Greeen Bay Packers vs. Detroit Lions

Detroit Lions Podcast: Time for the Lions to shine

Detroit Lions Podcast: Time for the Lions to shine in New Orleans after a bad couple of games at home

The latest episode of the Detroit Lions Podcast is out and ready for viewing or streaming. This week’s episode was recorded on Thursday night live on the DLP YouTube channel.

This week’s episode wraps up the Thanksgiving loss to the Packers. We break down a very bad game for a very large portion of the Lions roster, including some players who very rarely have bad days. What can the coaching staff do to help snap Detroit out of the recent funk?

That leads to a deeper dive into the coaches, specifically defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn. We discuss how much blame Glenn deserves and how much goes on the players for the struggles of late.

Detroit still maintains firm control of the NFC North, something that gets a little lost in the discussions about the Lions lately. The playoff scenarios for clinching and possible opponents get their due here.

Finally, it’s on to New Orleans and the Week 13 matchup with the Saints.

The audio-only version of the show is available via your favorite podcast provider.

Highest and Lowest PFF Grades from Week 12

Reviewing the Detroit Lions highest and lowest PFF grades from Week 12

Thanksgiving came and went with Lions fans wanting to forget as much of it as they can. For the team themselves, this will be a benchmark game that is reflected upon as the season goes on and how it turns out.

The loss to the Packers opens up the division a little bit for rest of the teams outside the Bears. The Packers and Vikings now cling to slim playoff chances, whereas the Lions now face an uphill battle to a top seed in the NFC.

When you look at this game closer through the PFF lens, you get a different and deeper understanding from the analytics. Especially in a game like this where the score shows one thing, the film shows another, the numbers can help bring the picture to a complete understanding.

Snap count notes and observations from the Lions loss to the Packers

Breaking down the notable snap counts from the Detroit Lions in their Week 12 loss to the Green Bay Packers

Looking at the Detroit Lions and their team snap counts from the Week 12 loss to the Green Bay Packers, a few things stand out. Many help provide more content behind the Lions’29-22 loss in Ford Field.

Take the total offensive snaps. Green Bay ran just 56 plays on offense, while Detroit snapped 84 offensive reps. The Packers outscoring the Lions despite running 28 fewer snaps indicates the inefficiency and giveaways from Detroit.

The offensive line saw an in-game xhange at left guard. Colby Sorsdal, who was replacing injured Jonah Jackson, was himself replaced by Kayode Awosika after 32 snaps. The change came after center Frank Ragnow left for one play and right guard Graham Glasgow kicked inside to cover.

At running back, Jahmyr Gibbs was on the field for more than double the reps of David Montgomery, 60 to 23. Considering Montgomery played seven of the first eight, that’s a stark shift to Gibbs, perhaps dictated by the early deficit and Montgomery’s recent pass protection issues. Craig Reynolds played exactly one snap.

Dan Skipper played a season-high nine snaps as an extra tackle. That’s more than Malcolm Rodriguez (6) st fullback or James Mitchell (4) as the third TE.

Josh Reynolds earned 54 snaps at WR, outpacing Jameson Williams (53) and Kalif Raymond (24) behind Amon-Ra St. Brown (77) on the pecking order.

Defensively, the first thing that stands out is Aidan Hutchinson playing 53 of the 56 snaps. That’s an absurdly high rate for a pass rusher; elites like Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons rarely top 80 percent.

Josh Paschal was next in line at EDGE with 29, followed by John Cominsky (23), Charles Harris (13) and Romeo Okwara (8).

The linebacker usage factors in that mix as well. Alex Anzalone left with a hand injury for two snaps but played the rest of the game. Derrick Barnes (40) and Jack Campbell (31) both playing over half the snaps while facing a Packers team with one healthy TE and playing a base 3-WR offense is an interesting choice.

Dan Campbell gives vote of confidence in the Lions pass rush

“Same guys we’ve had and we’ve been able to generate pressure, so this unit’s going to be just fine,” Campbell said.

One of the many contributing factors to the Detroit Lions humiliating 29-22 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving was the utter lack of a pass rush. Detroit did not get one single sack of Packers QB Jordan Love. he LIons defense only hit Love four times, per the initial postgame stats.

There was some sporadic pressure on Love from the defensive front, but overall it was another disappointing effort from the pass rush. The Lions have just two sacks in the three games since the bye week, both coming in the Week 11 win over the Bears.

Head coach Dan Campbell isn’t ready to panic about the ineffective pass rush. In fact, Campbell double down on the current group, led by Aidan Hutchinson, to ramp it back up and get back to being more impactful.

