditional 43 and Ragland lined up at the SAM:

In this final shot, he is once again at the WILL, but lined up (and blitzed) the B-gap:

Based on my film study of how the Lions used their linebackers in 2019, Ragland’s pre-snap plot chart looks very similar to how the Lions used Christian Jones — only with a bit more experience at MIKE:

It’s easy to see why Ragland’s versatility was so appealing to Lions coaches and how he fits in with this current linebacker group and scheme.

With the addition of Jamie Collins, the Lions appear to be shifting towards a more positionally fluid linebacker group. A quick glance back at the chart above and you can see Jahlani Tavai and Jones should have no problems adapting, giving the Lions at least four positionally fluid linebackers — with Ragland likely fourth among that group.

Working against Ragland making the Lions 53-man roster is the Lions’ love of Jarrad Davis, as well as Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Miles Killebrew’s special team dominance. If Davis can expand his role, he will join Collins, Tavai, and Jones as the top-4 options on the depth chart, leaving Ragland to battle Reeves-Maybin and Killebrew for one of the final one or two spots.

In my pre-training camp 53-man roster projection, I had the Lions keeping only five off-the-ball linebackers and sided with Reeves-Maybin over Ragland and Killebrew based on the Lions special teams preferences.

But, after giving more consideration to the Lions scheme, and relooking back at how Ragland can be deployed, I am starting to lean towards the Lions keeping six linebackers — with Ragland being the clear best defensive option.

By keeping Ragland, the Lions would enter the season with two MIKE linebackers (Tavai and Davis), two versatile WILL linebackers (Jones and Ragland), two developmental JACK linebackers (Julian Okwara and Austin Bryant), and the multipurpose Collins to roam through all three positions.

Things are far from settled, and Ragland is just as likely to beat out Reeves-Maybin for the Lions fifth linebacker spot as he is to lose the sixth spot to Miles Killebrew, but Ragland is such a perfect fit for the Lions scheme, it’s hard to bet against him.

Lions 2019 rewatch: Week 13 notes from the Thanksgiving loss to Chicago

The David Blough era kicks off with a tough loss on national television

Thanksgiving 2019 marked the beginning of the David Blough era as the starting quarterback for the Detroit Lions. Jeff Driskel had started the last three games, including a massive clunker of an effort in the Week 12 loss to lowly Washington. But Driskel is out for this one and in steps Blough, an undrafted rookie from Purdue acquired from the Browns after the preseason.

Blough’s performance in this matchup with the division rival Chicago Bears in the annual Thanksgiving national broadcast is the primary point of focus. We’ve reached the point of the season where the Lions, now 3-7-1, are playing more youngsters more frequently. It’s a chance to evaluate guys like Blough, RB Bo Scarbrough, CB Amani Oruwariye and TE Isaac Nauta in their more extensive playing time.

Pregame notes

Chicago enters the game at 5-6, having won two of its last three games. That includes the Week 10 win over Detroit in Chicago. The Bears defense is hot, allowing the 4th-fewest points of any team over the last six games.

In addition to Stafford and Driskel, starters Rashaan Melvin (CB), Jamal Agnew (RS) and Damon Harrison (DT) are all out with injuries. Chicago is missing regular starting RT Bobby Massie, replaced by ex-Lion Cornelius Lucas. Linebacker Danny Trevathan and wideout Taylor Gabriel are the other key missing Bears.

The Lions are in the all-silver color rush uniforms while the bears are in the road whites with blue pants

First quarter

You know you’re in for a turkey of a game when the opening kickoff has to get redone thanks to offsetting penalties. You really know it’s going to be a clunker when referee Jerome Boger points the wrong way when making the official calls on the penalties. Not a good start…

It doesn’t get any better once Chicago gets the ball. Cordarrelle Patterson blows past several Lions up the left sideline and returns Matt Prater’s kick to midfield. Mitchell Trubisky comes out throwing, and specifically throwing at Tavon Wilson. The safety makes the tackle on the first three plays, targeted twice in coverage and once on a terrible run fit by LB Christian Jones.

Allen Robinson scores the touchdown, beating Darius Slay on a simple slant he sets up beautifully with a false step outside. Slay steps in the bucket and it was all the room Trubusky needed to fit it in before Tracy Walker’s help could close in. Way too easy of an opening TD drive for Chicago.

