Tag: Ifeatu Melifonwu

Detroit Lions best and worst PFF grades from the playoff win over the Bucs

Let’s take a look at the best and worst PFF graded players for the Detroit Lions in their victorious encounter with the Buccaneers.

Following their triumph over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Detroit Lions are now on the cusp of glory, eyeing the NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers.

The victory was the result of a collective effort from all three phases, reflecting the Lions’ characteristic resilience in close matches. This team is built to adapt, with each phase compensating when one aspect takes a moment to find its rhythm. While key players delivered outstanding performances that propelled the Lions to victory, there were also areas where improvement is needed as they prepare to face San Francisco.

Let’s take a look at the best and worst PFF graded players for the Lions in their victorious encounter with the Buccaneers.

Ifeatu Melifonwu loves the ‘energy and momentum’ from the Lions fans

Ifeatu Melifonwu loves the “energy and momentum” from the Lions fans in an interview on the Jim Rome Show

Lions safety Ifeatu Melifonwu, like nearly all his Detroit teammates, experienced a playoff victory for the first time in his NFL career on Sunday. The third-year safety was very grateful to the fans in Ford Field for helping make it happen.

Melifonwu praised the Lions fans and the home field advantage they provided in an interview this week on the Jim Rome Show.

“The energy was awesome. You always feed off that. It gives you energy and momentum,” Melifonwu told Rome. “Like on defense, you can’t even hear. You just have to rely on hand signals because you can’t hear each other even if you’re right next to the person. Getting the calls in the huddle, you can barely hear. So it’s definitely — I think we use it to our advantage. It definitely gives us momentum.”

The Jim Rome Show provides the Melifonwu clip here, and the full interview from this week’s appearance can be found here.

PFF grades from Lions wild card round victory over Rams

Breaking down the top and bottom Lions performers in PFF grades from the playoff win over the Rams

For most the win over the Rams last night was the first playoff win in their lifetime. Watching it was one way of enjoying it but do the PFF numbers provide another way for it to show the game was won by the Lions?

All season longPFF has been able to show that this Lions team is good no matter what way you look at it. Players such as Penei Sewell, Aidan Hutchison and Amon-Ra St. Brown all had high grades all year. Their play on the field reflected that with them going as far to even earn All-Pro honors.

In Sunday’s playoff game the generous PFF grades rolled on but so did some critical one. Find them all here as we get ready to look ahead to their division-round matchup against either the Buccaneers or Eagles.

Lions looking to ease C.J. Gardner-Johnson back onto the field

Lions looking to ease C.J. Gardner-Johnson back onto the field and he’s not thrilled about it

Over the last two weeks, C.J. Gardner-Johnson has been back at practice for the Detroit Lions. He worked his way back from a torn pectoral muscle he suffered in Week 2 this season. Since then, the Lions have been searching for production from their safety position.

There was some positive play from Tracy Walker earlier in the season but defensively, he was benched in Week 14. Since then, he hasn’t played any defensive snaps. The most consistent safety the Lions have had has been Kerby Joseph and at times, the team will rotate Brian Branch back to play as a split-safety or even have Cover 3 responsibilities.

However, it seems like the player that has stepped up the most as of late has been Ifeatu Melifonwu. Since week 14, he’s seen a significant increase with his role on defense and has become a starter for this unit. During this time, Melifonwu has compiled 21 tackles, three sacks and two interceptions.

It’ll be interesting to see how the Lions work Gardner-Johnson back into the fold with the consistency from Joseph and the spark that Melifonwu has provided. Especially when talking to reporters on Friday, Gardner-Johnson had this to say about a rotation, “Getting into a rotation, I’m cool with it, but how can I say this? I don’t want to sound like I’m selfish or an a******, but I ain’t get back early to be in a rotation. But I’m doing what I need to do as a team player to get my body going.”

