Tag: Darrell Bevell

Darrell Bevell wants to change up the Lions offensive tempo

Mixing in a drive of hurry-up or unexpectedly going with a fast snap count are ways Bevell can use tempo as a weapon

If you’re looking for an area where greater authority could enable Lions interim coach Darrell Bevell to have an impact, watch the offense and the game tempo.

In his press conference on Thursday, Bevell talked about a desire to mix things up with the pacing and tempo on offense. It’s an effort to keep the defense guessing and not be as predictable on offense.

There’s definitely a pace we want to have,” Bevell said. “There’s a pace you want to have when you’re changing personnels, so you’re going to be on-and-off the field, in-and-out of the huddle, we talk about that. But then also, there is change of paces whether it’s a huddle that you break quickly, whether it’s no-huddle, so just different style of tempos. But we are always preaching pace, and always preaching tempo.”

The Lions have been fairly quick overall in terms of neutral-situation game tempo in 2020, according to Football Outsiders. Bevell is talking more about mixing in a drive of hurry-up or going with a quick snap count unexpectedly during a drive more than an overarching philosophy, and that could indeed turn the tempo more into a weapon for his offense.

 

 

Could Darrell Bevell win his way into the Lions head coaching job?

Bevell views his interim gig as an audition

Darrell Bevell sees his appointment as the Detroit Lions interim head coach as an opportunity to keep the job full-time. It’s the offensive coordinator’s first-ever chance to be a head coach.

Could he really parlay a five-game interim gig into being the next head coach of the Detroit Lions?

Bevell hinted at that possibility in his Zoom press conference on Monday, his first interaction with the media as the interim coach. But he also hinted that it’s a broader opportunity for both himself and his players with all eyes around the NFL on how they handle the end of the Lions season.

Here is Bevell’s full quote, and it’s important to peruse the full quote in the context he presents it rather than just cherry-picking a sentence or two,

“I hate the circumstance at which it happened, but it’s an opportunity. You have to take full advantage of opportunities that you’re given, however they come your way. Like I told the players, I’m jacked. I’m excited. I get a five-game audition to show what I’m capable of. But I also told them that everybody is watching them, whether it’s our team, whether it’s other teams, whether it’s the opportunity for them to continue to play – people are watching them. So how we react in this moment, and how we’re able to bring out our best in these next five games, is going to tell all. Regardless – no one cares about the circumstances, how I’m doing this head coach-thing, but they’re going to judge me on those five games. So I want to do my best in that.”

Bevell is right on his full assessment here. He’s got a five-game audition to prove he can handle being a head coach in adverse circumstances. He’s not only auditioning for the Lions but for the other 31 teams. The chances he wins out and impresses owner Sheila Ford Hamp, president Rod Wood and the search committee are quite low, but Bevell showed in his answer he understands how the game is played.

If the Lions win out and somehow seizes the final playoff berth–it’s still mathematically possible–then Bevell has at least earned the opportunity to interview for the position after the season with the search committee. That’s exactly what happened for Gregg Williams in Cleveland when the Browns markedly improved under his interim coaching in 2018 after Hue Jackson’s departure. The defensive coordinator led the Browns to a 5-3 finish after a 2-5-1 start under Jackson.

Williams didn’t get the job despite the impressive performance, and that was with the Browns keeping the same GM (John Dorsey) in place. He’s now the defensive coordinator for the winless New York Jets.

So it seems quite remote that Bevell will remain as the permanent head coach of the Detroit Lions. It’s much more likely he’s auditioning to remain as the offensive coordinator under the new head coach, or putting some feathers in his cap for when he interviews for gigs elsewhere after the new Lions GM thanks him for his effort and sends him on his way after the season.

Former Packers QBs coach becomes interim coach of Lions

Darrell Bevell, the first NFL QBs coach of Aaron Rodgers, will be the interim coach of the Detroit Lions.

A long-time assistant coach with ties to Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers is the new coach of the Detroit Lions.