Chris Lacy fields the Bears kickoff and kneels. It’s his first time back as the return man in place of the injured Agnew.

Blough comes out without fear. He’s overzealous on his first attempt, a worm-burner to T.J. Hockenson up the right seam where the TE has a step on the coverage. He did not miss on the next play, a 3rd-and-10:

That’s how to take advantage of a blown coverage! Prater’s knuckleball of a conversion ties the game at 7-7.

Jarrad Davis keys the Lions D on the ensuing 3-and-out possession. Two nice stops from the LB including an open-field corraling of shifty RB Tarik Cohen. Slay had perfect coverage on Robinson on the other play. No pass rush up front but still a nice series.

It didn’t even take two full drives before Blough demonstrates he’s a better passer and has superior pocket presence and field awareness than Driskel showed in his three starts. Strikes to Marvin Jones and Golladay move the chain nicely. Blough is stepping up in the pocket and climbing the ladder nicely, not panicking at pressure and keeping his eyes down the field.

Blough hits Jones on a well-designed inside crosser from a bunch formation from the 8-yard line for a TD. The Bears, notably Prince Amukamara once again, get lost in coverage. Great pass protection by the offensive tackles this entire drive. The extra point puts the Lions up 14-7.

Prater gets tricky with the ensuing kickoff. He drills a hard grounder to the shortstop and it strikes a retreating Bears blocker. Jalen Reeves-Maybin comes out of the scrum with possession. The spontaneous, exotic onside kick works! Lions ball inside Chicago territory.

The teams trade 3-and-outs with both QBs making poor choices into coverage. Dee Virgin gets a big thumbs up for his exceptional punt coverage on Sam Martin’s nice boot deep into Chicago territory.

Blough’s initial buzz wears off. He missed Hockenson on a well-covered out route and then makes a terrible choice in forcing a high throw to Danny Amendola in traffic. Had Blough held just a count longer he had Hockenson up the right seam uncovered but he opted to throw to the sticks on 3rd-and-5. The ball nearly got picked off when Amendola tries to tip it to himself, a poor choice for a short receiver in a crowd.

Second quarter

Controversy strikes on a play where Trubisky narrowly avoids a Devon Kennard sack and throws to WR Anthony Miller on the run. Miller catches the ball and then get popped by Justin Coleman. Several players from both teams fail to recover it before it winds up in a pile.

Two officials signal Bears ball. Two others signal Lions ball at various points. The initial call from Boger gave the ball to the Bears, but as FOX’s Joe Buck quizzically notes on the broadcast, “I guess they changed their mind.” Lions ball.

Not so fast. After a lengthy review–more than double the allotted time–Boger decides the pass was incomplete. It wasn’t, but that’s how a bad official covers his inept tracks. Oh yeah, Boger also missed an obvious blow to the head of Trubisky by Wilson that Boger is staring at from five yards away. Oy.

The level of play quickly descends to the level of officiating. Wilson badly misses an open-field tackle, another in-the-box attempt, and has an illegal contact penalty (he was guilty) declined. The Lions pass rush isn’t nearly as effective as Trubisky would have you believe it is, and his impatience and lack of accuracy bail out Oruwariye and Coleman in coverage on separate throws.

Troy Aikman’s not having a great game on as a color commentator, either. He enthusiastically notes that “this Bears offense is the same one Kansas City runs” and “they’re capable of scoring from anywhere”.  Going back to the Week 10 matchup, the Bears offense has gone 3-and-out on seven of its last 10 drives against the Lions defense, which entered this game ranked 30th. Chicago is 29th in scoring entering the game, 30th if you strip out defensive and special teams scores. He says the latter as it’s 1st-and-32 after two dumb penalties on the OL. But I digress…

The Bears opt to go for it on 4th-and-5 from the Lions 32, eschewing a 50-yard FG attempt. Trey Flowers surges past LT Charles Leno and Trubisky flings the ball at the feet of a receiver short of the sticks. The Bears also had an illegal formation but the Lions decline it and celebrate the nice stop. Davis was effective on a couple of A-gap blitzes on this drive and was in nice position in coverage on the final play too.

