Down 13-0 early in the second quarter, the Lions had the ball at the Vikings 1-yard line courtesy of Matthew Stafford and D’Andre Swift, mostly. Needing a touchdown to get a handle on the game and give the team some life after being out-classed in the first quarter, Darrell Bevell — naturally —took Swift off the field and brought on the biggest tell in the league: Adrian Peterson.
The stretch run call to Peterson, followed by the decision to kick a field goal is a fireable offense, not even taking into account this coaching staff’s other obvious flaws. For one, Peterson has been declining rapidly as the season has worn on.
Concerning stat from the Lions Week 7 win has to be Adrian Peterson’s declining yards per carry average.
Wk 1: 6.64 YPC
Wk 2: 5.86
Wk 3: 3.41
Wk 4: 3.27
Wk 6: 2.67
Wk 7: 2.6It’s not all his fault, play calling, situational work, etc all factor in, but this fall needs to stop.
— Erik Schlitt (@erikschlitt) October 25, 2020
Week 8 brought about an even worse YPC at 1.4. One. Point. Four. When Peterson is in the game, he likely is getting a handoff. When Peterson gets a handoff, he’s getting fewer and fewer yards every passing week.
So on 3rd-and-1 from the 1-yard line, Bevell decides to dial up a stretch run with Peterson. It fails, as expected. When all 11 players on defense know that an aging Adrian Peterson is getting the handoff, your best hope is a net-zero on the play. They lost four. Stafford had hit his last seven passes to that point, and the Vikings injury-depleted secondary is young and prone to mistakes. It is astounding that that play call even crossed an experienced coach’s mind at that point in time.
The decision to kick a field goal after that failed third down might have even been worse. The Vikings had just torched the Lions defense the previous two drives. They hadn’t even faced a third down yet. And Patricia decides that a field goal attempt, with a kicker who’s been struggling all season and had just missed a 46 yard try earlier, is the way to get back in the game.
At the time of writing, the Lions trail 20-10 and the Vikings had just punted for the second time of the game. And if they make a comeback and somehow force a few more stops to win, my opinion on this will not change one single iota. Patricia coaches scared, but he also coaches like his defense will make a stop, which they have continuously proven incapable. The mix of those two styles, combined with his and Bevell’s inability to make any sort of changes when something is not working, completely neuter this talented offense.
In the first two drives of the game, there were three plays in two drives where Bevell called a screen to the following: 35-year-old Danny Amendola and 35-year-old Adrian Peterson. Who would possibly say “no” to having Marvin Hall or D’Andre Swift in those situations? Why does this coaching staff only cater to the needs of the elderly statesmen? Let Amendola work inside where he’s made his living. Feed the ball to talented, young, quick playmakers. Attack weaknesses. Let Stafford sling.
Ultimately, had this coaching staff made those third and fourth down calls early in the season, it would be easier to forgive. But we’ve seen what Patricia does in these situations for nearly three years now. He’s not changing. The Lions need to make the change themselves.