Darrell Bevell, who worked in Green Bay for six seasons under Mike Sherman, will be the interim coach in Detroit after the Lions fired Matt Patricia on Saturday, according to Tim Twentyman of the team’s site.

Bevell, 50, was previously the Lions offensive coordinator, a job he held in Detroit for the last two seasons.

Prior to coming to Detroit, Bevell served as the offensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks for seven seasons, winning Super Bowl XLVIII.

Patricia was fired as Lions coach after going 13-29-1 over nearly three seasons, including a 4-7 start to 2020.

Bevell has 14 seasons of experience as an offensive coordinator but has never been a head coach at any level.

A four-year starting quarterback for the Wisconsin Badgers, Bevell’s first NFL job came as an assistant quarterbacks coach with the Packers in 2002. He was promoted to quarterbacks coach by Sherman in 2003 and remained in Green Bay through the 2005 season.

Bevell worked with Hall of Famer Brett Favre and was the first quarterbacks coach of Aaron Rodgers, then a rookie first-round pick in 2005.

After the Packers hired Mike McCarthy in 2006, Bevell left Green Bay and became the offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings, where he eventually reunited with Favre for the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

The Packers will face Bevell and the Lions later this season. Matt LaFleur’s team will travel to Detroit to play the Lions on Dec. 13.

Darrell Bevell named Lions interim head coach

With Matt Patricia fired after leading the Lions to a 4-7 record, the team has named Darrell Bevell as the interim coach for the remainder of the season.

With Matt Patricia fired after leading the Lions to a 4-7 record, the team has named Darrell Bevell as the interim coach for the remainder of the season.

Bevell has been the team’s offensive coordinator during the entire three-season run under Patricia. He has never been a head coach at any level of football prior to his interim promotion.

The Lions offense has struggled with injuries to several key players in recent weeks. Bevell, 50, has tried to keep it together around QB Matthew Stafford while WRs Kenny Golladay and Danny Amendola, RB D’Andre Swift, and several offensive linemen have been in and out of the lineup with injuries.

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Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell keeps going away from what’s working

2nd year in a row the Lions have a top-10 1st quarter offense and a bottom-10 in every other quarter

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Matt Patricia continues to take a heaping dose of criticism as the Detroit Lions’ head coach. And he deserves it. But he’s not the only Lions coach who is struggling with poor performances and baffling game plans.

Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell is also having a rotten season. And his collective work in the last two games, a 20-0 shutout loss in Carolina and a 41-25 beating by Houston where the Lions scored the final TD to make it closer, are a good example of why Bevell’s offense deserves its share of the blame.

Specifically, Bevell continues to abandon what is working early in games. The old coaching axiom of “keeping going with what’s working” is a concept Bevell clearly doesn’t understand. And it’s ruining his offense.

Take T.J. Hockenson’s Thanksgiving as an example. The Lions ran the offense through Hockenson in the first quarter and it worked great. Hockenson caught three passes on three targets, netting 78 yards in the first quarter. All of that came on the opening drive, which the Lions capped with a TD. Hockenson’s tremendous start set a Lions team record for a tight end in any first quarter ever, and it’s also the most any tight end has in a first quarter across the entire NFL this season.

Hockenson’s line the rest of the game: two receptions on five targets, 11 receiving yards. He saw exactly one pass target on the Lions’ next nine possessions after that first drive. Those drives produced more turnovers (3) than scores (2).

It wasn’t just Hockenson who faded into oblivion in Bevell’s offense. Running back Kerryon Johnson had a productive first half, becoming just the fifth in franchise history to log at least 30 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards in the first half of a game.

After the half, Johnson got three carries for 14 yards and did not see another pass thrown in his direction.

The bizarre obsession Bevell has with going away from what is working early in games is sadly not a fresh Thanksgiving turkey. It’s a leftover that’s been growing mold in the back of the fridge for far too long.

The Lions have a very telling breakout of points per quarter in 2020.