Some really nice run blocking from Frank Ragnow, Graham Glasgow and Taylor Decker gets the Lions rolling. Ty Johnson and Scarbrough are both effectively running downhill, not hesitating or dancing through the hole and it’s working. Boger’s crew once again interferes with the game with a truly baffling offensive pass interference call on Marvin Jones that wipes out an intentional defensive pass interference call against Buster Skrine on Golladay in the end zone (Skrine got beat and knew it). Boger quickly gives a make-up call, flagging (now Lions DT) Nick Williams for roughing Blough. It’s a flag that not even Aaron Rodgers gets most of the time.

The red zone offense sputters badly. Two Blough throwaways under pressure (rough set for Rick Wagner) and a pointless J.D. McKissic run smack into a stacked box stall the drive. The Lions kick a 25-yard field goal to surge out the lead to 17-7 with 3:00 to play in the half.

Poor containment on the kick return by Patterson sets the Bears up near their own 40, thanks in part to an egregious missed holding call on the player blocking Dee Virgin. The drive quickly becomes “let’s pick on Justin Coleman” as Trubisky targets him in coverage on his first three passes. Two are complete, the third (technically the first of the series) Coleman broke up nicely. Quick-hit completions on slants against Oruwariye (who missed the tackle too) and Slay set the Bears up in FG range.

Jarrad Davis is playing really well and there’s a play at the end of the drive here that needs appreciation. Trubisky takes off from the pass rush and is poised to get a first down with his legs. Davis explodes into the path Trubisky wants to take and it scares the QB enough that he veers sideways. That gives Walker time to close in and make a very nice open-field tackle. Davis doesn’t get any credit in the box score but he’s absolutely the reason the Bears’ drive fizzles and results in a field goal and not a TD. Lions lead 17-10 at the half.

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Lions 2019 rewatch: Week 11 notebook from the shootout loss to the Cowboys

Dallas beat Detroit 35-27 in Ford Field in a game where the Lions’ backups played well

The 2019 rewatch project returns to Ford Field for a home date with the Dallas Cowboys in Week 11.

The visitors from Dallas brought a 5-4 record with them, fresh off a home loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 10. The Cowboys entered the contest 4th in scoring offense and 10th in scoring defense.

Pregame notes

The Lions were missing several regular starters not already on injured reserve. Most notable is QB Matthew Stafford, meaning Jeff Driskel gets his second start. Right tackle Rick Wagner and defensive ends Romeo Okwara and Da’Shawn Hand also missed the game due to injury. Bo Scarbrough made his Lions debut as the starting running back, the fifth starter at RB in 10 games.

Dallas did not have any regular starters inactive.

The referee for the game was Tony Corrente. Detroit wore white shirts and the Honolulu Blue pants, while Dallas donned their dark blue jerseys and silver pants.

First quarter

The first snap after Dallas gets the opening kickoff for a touchback is a great use of defensive creativity. Trey Flowers twists with A’Shawn Robinson and then safety Tavon Wilson blitzes in the void behind it. Dak Prescott throws the ball directly to Darius Slay in blanket coverage on Amari Cooper. Great start.

It gets even greater on the very next snap. Trey Flowers slams into Zeke Elliott at the line of scrimmage and forces a fumble that Jarrad Davis pounces on for the recovery. Huge hit, great job by Flowers to let the block flow away from him. Lions take over at the Dallas 28.

Frank Ragnow pancakes his man on the first snap, a nice run by Scarbrough. A couple of quick-hit completions from Driskel and a facemask penalty set up the Lions at the Dallas 5. Scarbrough takes advantage of a great seal block from Ragnow and an unusually deep set by the Cowboy LBs to plow into the end zone. Nice block from Marvin Jones on the TD too. Matt Prater’s conversion is good and the Lions spring out to a quick, too-easy 7-0 lead.

Dallas botches the kick return when Tony Pollard ignores his teammates telling him to kneel in the end zone. Several Lions cascade over him at the Dallas 14. Cowboys clearly did not have “return” on in looking at their blocking but nobody told Pollard. Oops.

The defense forces a quick 3-and-out. Great work in coverage by Jarrad Davis as an Elliott spy. Prescott looked for that on both 2nd and 3rd downs but Davis was in great position both plays. Flowers continues to dominate up front, nearly got a sack on 2nd down.

What ensues is a really bad offensive series for LT Taylor Decker. He earns a false start penalty and then misses the snap count on 3rd down, nearly getting Driskel blown up. Sam Martin salvaged dignity for Detroit with a great punt off a bouncing snap from Don Muhlbach. Great punt coverage by Dee Virgin and Cory Moore, though the Cowboys attempt at blocking here is charitably described as apathetic.