“Same guys we’ve had and we’ve been able to generate pressure, so this unit’s going to be just fine,” Campbell said. “We’re going to get going and we pressured a little bit more today, played a little tight, but these are our guys, man. And these guys can do it and they’ve done it.”

Campbell cited Detroit’s Week 4 win in Lambeau Field as evidence of how the defense has successfully created pressure.

“That same thing we just faced there, we went out to Green Bay, and we were able to create pressure. We weren’t able to do it today.”

In that Thursday night win, Detroit sacked Love five times and logged 11 QB hits on the Packers’ QB on 36 pass attempts. The absence of the pass rush has exposed the thin coverage ability and lack of depth in the secondary, exacerbating the defensive issues.

Lions lose to the Packers: What they’re saying about Detroit’s Week 12 loss

Lions lose to the Packers: What they’re saying about Detroit’s Week 12 loss on Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving table was set so nicely for the Detroit Lions. The 8-2 Lions were off to their best start in 61 years and welcomed a beaten-up Packers team with a losing record into Ford Field. Instead of feasting, the Lions laid a turkey egg of a game on national television.

Here’s what folks are saying about the Lions’ 29-22 loss to the Packers on Thanksgiving.

Lions carved up by Packers in embarrassing Thanksgiving loss

The Detroit Lions carved up by the Green Bay Packers in an embarrassing Thanksgiving loss

In the immediate aftermath of a turkey of a game from the Detroit Lions against the Green Bay Packers, the thing I’m most thankful for on this Thanksgiving day is that it’s over.

Facing a 4-6 Packers team they’ve beaten four times in a row, a team playing without several key starters, the Lions dropped a frozen turkey into the fryer in the middle of a wooden cottage. Green Bay won 29-22 after holding off a late Lions touchdown. It was not that close.

It was bad from the opening drive. Green Bay took the kickoff and drove down the field with minimal resistance for a touchdown. Detroit did answer with an encouraging touchdown drive of its own, capped by a Jared Goff-to-Sam LaPorta TD, but that was the last time the game was competitive.

Green Bay definitively outplayed Detroit in every phase of football. Their coverage was better. So was the pass protection. And the tackling. And the special teams. And the offensive plan of attack. And the attention to detail.

The Packers also soundly won the QB battle. Jordan Love had a fantastic game, completing 22 of his 32 passes for 268 yards and three TDs. He was the finest sweet potato pie on the dessert table. Love put the cherry on top of the victory pie with a 37-yard run on 3rd-and-1 with just over five minutes remaining and the Packers up 29-14.

That came on the heels of Detroit’s fourth failed fourth-down conversion, this one a poorly designed rollout pass in the red zone from Goff to LaPorta that wasn’t close to being completed.

Goff had a rough afternoon. He lost three fumbles, two of which came on strip-sacks where his offensive line was badly beaten. Goff missed some throws with inaccurate passes while under nearly constant pressure from the Packers defensive front. His numbers (29-of-44, 332 yards, 2 TDs) look a lot better than No. 16 played.

The home loss for Detroit returns the favor from Week 4. The Lions fall to 8-3 while the Packers claw up to 5-6.

Lions lose Alim McNeill to possible concussion in disastrous first quarter

Lions lose DT Alim McNeill to possible concussion in disastrous first quarter

The first quarter of Thursday’s matchup against the Green Bay Packers featured some truly awful football by the Detroit Lions. It also saw one of their few effective defensive players leave the game with a potential concussion.

Defensive tackle Alim McNeill left the game after being struck on the side of the helmet in a case of friendly fire while making a tackle. He was taken to the blue medical tent for evaluation for a possible brain injury.

McNeill’s injury came with the Lions already down 20-6 after giving up touchdowns on all three Packers drives. Jared Goff also lost two fumbles to the Packers defense, helping set up the Packers in good field position. Green Bay gained 159 yards and eight first downs in the first quarter. Packers QB Jordan Love was 9-for-10 for 130 yards and two TDs.

Lions vs. Packers: Last-minute thoughts and final score prediction

Lions vs. Packers: Last-minute thoughts and final score prediction for the Week 12 Thanksgiving game

Happy Thanksgiving! The annual national spotlight game for the Detroit Lions sees the home team welcoming NFC North rival Green Bay to Ford Field.

This year’s game is unlike any Thanksgiving game for the Lions in a very long time. The Lions are 8-2, their best 10-game start since 1962. Meanwhile, the Packers have fallen from perennial playoff contender to a banged-up 4-6 start.

Here’s what I’m thinking about the game as I drink the morning coffee and look ahead to the turkey day extravaganza.

