Tag: stat splits

The Lions 1st win over the Packers sparked some major stat turnarounds for Detroit

The Lions’ before-and-after splits from the 1-6 start to the current 8-8 are radically different, and it started with the Week 9 win over the Packers

The first time the Detroit Lions faced the Green Bay Packers was back in Week 9. Those Lions were 1-6, owners of the worst record in the league. Coming off a collapse against the Miami Dolphins and searching for anything positive, it was a dark time to face the Packers in Ford Field.

The Lions rose up and prevailed, of course. That first Packers game was the catalyst for Detroit’s epic turnaround from the poor start to the season. Detroit won 15-9, kicking off a run to 8-8 and a potential winning season on the line in the Week 18 rematch.

These Lions are a very different team than the one that prevailed in Week 9. Of course, the Packers are too; the first matchup dropped their record to 3-6 and they’ve risen to 8-8 as well. That’s why Sunday night’s matchup figures to be a big challenge for Dan Campbell’s resurgent team.

Here are a few of the significant measuring sticks for the Lions from before and after the first Packers game.

Scoring defense

The season-long scoring defense total isn’t very impressive for the Lions. Detroit ranks 29th in points per game allowed at 25.7. But the Packers game was a definite demarcation point.

In the first seven games, the Lions surrendered an average of 32.1 points per game. Detroit didn’t give up less than 24 in any game.

The nine points they held the Packers to remains the lowest total the Lions have allowed. In the nine games since the 1-6 start, the Lions have allowed just 20.7 points per game. That figure would tie the Lions with the Broncos for 10th over the course of a full season.

Sacks

One big reason the scoring defense got better was the pass rush. Detroit bagged 12 sacks in the first seven games. Adding in dynamic rookie James Houston and the return of healthy linemen John Cominsky and Josh Paschal spiked the sack production.

The Lions have 25 sacks in the last nine games. As with the scoring defense soaring up the charts from the bottom, Detroit’s sack production starting in Week 9 would rank in the top 10 if the average played out over the full season. The 2.8 sacks per game in the last nine would tie the New York Jets average for the season, ranking seventh.

Turnovers

Here’s one where the Lions offense and defense have worked in tandem to get a lot better.

After the Week 8 loss to the Dolphins, Detroit had a turnover ratio of -5. Only the Colts had a worse ratio at that time. The Lions had 11 offensive giveaways and six takeaways on defense in the first seven games.

Both units have improved immensely.

The Lions are +11 in turnover margin in the last nine games. Detroit’s offense has just four giveaways in those nine games, the lowest total in the league. On defense, the 14 takeaways since Week 8, a surge they jumpstarted by creating three takeaways in the first matchup with Green Bay.

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Jared Goff had himself a great December with the Lions

Goff was one of the NFL’s best QBs in the month of December in leading the Lions to a 3-1 record

The calendar is about to turn to January of 2023. Hopefully, the change in month from December doesn’t slow down Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.

Goff had a fantastic December. In leading the Lions to a 3-1 record, Goff put up some very impressive numbers:

106-of-160 passes, 66.3 percent completions, for 1,277 yards, 9 touchdowns, 0 interceptions and a QB Rating of 109.3

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Per the Lions’ PR department, those figures rank Goff among the December elite around the NFL. Goff was in the top three quarterbacks in the league in December in the following metrics:

INTs thrown – 1st

300-yard passing games – tied for 1st

QB Rating – 2nd

Passing yards – 2nd

Passing 1st downs – 2nd

Completion of 25+ yards – tied for 3rd

That’s a great four weeks of football from the Lions quarterback.

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Lions defensive splits since firing Aubrey Pleasant show a very different defense in Detroit

The Lions have gone from one of the worst defenses in NFL history over the first seven games to one of the NFL’s above-average defenses since

Halloween was a truly scary time for the Detroit Lions defense. The team had just lost a winnable game to the Miami Dolphins by allowing four touchdowns on five Miami possessions, all drives of which covered at least 67 yards.