Two drives per team and it’s clear the Cowboys were not prepared to play. the next possession shows Dallas waking from its slumber. Prescott engineers a methodical drive that gets both him and the Cowboys very good OL into rhythm. It’s worth noting that every completion on this drive came when the Lions were in zone coverage, and Prescott missed every throw but one (on Rashaan Melvin) against man.

Devon Kennard comes up with a huge sack on 3rd-and-goal to keep Dallas out of the end zone. Lions pass coverage — dropping 8 with Davis spying Prescott — worked great in the red zone. Dallas kicks the short FG and it’s 7-3 Lions.

Second quarter

After a 3-and-out by the Lions offense, helped by a Kenny Golladay drop that probably should have been pass interference, the Cowboys keep the momentum.

With Slay effectively erasing Cooper from the field, Prescott turns to Michael Gallup and Pollard, in for Elliott at RB for the series. Pollard catches a simple crosser, Tracy Walker, who had made two very nice open-field tackles earlier on the drive, misses the open-field tackle and Pollard scoots in for a TD. Worth noting that Will Harris was still running away from the play well after Pollard caught it, no ball awareness.

What follows is one of the most embarrassing offensive sequences seen in any NFL stadium all season.

Decker’s rough day continues on the very next Lions snap. Robert Quinn blows around the edge with a nice shoulder dip and nearly strip-sacks Driskel, who avoids the first contact but succumbs to the second. On the 2nd down-and-long, both guards, Graham Glasgow and Kenny Wiggins whiff on their run blocks and RB J.D. McKissic gets annihilated by a flying Jaylon Smith in a tackle reminiscent of Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka of WWE fame in the 1980s. Third down sees Driskel very nearly throw a pick-six to LB Leighton Vander Esch after staring down T.J. Hockenson. This was as bad of an offensive series as I’ve seen from the Lions all year.

Thankfully Dallas screws up on special teams once again. An illegal block penalty and Pollard opting to sprint sideways for 30 yards instead of forward salvages some field position.

Detroit comes out in a 5-man front with Davis nad Christian Jones at LB but also Wilson playing as an OLB. Interesting look. Prescott has all day to throw an outlet swing pass to Elliott that picks up a 1st down, alas. Very nice coverage by Jones downfield.

Now Wilson has joined Davis as Elliott spies. Wilson travels with Elliott as he motions from one side of Prescott to the other. It works very well. Prescott wildly misses on 3rd down and the Lions have some life when Jamal Agnew breaks off a fantastic return that is once again more about Dallas’s special teams being truly awful. Four guys in the same lane?! Easy pickings for Agnew.

Detroit capitalizes. Good blocks on runs by Scarbrough from Frank Ragnow, Hockenson and Glasgow set up a too-easy red zone QB keeper for Driskel, who sashays in untouched. Great series for the Lions OL and they take the lead, 14-10. As bad as the last series was, this one was vintage ground-and-pound and it worked wonderfully.

Dallas answers impressively. Prescott isn’t even considering throwing at Slay, and he finds Gallup vs. Mike Ford down the field. Ford is guilty of interference but Gallup still makes a fantastic catch. Not one of the Lions’ four pass rushers crossed the line of scrimmage on the play, it must be noted. Elliott dives in two plays later and the Cowboys are right back on top 17-10 with just under 5:00 to play in the half. All momentum Detroit had is gone.

The Cowboys bury any hope of momentum with their next drive thanks to one big play. Chasing Randall Cobb on an intermediate corner route, Justin Coleman trips in traffic. Harris never sees to pick him up and Cobb gobbles up 49 yards before Amani Oruwariye runs him down. Harris made one of the worst open-field tackle attempts you’ll ever see, too; never even touched Cobb despite having a good angle.

Cobb lands in the end zone two plays later, surviving a helmet-to-helmet hit (which was correctly penalized) by Harris as he collects the catch. Coleman got torched in man coverage on the play, too. Great 2-minute offense by Dallas, egregious defensive effort from Detroit just before the half and it’s 24-14. The Lions did try a gadget play pass to Jones and it almost worked, except Driskel put too much air under the ball and Dahl was a good 12 yards down the field, drawing a penalty.

