The Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers closed out the NFL’s preseason on Sunday afternoon. For the visitors from Detroit, it was not the type of game that inspires confidence for a number of players hoping to make one last positive impression before final roster cutdowns.
The Steelers prevailed 19-9, the byproduct of having a significantly better No. 2 QB in rookie Kenny Pickett and making a lot fewer mistakes than the Lions. Pickett was impressive. The Lions combination of David Blough and Tim Boyle? Yeah, not so much…
Boyle had an epically bad performance, even for preseason. Starting in place of Jared Goff, Boyle completed 5-of-15 passes for 64 yards and an interception where the Steelers DB was the apparent intended receiver. Blough largely struggled as well but did cobble together an impressive late drive, albeit against players who won’t be in Pittsburgh beyond Tuesday’s roster trim deadline.
The Steelers raced out to a 16-0 halftime lead, though the Lions first-team defense held its own despite the offense doing next to nothing. Detroit’s offense struggled to move the ball on first downs and everything spiraled downward from those rough drive starts.
Several players presumed to be on the Lions roster bubble showed up impressively. Among them: RB Justin Jackson, OG Logan Stenberg and CB Chase Lucas. But far too many did not, and it extends well beyond the quarterbacks. Several defensive backs showed a lack of awareness with the ball in the air. The reserve offensive tackles were largely awful, and the depth at WR wasn’t much better.
It’s a wrap on the exhibition season. The Lions finished 1-2, though it cannot be stressed enough that the scores do not matter. Now we wait until Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET for the reduction from 80 players to 53.
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