Points Scored (through Week 12) NFL Rank (through Week 11)
1st 69 8th
2nd 64 25th
3rd 47 19th
4th 72 24th

They go from being a top-10 productive offense in the first quarter to a below-average (at best) scoring offense in the remaining three, relative to the NFL’s scoring trends.

That happened with Bevell in 2019 too. Detroit ranked 6th in first-quarter scoring last season, following that up with quarter scoring rankings of 25th (second), 25th (third) and 25th (fourth). In short, this is an ugly trend under Bevell.

To twist the coaching axiom from above, it’s probably a good idea to stop doing what isn’t working over and over again. Bevell’s offensive scripting, or lack thereof, after the first quarter is one of the Lions’ bigger issues to fix.

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Lions coaches harp on consistency to help fix the defense

Patricia, Bevell and Undlin all prominently brought up consistency in their Monday press conferences

Lions head coach Matt Patricia is a huge stickler for consistency. It’s one of the biggest focuses of his coaching philosophy. It’s also a huge theme in his press conferences when talking about his team. In their first media sessions since the bye week break, Patricia and his top assistant coaches harped upon consistency, well, consistently.

Patricia brought up consistency almost right away when asked about how he is hoping to fix the pass rush.

“I think it’s everything that we said before,” Patricia said on Monday. “We have to do a better job in the run game, and we have to settle some things down there that have hurt us and play with better fundamentals and technique and just be consistent. I mean, that’s the biggest thing for us right now.

We have some good run plays on tape and just unfortunately too many bad ones. We have to be consistent with it and try to get teams in a situation where they have to pass the ball more.”

Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell also broached the subject of consistency in his own Zoom session.

“…but I think the thing that we’re really looking for and the thing that I’m preaching to these guys is just our level of consistency on offense,” Bevell said. “We know what we’re capable of, we know the players that we have, the things that we can do, but there’s just things that you need to do on a consistent basis down-in and down-out to help yourself be successful”

Defensive coordinator Cory Undlin stayed consistent to the theme in his presser on Monday as well. It came up right away when Undlin was asked what the biggest issue with his defense is after four games.

“I won’t say the biggest thing, we could go around on this for a while – the biggest thing is just the consistency part of it,” Undlin stated. “I can pull off six different plays, one time it goes for zero and then the next time it goes for six and then the next time it goes for seven, whatever it is. So, the big thing is watching with the players and going back through and having those discussions and then going out and practicing, we’ve just got to be more consistent up front, in the backend, linebackers, everybody.”

Patricia ended his question and answer period by explaining the overall issues with consistency throughout the team.

“I would say the good things on film for us, just right now, are too inconsistent. I think we’d like to really just make sure that the stuff that we’re doing well, we’d like to just see it every single play. If we could be consistent from that level, that would be a lot better for us.”

 

 

Adrian Peterson will remain the Lions lead RB

Lions OC Darrell Bevell trumpeted Peterson but also Kerryon Johnson’s pass protection

The Detroit Lions running back by committee is morphing into a more traditional setup with a lead back and situational reserves. And the lead back entering Week 4 is not Kerryon Johnson or second-round rookie D’Andre Swift. It’s Adrian Peterson.

Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell was asked about the shift to Peterson as the primary back in the Week 3. Peterson had 22 carries for 75 yards in the win over Arizona. That’s more carries than Swift (6) or Johnson (20) had total snaps.

“It’s not anything that those guys are or aren’t doing,” Bevell said in his press conference. “We’re just trying to, again, accentuate their positives and put them in positions to be successful. You saw [D’Andre] Swift. His plays were a little bit down. We want to keep those up and get him more involved. The one play he catches, he has a nice catch-and-run, looks fast, looks explosive.”

Bevell cited Peterson’s incredible physical condition despite his advanced age (35) for a running back,

“…this guy is a freak of nature now. I don’t know where that wall is or where he’s going to hit it. The guy is always asking for more. Like you said, he is in great shape; he takes care of his body. He does all those little things to set himself up for that success. I don’t know when it’s going to happen, but he wants it. We want him to have it. We’ll keep continuing to go there.”