Third quarter

The Lions get the ball first off a touchback and come out running. And running. Seven of the first nine plays feature the run or an instant pass out from Driskel that effectively serves as one. Those seven plays net a total of just nine yards, but a Cowboys penalty and a nice YAC from McKissic on a pass keep the chains moving. Decker has come out of the locker room playing much more inspired football. This is also the best Hockenson has blocked over an extended series all year. That last point really shows when Jesse James comes in for a rep and flat-out misses a reach block that results in Scarbrough getting hammered at the line.

And then Marvin Hall happens. The Lions insert the speedster into the lineup and he runs away from both the CB and S on a deep corner. A well-protected Driskel hits him in perfect stride to set up the Lions with 1st-and-goal. Great play.

A rolling Driskel, showing good pocket awareness and poise, finds Jones in the back of the end zone two plays later. Nice subtle push-off from Jones made it look easier than it was. Prater drills the extra point and the Lions are back in business, down 24-21.

Lions D comes out in zone and Prescott instantly picks it apart. Asking Davis to stay with Cobb in zone coverage is worse than man coverage because any potential help is preoccupied with other assignments. Flowers and Kennard are both getting pretty consistent pressure (Lions rushing four) but the containment is poor. Prescott scrambles out of a would-be Flowers sack and embarrasses Wilson in the open field to get Dallas into the red zone. The defense holds with Kennard playing a great set and nice coverage from Slay and Coleman. Maher’s field goal — nearly blocked by Mike Ford — puts Dallas back up by six.

I love the G-power run with Scarbrough on the Lions’ next play. Dahl pulls nicely and creates a huge seam but Glasgow can’t hit the LB in space and the gain only goes for four. It could have been much more if Glasgow lands the block.

You might have noticed a lack of Kenny Golladay mentions. Just as Slay has erased Cooper from the field, Golladay is effectively wearing Chidobe Awuzie’s No. 24 jersey. There isn’t even a yard of separation on most every route. Golladay isn’t exactly asserting his will as a blocker, either. He certainly did not on this play.

Scarbrough continues to chug downhill impressively. If he gets to full stride before the defender can get to him, No. 43 is a real load to bring down. Ragnow, Dahl and Glasgow are having a good series here opening and sealing running lanes. Hockenson atones for a false start penalty with a very good seal block.

Fourth quarter

The Lions run the exact same punt gimmick play they did a week earlier, with up-back Logan Thomas (a former QB) sliding under center. Dallas panics and jumps offsides. Detroit’s execution on this was much cleaner and more urgent than the last time they tried it, and it buys a fresh set of downs.

The drive stalls near midfield and it stalls because Driskel makes poor decisions. The line is blocking better than he shows and he’s not seeing viable targets in time.

Slay is having a great game but he misses opportunities on consecutive throws to get an INT. The first is in deep coverage on Austin and the Cowboys WR is clearly guilty of pass interference to break it up. The next one is a gift from Prescott that somehow gets through both hands and into Cooper’s mitts. Prescott knows it’s a terrible throw from the second he lets go, as he immediately runs over to effort making a tackle.

This is a very frustrating possession. The Lions are playing good defense but the Cowboys keep grinding forward. Harris makes a nic read and tackle. Kennard is reliably generating pressure and forcing the issue. Davis has the outlet receiver locked down. But the Cowboys matriculate into the end zone, the key play being a nicely designed screen where Pollard makes Wilson miss in space. Elliott plunges into the end zone and it’s 35-21 with under 8:00 to play.

Driskel comes out and attacks with his legs. A 23-yard run that could be construed as a designed keeper. A strike on the move to Amendola, who expertly helps his QB by coming back to the ball. Then comes this TD:

Note the nice pass pro pickup from Ty Johnson and solid protection up front.

The ensuing 2-pt. conversion goes awry, leaving the score 35-27.

Dallas gets lucky again on the kickoff. Prater kicks the ball over Pollard’s head as the return man waits at the 10. Instead of going into the end zone it bounces straight up into Pollard. Ford just misses a tackle at the 10 and Pollard somehow scoots out past the 30 before Ty Johnson jumps on his back. So close to a huge play for Detroit but instead Dallas winds up getting a good bounce.