Why I think the Lions will win

The first matchup back in Week 4 was one of the strongest performances by the Lions of the Dan Campbell era. The game was not nearly as close as the 34-20 final score; the Lions led 27-3 deep into the third quarter and allowed only 23 yards on Green Bay’s first six offensive possessions. That the Packers mounted a bit of a late rally should only reinforce to Campbell’s Lions that they cannot relent or overlook Green Bay, too.
All those Green Bay injuries. The Packers will be without several key starters, including RB Aaron Jones and TE Luke Musgrave on offense and CB Jaire Alexander and S Darnell Savage on defense. The Packers don’t have proven depth to replace any of the walking wounded.
The Lions hold a major advantage with their rushing offense against Green Bay’s run defense. It starts with the line, but the innate ability of David Montgomery to force missed tackles proves especially effective against a team like the Packers that struggles in pursuit and containment.
The resiliency Campbell’s team showed on Sunday in playing nowhere close to their best and somehow still overcoming and winning really stands out. It’s hard to imagine the team playing so flat and sloppy once again. Jared Goff has been very good at burying bad performances in the past and I expect no different in front of the raucous home fans.

What worries me about the Packers

They want payback for how the Lions embarrassed them in Green Bay in the season finale last year. And the Week 4 prime-time matchup. Even though they’re the youngest team and without several key players, there is organizational pride and that’s not to be ignored.
The Packers defensive line has impressive talent. Rashan Gary has emerged as a very good pass rusher, and the interior line is the veteran strength of the team.
The young receiving speed and talent in Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson and Jayden Reed (and Dontayvion Wicks if he plays) is capable of doing a lot of damage to a spotty Lions pass defense that badly lacks depth on the outside. If the rush can’t impact Jordan Love, Green Bay’s recent draft investment at WR can be a big problem.
My own overconfidence in the Lions. They’re clearly the better team, they are a rough overall matchup for the Packers, and they’re healthy. The game shouldn’t be close. It’s hard to describe the uneasy angst that produces for Lions fans sailing in these uncharted waters.

Final prediction

I see the Lions asserting themselves as the better team, coming out firing and curbing any drama. The Packers will get some points, no doubt. The Lions will get even more.

Lions 36, Packers 23

Lions vs. Packers: How to watch, listen or stream the Thanksgiving game

It’s the annual Thanksgiving matinee in Detroit when the Lions host the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers. The game sees the Lions with a chance to take a five-game division lead on Green Bay with six left to play.

Detroit Lions (8-2) vs. Green Bay Packers (4-6)

Thursday, November 23rd

Ford Field, Detroit, 12:30 p.m. ET

Watch

This game will be broadcast nationally on FOX. The team of Kevin Burkhart and Greg Olsen will be on the call. It’s the only game on in the early afternoon window on Thanksgiving.

Listen

The game will be broadcast over the Detroit Lions radio affiliate network. Dan Miller handles the play-by-play, with Lomas Brown as the color analyst and T.J. Lang reporting from the sidelines.

The flagship station is 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit. The full list of affiliates can be found here.

On Sirius XM, the Lions broadcast feed is available on channel 810.

Stream

The NFL+ app (subscription required) is the league’s own network to view the game via a streaming device.

FUBO TV (subscription required) is another option.

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Packers have a massive injury list heading into Thanksgiving matchup with the Lions

The Green Bay Packers have a massive injury list heading into Thanksgiving matchup with the Lions

The Detroit Lions are in pretty good shape on the injury front entering Week 12. Their Thanksgiving foe, the Green Bay Packers, is not so fortunate.

The Packers had an extensive final injury report. Two key starters, RB Aaron Jones and safety Darnell Savage, have been ruled out with injuries. But the issues don’t stop there.

Another running back, Emmanuel Wilson, was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday. He would have been the No. 2 RB with Jones out. Rookie TE Luke Musgrave was also placed on I.R. with a lacerated kidney. Musgrave is second on the team in receptions, while Jones is fifth — aside from being Green Bay’s top rushing opinion when healthy.

Primary blocking TE Josiah Deguara, who plays about 25 percent of the Packers’ offensive snaps, is listed as doubtful with a hip injury. As is the case with the Lions, no player who has been listed as doubtful has played for Green Bay this season.

A.J. Dillon, the team’s leading rusher, is questionable with a groin injury. He’s one of five Packers earning the questionable designation:

CB Jaire Alexander (shoulder)
RB A.J. Dillon (groin)
LB DeVondre Campbell (neck)
S Rudy Ford (biceps)
WR Dontayvion Wicks (concussion/knee)

All are critical starters for Green Bay except Wicks, who has emerged as the team’s primary deep threat in recent weeks.

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