Bevell did have nothing but positive things to say about Johnson and his performance in pass protection in Arizona.

“Adrian took a little bit more of the running load, but Kerryon (Johnson), really to me, was player of the game. He was phenomenal in his protection pickups, in all the little detail nuances that we needed particularly on Jesse (James’) touchdown. He was a huge part of that play. His protection pickup – I mean there was one where they’re picking in the middle and he picks up basically both linebackers that were coming, has some physical plays there, really strong when we had the ball.”

That appears to leave Swift, a highly-touted second-round rookie, a decided third on the depth chart.

Signing Adrian Peterson makes sense for both the Lions and the RB

The Detroit Lions are signing Adrian Peterson to a one-year deal and it makes a lot of sense for both the team and the player.

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The Detroit Lions are signing running back Adrian Peterson to a 1-year contract and this is a deal that makes sense for both sides for a multitude of reasons.

Let’s take a look at why this deal likely happened so quickly.

The most glaring reason is the Lions injury history at the position. Starter Kerryon Johnson has not made it through either of his two NFL seasons without having to be placed on injured reserve. Expected co-starter rookie D’Andre Swift has been banged up in training camp and missed two weeks of valuable experience.

It’s not ideal, we’ll say that,” offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said of Swift missing time. “There’s a lot on these rookies’ plates right now just in terms of everything’s new for them. Obviously, he’s trying to pick up a whole new offense and we did not have the offseason… It’s one thing to see them on paper, it’s one thing to see them on tape, but it’s another thing to go out there and actually execute what you’re supposed to execute, make the decisions that you’re supposed to make at a quick level, and he’s missing all those different reps.”

As a 13 year veteran, Peterson can help Swift get up to speed with the playbook, while also providing the Lions with insurance in the health department. Peterson has only missed one game due to injury in the last two seasons and rushed for 898 yards in 2019 and 1,042 yards in 2018.

Peterson is also a terrific scheme fit, which should be no surprise after he began his NFL career playing four years (2007-10) under Bevell in Minnesota. Peterson can run between the tackles, catch passes out of the backfield, and is one of the best in the NFL as selling play action — something Matthew Stafford also excels at and is a staple in the Lions scheme.

At age 35, Peterson’s days of being a workhorse back are likely behind him – he was comfortable in a complementary role last season in Washington — and with the Lions taking a running back by committee approach to their backfield, he should fit in nicely into a three-back rotation.

While entering into a three-back rotation may seem like a downgrade for Peterson, the Lions situation will still afford him plenty of touches.

The Lions scheme relies on a power back and neither Johnson nor Swift are expected to fill that role. Currently, Bo Scarbrough is filling that role but the majority of those snaps — if not all — are now expected to shift to Peterson. Add in Scarbrough’s long injury history with Johnson and Swift’s, and it’s clear why the Lions are taking a collective approach to the position.

At the end of the day, the Lions are getting a veteran back with scheme experience who has been healthy the last two seasons and upgrades a position they desperately want to rely on. Peterson gets to step into a familiar situation, won’t be expected to carry the load, but will still have plenty of opportunities to get touches and extend his career.

Win-win.

5 reasons to be optimistic for the Lions ahead of training camp

With some hype for the Detroit Lions, here are 5 reasons why you should be drinking the Honolulu blue Kool-Aid heading into training camp

The Detroit Lions are finally all together and ready to square off in their first padded practice this Monday. Tomorrow, the Lions will get their first look at all the players and coaches in their natural state and see what they have to work with.

There will be plenty of questions, but there are a few reasons to be optimistic about the Lions heading into training. So let us take a seat, sip on some that delicious Honolulu Blue Kool-Aid together and see why we should be excited for the Lions ahead of training camp.

