The Detroit Lions offense has been an ongoing struggle for most of the first eight weeks of the 2021 season. It reached a new low in the 44-6 drubbing by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8.
Head coach Dan Campbell knows he has to do something to shake up the team after the lifeless, poorly executed loss in front of the exasperated home fans. And the former NFL tight end appears ready to assert himself more into the offensive game planning.
“Certainly I think I can help more with offense,” Campbell said in a radio appearance on 97.1 The Ticket this week. “I think I need to be a little more just involved in helping with it.”
There is growing anxiousness with offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn and his slow-burn style of offense. The combination of Lynn, archly conservative Jared Goff at quarterback and an underwhelming core of wide receivers has led the Lions offense to being too easy to defend and lacking explosive plays. That was painfully obvious in the way the Eagles deployed their defense in Sunday’s blistering rebuke of all things Detroit offense.
“I think I’m trying to be so involved with everything, that maybe I need to be a little more involved with offense,” Campbell said later in the interview.
It’s a good sign that Campbell wants to be more hands-on with his offense. He’s the man ultimately held responsible for the product on the field, and right now the Lions offense just isn’t working. There are limitations to what can be accomplished with the talent on hand, no doubt. But the game film from prior weeks shows there are more opportunities down the field and in route designs.
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The attention to detail on the route-running is one specific area where Campbell can exert his influence. It’s either not a focus of Lynn’s as a coordinator or his methods aren’t working. The spacing and timing intricacies are not being done well by the receivers, notably from rookie Amon-Ra St. Brown and KhaDarel Hodge in the last couple of weeks.
It’s too early to call for Lynn’s job, but the pressure needs to be turned up on the ineffective offense. If this is Campbell’s way of making that happen, it needs to work quickly coming out of the bye week.