The Cowboys do the Lions a huge favor and insist on throwing the ball instead of draining the clock. One 3rd-down conversion to Gallup running away from Melvin on a crosser is the only thing that salvages positivity for the Dallas offense. After six plays (and a penalty) that takes off just 2:00 and doesn’t cost the Lions any timeouts, Dallas punts. Mike Daniels and Kennard again provide nice pressure, and Cobb helps by dropping a pass.

With 3:44 to go, Driskel and the Lions trot out at their own 14, with two timeouts. Golladay finally does something positive, and it’s spectacular. Driskel hangs up a deep post where Golladay split the coverage and was wide open. As he’s being facemasked by Darian Thompson as the ball arrives, Golladay still manages to complete the catch as he slams into the turf. Amazing play and the Lions are in business in Dallas territory. It should be noted that a more timely and accurate throw from Driskel probably results in a TD for Golladay here.

Driskel’s magic runs out, alas. A bad sack (Dahl whiffed in pass pro) and a couple of misfires to a fully covered Golladay gives the ball back to Dallas at the 2:00 warning. Coach Patricia elects to punt from the DAL 47 on 4th-and-26 instead of trying an early Hail Mary.

Detroit’s defense needs a stop. After smothering Elliott on 1st down for no gain, the Lions bite hard on the play-action bootleg. Prescott calmly finds an uncovered Blake Jarwin for the game-sealing conversion. Great play design by the Cowboys gets them the win.

Good games: Darius Slay, Bo Scarbrough, J.D. McKissic, Frank Ragnow, Marvin Jones, Devon Kennard, Dee Virgin on special teams, Jarrad Davis in Zeke Elliott spy duty, T.J. Hockenson (mostly)

Bad games: Joe Dahl, Kenny Golladay (outside of his spectacular catch it’s the worst game of his career), Tyrell Crosby, Taylor Decker (more of a bad 1st half than full game), Justin Coleman, Tavon Wilson, Will Harris

The Lions were close here and devised a gameplan that largely accomplished the main goal on both offense and defense. The Cowboys caught a few fortunate bounces and their role players stepped up where Detroit’s could not match. Driskel and Scarbrough both showed real long-term viability as backups in this one but also limitations that prove why they’ll only ever be backups. Cowboys fans should probably feel fortunate to escape with the road win here.

Lions 2019 rewatch: Week 10 notebook from Stafford-less game vs. Bears

Lions 2019 rewatch: Week 10 notebook from the Lions vs. Bears, the first game without Mathew Stafford at QB for Detroit

The film review of the 2019 Detroit Lions season continues into unchartered territory in Week 10. This is the first week where another QB other than Matthew Stafford started for the team in almost 10 years.

Jeff Driskel got the nod in Chicago against the NFC North rival Bears. Stafford was shut down due to a back injury suffered sometime in the heartbreaking Week 9 loss in Oakland. The Lions enter the game at 3-4-1 after their impressive 2-0-1 start. Chicago has lost four games in a row after starting the season 3-1 and ranks 28th in scoring offense entering the game.

Pregame notes

Stafford is the most notable Lions out and not on I.R. Safety Tracy Walker and DEs Da’Shawn Hand and Romeo Okwara are also out with injuries. Sam Martin is still punting but has ceded the kickoff duties to kicker Matt Prater due to a minor injury.

Carl Cheffers and his crew are the officials. Game time temp at Soldier Field in Chicago was 40 degrees with a fairly steady 10-15 MPH wind blowing left to right across the field.

First quarter

The Lions come out playing up-tempo and aggressive on offense, playing to Driskel’s strengths. Ty Johnson gashes the Bears for 10 well-blocked yards on the first play, and then quick passes move the ball nicely.

Chicago quickly ascertains that when FB Nick Bawden is in the game and offset, it’s going to be a run. Bawden and T.J. Hockenson both land nice blocks but the formational giveaway still results in a pretty easy stop for Chicago’s impressive LBs, two plays in a row.

Driskel catches Chicago’s defense in a pre-snap state of confusion and quickly strikes, hitting an uncovered Marvin Jones to get into the red zone. That’s the kind of quick snap we don’t see enough of with Stafford under center. Matt Prater nails the FG when the drive sputters inside the Chicago 10 and it’s 3-0 Lions on the road.