Unfortunately, that might be the case for Gardner-Johnson this weekend against the Vikings. From the sounds of it, Dan Campbell and Aaron Glenn will ease him back onto the field. When talking with the media, Campbell alluded to that, “It doesn’t mean that he has to like it, but he’s going to go out there and when he’s on the field, he’s going to give what he’s got.”

No question, all ideas will be on the Lions first defensive series to see if Gardner-Johnson is out there with the starters. If I had to guess, the Lions will look more into their dime packages with Melifonwu, Branch, Joseph and Gardner-Johnson all on the field at the same time. Branch and Gardner-Johnson would play more so over the slot and they wouldn’t have to worry about deep coverage unless they were in man coverage.

Either way, the Lions getting Gardner-Johnson back before the playoffs is huge. Despite only playing two games this year, he does have 13 tackles and two pass deflections. He’ll look to add to that and finish the season strong as he returns to Ford Field on Sunday as the Lions close out the regular season against the Minnesota Vikings.

Vikings vs. Lions: 4 offensive keys for week 18

One last shot. Can the offense help keep the Minnesota Vikings’ slim playoff hopes alive?

One last chance. The Minnesota Vikings have one last chance to cash in on their slim playoff hopes as they face the Detroit Lions on Sunday at noon CST.

The Detroit defense has been a solid unit, but not a dominant one. They are a good complement to their gound-and-pound offense with their physicality and focus on stopping the run.

Minnesota’s offense has been a whirlwind of change, starting three different quarterbacks in the last four games, including now-starter Nick Mullens, who was benched in favor of rookie Jaren Hall after the last meeting against the Lions. Now, with the season on the line, Mullens is back in charge and hoping to lead the Vikings to that final wild-card spot.

To do that, he will need to follow these four keys to success.

Best and worst PFF grades for the Lions loss vs the Cowboys

The best and worst PFF graded players for the Detroit Lions in their loss against the Dallas Cowboys

Even after a night’s rest, the sting lingers from the Detroit Lions’ 20-19 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, a defeat that can only be described as tough in every sense of the word.

Considering the competitiveness between two playoff-caliber teams, there were pivotal moments in the game where execution could have been different for the Lions. Unfortunately, the conversation now revolves around the referee error that nullified the potential game-winning two-point conversion for the Lions. Overcoming such challenging situations is tough, but this resilient team is poised to move forward, gearing up to face the Minnesota Vikings next week.

While some Lions delivered masterful performances last night, others may hesitate to review the tape. Here are the best and worst PFF grades for the Lions against the Cowboys.

The Lions drought is over and it feels so good

The Lions drought is over and it feels so good, from Russell Brown

The Detroit Lions did something that we haven’t seen in this town for three decades. Some of my colleagues were graduating high school, while others like myself, were just figuring out how to walk when the Lions last won a division title. So much time has passed that gas prices have nearly tripled since 1993 and the division has been renamed from the NFC Central to the NFC North.

Since it became the NFC North in 2002, the division has been primarily dominated by the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings. The Packers have won the crown 12 times since then and the Vikings have done it five times. But the drought is finally over for Detroit.

On Christmas Eve, the Lions beat the Vikings 30-24 to win their first NFC North title. Despite intercepting Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens four times, the game was closer than it felt like it needed to be. In fact, it took a last minute interception from Lions defensive back Ifeatu Melifonwu to secure the win.

While the Vikings were driving in the closing minute of the fourth quarter, I got on my knees and legitimately started to pray. It felt like the Vikings were knocking on the door but the Lions did what they needed to do to shut that door and all of our prayers were answered.

I jumped to my feet and celebrated with friends and family. Tears filled my eyes and I just felt relieved that the Lions accomplished something that I had never seen in my life before. We got to watch our team put on the hats and shirts that read ‘2023 NFC North Champion.’ We get to look at the playoff graphics that read ‘clinched division’ under the Lions logo.

But the wight being lifted off our shoulders as fans is nothing to how it must have felt for these Lions players. Especially some of the longest tenured members of the team such as Taylor Decker, Tracy Walker and others. These players have been through it all during their tenure but their patience, hard work and dedication paid off.