The Darrell Bevell effect

It would be hard to argue that anyone had a more significant effect on the Lions last year than offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. Bevell was able to tap into every aspect of the Lions offense and bring out a high octane, well-balanced offense that they have been missing for quite some time. I believe if it wasn’t for losing a few key players to injury, last season would’ve been a different story — considering how well they were hitting their stride when Matthew Stafford went down.

Bevell opened up a downfield attack that the Lions sorely needed. All the receivers benefited greatly, but we will get to that later. Even though the Lions went through more running backs than one team should have last year, Bevell was able to showcase their talents in different ways. The quarterback carousel didn’t help matters either, but Bevell was able to cater to Jeff Driskel and David Blough’s strengths.

Even though this offseason has been a weird one, expect Bevell to continue to create new ways to showcase the talent on offense.

John Matthew Stafford

Stafford is the heart and soul not only for the Lions but for the Detroit community as well. It is hard to find a more liked player, but somehow he is consistently underrated around the league. Unfortunately, it likely has a lot to do with the fact that he plays for the Lions. Thankfully, this doesn’t bother him one bit as the gunslinger continues to shred defenses. Between the tight window throws and the deeps bombs, it is hard to find a pass Stafford can’t make.

The Stafford Bevell was a match made in offensive heaven. Bevell’s heavily focused vertical attack and play-action approach played into Stafford’s strengths. Before an injury prematurely ended his season, Stafford was on the brink of an MVP season as he ranked top five in touchdowns, passing yards, and QB rating through the first eight games. Stafford has made it a career of making the players him better, and you can bet that trend will continue this season. Despite two straight seasons dealing with a back injury, it looks like Stafford is ready to go this season and continue his dominance.

Receiver continuity

Due to the COVID-19 situation and no preseason to work out any potential problems, having some continuity on the field will be a blessing. Fortunately for Detroit, they will be returning their top four receivers from last year: Golladay, Jones, Amendola, and Hall. The Golladay, Jones, and Amendola trio all recorded at 60 catches and 675 yards, the only team to accomplish that feat in the NFL last year. Considering they were able to do that with quarterback rotation, makes this is even more impressive.

Golladay went on to the lead the NFL in touchdowns with 11, Amendola was 11 receiving yards away of topping his career-high, Jones had the best catch percentage (68.1-percent) of his career, and cast-off Marvin Hall saw a career rejuvenation by posting a ridiculous 37.3 yards per reception.

Stafford already has chemistry with these receivers, and I wouldn’t put it past any of them to pick up from where they left off from last year.  Marvin Jones showed his enthusiasm saying, “You look to the left, you look to the right and we have ballers. That’s something that’s very exciting”.

The Detroit Patriots

The Lions received a lot of grief with the way they approached free agency this year, almost exclusively targeting former Patriots. While some may say it lacks creative nature in the front office, I believe this was a smart move from general manager Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia.

With the COVID situation putting everything in chaos, teams don’t have as much time to teach their scheme to new players creating a giant learning curve. By bringing in former Patriots, the team knows these players can execute the system in Detroit with minimal issues.

Danny Shelton, Jamie Collins, and Duron Harmon will all play a significant role in this defense. Shelton is a better fit at nose tackle in the Lions scheme than what they have had in the past. The Lions pulled an unexpected move and brought in Collins, who will look to line up all over the field and will likely bring a better pass-rushing presence than the departed Devon Kennard. Probably the most underrated move the Lions made this year was the trade for Harmon. It will free up Tracy Walker to do what he does best in the box as a JOKER safety, while Harmon takes care of the single high safety role.

With little time to learn this year, the Lions will benefit from these new additions already having an idea of what is expected for the Lions’ scheme and culture.

Revamped secondary

The one position group that has seen the most turnover heading into the season is the secondary.

There will new faces at every corner (no pun indented) and in the safety group. After trading away Darius Slay and Quandre Diggs, the Lions had to find a way to replace their production. From all accounts and purposes, that is exactly what they did this offseason acquiring three new starters in Desmond Trufant, Jeff Okudah, and Harmon. They will join starters Walker and Justin Coleman, and will look to create a formidable secondary that could potentially make offenses stall in their tracks.