Lions defense comes out in a straight 4-3 scheme that morphs with Christian Jones playing EDGE on 3rd down. As the FOX broadcast crew notes, they are focused on making Mitchell Trubisky beat them with his arm and decision-making. He can’t on the first drive, missing an easy 3rd down throw high that gives Mike Ford enough time to recover and make a stop short of the conversion.

The Lions finally run play action with Bawden offset and it works. Would have worked even better if Bawden didn’t get caught inside too far before releasing as a safety valve, but it’s still nice to see self-awareness from the Lions. They haven’t done this in several weeks.

The second Detroit drive ends with a gimmick that I wish the Lions would have actually followed through. Lined up to punt on 4th-and-7 at the Chicago 40, TE Logan Thomas slides up under center. He was a QB at Virginia Tech and played some for the Cardinals before switching to TE. The Bears don’t bite on the potential trick play, and looking at who the Lions have on the field it’s easy to see why; the wideouts are backup safety Cory Moore and reserve CB Dee Virgin. Rookie safety Will Harris is the motion/slot receiver. It’s an obvious attempt to simply draw the Bears offside to get some extra yards into field goal position. Sam Martin ultimately punts and the Lions net just 30 yards on the exchange against an offense that is struggling badly. Should have followed through on the fake/play…

After some nice run defense by the interior DL (notably A’Shawn Robinson and Trey Flowers) the Lions defense sacks Trubisky on the final play of the quarter on what can best be described as a coverage sack. It’s aided by a truly awful schematic design by the Bears; there are no receivers shallower than 30 yards down the field and none anywhere near between the hashes when Devon Kennard smashes Trubisky into the ground from behind.

Second quarter

Driskel’s limitations as a passer are on display. He doesn’t have the pinpoint accuracy Stafford does on the shorter throws and it forces a stalled drive. Worth noting the line is doing a very good job at nullifying Khalil Mack to this point. He’s lining up on both sides and both Detroit tackles are handling business.

The Soldier Field crowd goes crazy when Trubusky completes a designed rollout pass to his left to Allen Robinson. His inability to go to his left is legendary enough that the home fans mock Trubisky for it.

The defensive front is showing some creativity. A third down throw (dropped by Taylor Gabriel) sees Jahlani Tavai twisting behind Kevin Strong on a 2-man line. The Bears OL screws up the transition and Strong nearly gets a sack out of it. Christian Jones attacking RT Bobby Massie’s inside shoulder is consistently successful. Jones playing the JACK more against his old team than he has all year.

The teams trade punts twice (with excellent coverage by Dee Virgin on both for Detroit) on uneventful drives. It’s more bad offense than good defense, particularly when the Bears have the ball. Dating back to their Week 9 loss to the Eagles, Chicago has managed just 11 first downs in 15 offensive possessions, one in their first four today. Trey Flowers, Mike Daniels in limited reps and Christian Jones are all dominating up front and Trubisky is quite clearly not as good as Driskel at playing QB. That is not meant as an endorsement of Driskel either…

Note: Tyrell Crosby has taken over for Rick Wagner at RT. Wagner appeared to get injured on the final play of the first punt drive.

Detroit manages a long Prater field goal after an uneven drive that began at midfield. A Golladay drop (difficult high catch but he got both hands on it) and an utter lack of vision from RB Paul Perkins on runs stymie a couple of nice throws by Driskel. Crosby lines up too far off the line of scrimmage on 3rd down for a penalty as well. It’s 6-0 Lions with just over four minutes in the half.

A crushing kick coverage tackle by Jalen Reeves-Maybin gets the Lions defense fired up. Trubisky tries to kill WR Anthony Miller with a hospital ball. Yet the Bears still gamble and go for it on 4th-and-1 from their own 30. And they (barely) make it; Damon Harrison makes a nice play but the help from Robinson and Jarrad Davis didn’t quite make it on time.

The successful conversion seems to wake up Trubisky and the Bears offense. Detroit’s defense goes primarily zone behind a 4-man rush and Trubisky is finding holes and making quality throws. He’s aided by an iffy defensive holding call on Tavon Wilson that negated an offensive hold where Flowers absolutely annihilated James Daniels.

Chicago hits paydirt on the next play when Will Harris gets beaten in coverage by reserve TE Ben Braunecker. It’s not a good route but it might be Trubisky’s best throw to beat Harris over the top with the plodding 3rd-string TE. Eddy Piniero makes the extra point and it’s 7-6 Bears going into the half.

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