For much of this season, I’ve said it publicly and privately that this is just a different team. Watching this Lions football team makes me feel a different way every week. But one thing that remains the same is that I like their chances against anyone they play.

If they play their game, they can beat anyone. Offensively, they can run with any team. Defensively, there are lapses in coverage but the “bend don’t break” mentality they seem to have adopted is enough to get it done. Most importantly, the Lions playoff push will have at least one home game.

Over the last decade, we’ve seen some playoff games for the Lions but they’ve all been on the road. In a few weeks, the Lions change that and I’d expect Ford Field to be louder than it’s ever been.

There’s plenty of football left to play but it can end sooner than expected if the Lions don’t play their best as a team. I’m relieved of what has transpired this season and I’m excited about the direction were headed. The fan in me believes we can go the distance but I’ll save that conversation for a different day. For now, I’m going to sit back and enjoy the ride.

 

Lions safety Ifeatu Melifonwu wins NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 16

Lions safety Ifeatu Melifonwu wins NFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 16

Congratulations are in order for Lions safety Ifratu Melifonwu The young DB is the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his outstanding performance in Detroit’s 30-24 win over the Minnesota Vikings.

Melifonwu registered five total tackles, two sacks and a game-sealing interception in Detroit’s Week 16 victory in Minnesota. It was an amazing game in just his third start for Melifonwu. He’s come alive as an agent of aggression in Aaron Glenn’s defense and has helped lead the Lions to victories in the last two games.

It’s ht first time Melifonwu has won the award, and he’s the first Lions player to win the award in 2023.

C.J. Gardner-Johnson ‘close’ to playing against Dallas, per Dan Campbell

Campbell also noted it’s a “good problem to have” with Gardner-Johnson returning and Ifeatu Melifonwu playing great lately in that position

After winning two games in a row in impressive fashion and sewing up the NFC North division title, the Detroit Lions could be getting even better for the playoff push. Safety and emotional spark plug C.J. Gardner-Johnson could be back in the lineup for the Week 17 matchup with the Cowboys in Dallas on Saturday night.

Gardner-Johnson has been out since tearing a pectoral muscle in Week 2. The veteran has been designated to return and was at practice last week, but wasn’t quite ready for action. Head coach Dan Campbell was more optimistic about “Ceedy Duce” being ready for Saturday’s big game.

“C.J.’s close. He’s close,” Campbell told 97.1 The Ticket in his weekly interview. “We’ve got to decide what we’re going to do there and just how close is ‘close.’”

As for what happens to Ifeatu Melifonwu when Gardner-Johnson returns? It’s a great problem to have, according to Campbell. Melifonwu has been fantastic in the last two games, racking up 14 tackles, three sacks, an interception, and a forced fumble after having 50 tackles and one-half of a sack over his first 30 games with the Lions.

“We’re going to have a good problem to have when ‘Ducey’ comes back here. It just brings another playmaker to the mix,” Campbell said.

Editor’s note: Gardner-Johnson said he has legally changed his name to Ceedy Duce, but the Lions and the NFL officially still list him with his old name. Until the team makes the change, we are obligated to refer to the player by the name officially listed. 

Studs and Duds for the Lions division-winning victory over the Vikings

The Detroit Lions have clinched the NFC North with a win over the Minnesota Vikings and here this week’s Lions Studs and Duds.

Today marks a historic moment as the Detroit Lions secure their first division title in three decades, triumphing over the Minnesota Vikings with a hard-fought 30-24 victory. Despite the hurdles faced, this win epitomizes the resilient spirit of the Lions.

While the victory may not be characterized as flawless, with several self-inflicted mistakes threatening the outcome, the Lions demonstrated remarkable composure and determination to secure the division. The defense faced formidable challenges from key Vikings players, yet unexpected contributors stepped up when needed, while the offense relied on its stars to seize crucial moments and propel them to victory.

In light of this division-clinching triumph over the Vikings, let’s take a closer look at the Studs and Duds for the Lions this week.