Sitting in dead last in almost every conceivable defensive statistical metric, the Lions made the decision to try and end the horror by firing DBs coach and passing game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant. Many folks wanted coordinator Aaron Glenn sent out the door with Pleasant.

At the time, the Lions were the worst team in the league with a 1-6 record. The defense was allowing:

35 points per game (32nd of 32)

25 first downs per game (32nd)

154.8 rushing yards per game (30th)

5.14 yards per carry (30th)

8.24 yards per pass attempt allowed (32nd)

73.1 red zone TD percentage (32nd)

50.6 third down conversion percentage (32nd)

266.4 passing yards per game (30th)

6 takeaways in seven games (.85 per game ranks 30th)

Then came a few series of events that have sparked a pretty emphatic turnaround. Pleasant’s firing is the headliner, but the Lions also added starting CB Jerry Jacobs and rookie DE Josh Paschal into the lineup. Both represented significant upgrades at their spots on the depth chart and also created more depth overall. Valuable DL John Cominsky finally got healthy too. Rookie DE Aidan Hutchinson began playing more exclusively from a 2-pt. stance instead of with a hand in the dirt as well. Glenn figured out how to better use linebackers Alex Anzalone and Derrick Barnes, and S DeShon Elliott and DT Isaiah Buggs — two newcomers to the Lions in 2022 — also started playing better in their roles.

It’s a confluence of events that has helped improve the Detroit defense. Here are the Lions defensive stats from only in the six games since Halloween and how they would rank for the full season

PPG: 20.3 (11th)

1st downs: 21.3 (24th)

YPC: 3.8 (t-3rd)

AYA: 6.9 (t-21st)

Passing ypg: 259.8 (30th)

Rushing ypg: 122.3 (19th)

Third down conversion: 45.2 (29th)

That’s pretty solid improvement, notably in the run defense. But it’s not necessarily the corner-turning improvement we’ve seen in Detroit. The real edge comes from these two key metrics.

Red zone TD percentage: 55 percent (16th)

Takeaways: 11 in six games, a 1.84 average that would tie for 1st

The Lions have significantly improved in taking the ball away from the opposing offense and stopping foes from scoring touchdowns in the red zone. Going from near-historical depths to being even average in red zone defense has made a huge difference. That some of those takeaways have come in the red zone is an even bigger accomplishment for Aaron Glenn’s defense.

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Penei Sewell: Stats show moving him to right tackle was the right move

Penei Sewell’s season splits from left and right tackle prove how much better he and the Lions offense were with the rookie at RT

The 2021 Detroit Lions offense was an exercise in changes. Between a new offensive system, myriad injuries and a midseason coordinator change, it was a maelstrom of chaos in the offensive locker room.

Not all of the changes worked well, but one definitely paid off. Moving Penei Sewell from left tackle to right tackle once regular left tackle Taylor Decker was healthy proved to be a fantastic decision.

Even though Sewell had played left tackle in college at Oregon, his power-based game and lack of ideal length translated better to the NFL as a right tackle. Sewell struggled some in his eight games at left tackle while filling in for Decker, especially in pass protection. But on the right side, Sewell quickly proved to be among the NFL’s best right away. The Pro Football Focus grade splits from the left to the right highlights the discrepancy.

Breaking the grades down a little further, Sewell’s four highest-scoring games came at right tackle, while his three worst were on the left side. He allowed four of his five sacks and 17 of his 22 QB pressures in the eight games at left tackle, too. Meanwhile, Decker ranked No. 3 in pass protection grades amongst left tackles in his nine games.

The rushing offense further shows the positive impact of Sewell at right tackle. In his eight starts at left tackle, Detroit averaged 93.1 yards per game on the ground. When Sewell started at right tackle, the Lions posted 130.3 per game on the ground. That’s almost 40 more rushing yards per game with Sewell on the right side!