Even though the COVID -19 situation may have hindered in creating chemistry, all of these players are highly intelligent and should be able to master this scheme. Harmon played with the Patriots last year and knows what is expected. Trufant has been a consistent playmaker with the Atlanta Falcons, and he will thrive in the Lions’ heavy man-cover scheme. Okudah was selected third overall in this past draft and will have a lot of eyes on him, but teammate Trufant has already been impressed with him saying “he has what it takes”. On paper, the Lions have the right players in place to create a secondary that could be feared around the NFL.

Without any preseason games to get the player’s feet under them, and only a handful of padded practices, it will be interesting to see what the Lions have this coming year.  Many analysts are riding the Lions hype train heading into the season, and if the consistency on offense and new tools on defense find their stride, I don’t see a reason why the Lions couldn’t turn this make-or-break season into a successful one.

Darrell Bevell shares thoughts on rookie RBs and why they give the Lions a ‘really competitive room’

Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell shares thoughts on the teams’ rookie running backs and why they give them a “really competitive room”.

The Detroit Lions want to establish the running game and have spent much of their offseason resources dedicated to improving in this area.

When offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell talked with the media via video conference call last week, he shared his thoughts on the teams’ rookie running backs and why they give the Lions a “really competitive room”.

The Lions have tried not to get caught up in starter labels this offseason — especially with no Spring camp to help set a depth chart — but naming a starting running back may be a moot point anyway, as the Lions appear determined to deploy a running back by committee in 2020.

Kerryon Johnson, the incumbent starter, saw seven starts in 2019 before injury, Bo Scarbrough got five, while Ty Johnson and Wes Hills each received one, and all of them return to the Lions.

But despite returning four players with starter snaps under their belt, the Lions still drafted De’Andre Swift with the 35th pick in the draft and he has drawn praise and excitement from several teammates and coaches.

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“So, De’Andre Swift — we’re super excited to have him,” Bevell said in the Zoom meeting. “We feel like he is a really talented, well-rounded running back. A guy that you can feel like can handle the run game, but as well as that, he has the ability in the pass game where you can do some things with him there. So, really just a complete guy.

“To be able to add him in there with Kerryon (Johnson), with Bo (Scarbrough), such a good group there and there’s still other guys, Ty (Johnson) is there, (Jason) Huntley’s there. It’s going to be just a really competitive room and that’s what you’re trying to do at each and every position is get the room as competitive as you can and let the cream rise to the top and you’ll end up with a really good team when you’re doing that.”

Swift wasn’t the only running back the Lions selected this past draft, and while Huntley left a big impression on the Lions coaching staff due to his special teams work, he has the potential to be really special on offense.

“The biggest attraction first was his return ability,” Bevell said, “and the things he can do in the special teams game, we were trying to add to that. But then obviously as a runner, he more like a scatback style, same thing (as Jamal Agnew), you’ve got to get the ball in his hands, a dynamic runner with the ball in his hands, so that’s what you’re looking to.”

While general manager Bob Quinn has noted that Huntley “is going to be in competition with Ty Johnson”, the stylistic comparison of Huntley to Agnew by Bevell is something that shouldn’t be glossed over.

Agnew is making a position switch to offense and has been sitting in wide receiver meetings, but there is also no doubting he has the skill set to also directly compete with Huntley and Ty Johnson.

Kerryon Johnson and De’Andre Swift look locked into starter 1A and 1B roles, and Scarbrough should reclaim his role as a sledgehammer, leaving the main question centered around how many more spots can they afford to allocate to the position.

In my Establishing the 53 series of articles, I had the Lions keeping both Huntley and Ty Johnson, as well as Agnew as a receiver/returner because like Bevell said, when it comes to dynamic players: “You want those guys to have the ball in their hands because they can make plays for you.”