In a tight matchup, the Detroit Lions lost to the Buffalo Bills 16-15 in their first preseason game of the 2021 season. Even though the play calling was vanilla at best, it gave us a first look at the players and coaches in action. Most of the starters only saw a handful of snaps, where some of them got a good workload in for the coaches to get a long look at. To get a feel on how some of the players performed, PFF released the top five performers on offense and defense.
Offense:
- RB Craig Reynolds: 90.7
- WR Javon McKinley: 83.3
- RB Dedrick Mills: 82.0
- G Logan Stenberg: 80.8
- QB Jared Goff: 80.1
Fresh off the streets, Craig Reynolds made a strong impression in his debut in Honolulu Blue with 49 yards on six carries scoring the only touchdown for the Lions. Another player competing for the third running back spot, Dedrick Mills, made a case with five carries for 32 yards and a bull-rush of a run where he could covert the fourth down attempt. What is even more impressive is that Reynolds and Mills finished first and eighth, respectively, amongst running backs through the first preseason games.
The Lions top receivers are cemented with Tyrell Williams, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Kalif Raymond, but a couple of spots are still open, and UDFA Javon McKinley hopes to snag one. He caught both his targets for a strong 40 yards, second-best for the Lions. He still might have a long road ahead of him, and with another strong performance, he may end up in the mix for a receiver slot.
The Lions offensive line depth did not give anyone warm cuddles, but Logan Stenberg provided a performance he absolutely needed. Even though Stenberg would’ve probably made the team either way due to lack of strong depth amongst the guards, he showed he could the way and open up lanes for the running game. Now the pass protection still needs refinement, but it’s a good step in the right direction.
Everything didn’t go exactly right for the first-team offense on their only two drives, but it has to feel good seeing Jared Goff in this list. Goff did almost through an interception right off the bat, but he cleaned up and was able to sustain the drive for 18 plays, but in the end, it only resulted in a field goal. It is a good start for the new Lions play-caller, but still plenty to improve on heading into the regular season.
Defense:
- DL Bruce Hector: 81.6
- EDGE Austin Bryant: 80.5
- DL Kevin Strong: 78.5
- S Dean Marlowe: 77.8
- EDGE Trey Flowers: 76.1
One important note is that Derrick Barnes ended the day with a 93.1 PFF grade but did not meet the minimum 10 snap requirement to be recognized as the top contributor. However, it was easy to see why the Lions fell in love with him between his instincts to read the play and agility to make the play. It was a breath of fresh air from what we were used to in the linebacking corps.
With the number of starters missing the game (Michael Brockers, Nick Williams, Levi Onwuzurike, John Penisini, and Da’Shawn Hand), it gave a lot of opportunities to the lower-depth players, and it was Bruce Hector and Kevin Strong to grab hold and try to make an impression. Hector was able to notch a sack in his belt, and Strong generated a forced fumble. The defensive line is one of the deepest areas roster wise and with plenty of players ahead of Hector and Strong, it’ll be tough to justify a spot for them, but they are making a case.
On the other side of the interior group, Trey Flowers and Austin Bryant provided a nice showing from the edge group. With Flowers transitioning to a different position than what he played last year, it is good to see he is performing well through the change, but it shouldn’t be a shock, all things considering. Bryant, on the other hand, was a pleasant surprise. He showed up in run defense and pass-rushing, recording two tackles, one pressure, and only allowed seven yards total (two rushing, five passing). Considering where he started this season, this was a performance he needed to get him on the roster.
The safety group is arguably one of the weakest parts, the defense and overall on the Lions. We haven’t heard much from Marlowe from camp, but he only allowed one catch for two yards on 30 snaps, which by anyone standard is top-notch. Now it won’t alleviate the safety group’s worries, but hopefully, he can keep up those showings and provide an adequate secondary presence.