The Detroit Lions’ biggest weakness on defense is stopping the run, and with Derrick Henry on the opposite side of the ball yesterday, the Lions made some adjustments up front to try and slow him down.
The Tennessee Titans got the ball to start the game and methodically marched down the field for an easy rushing touchdown. The Lions were trying to get a feel for how to adjust their defensive line, and when they deployed a 3-3-5 with a JACK linebacker on the edge, the Titans liked the matchup and switched to a no-huddle offense to keep the advantage in their favor.
After that, the Lions went bigger, leaning not only on their defensive tackles to play the interior, but occasionally they would shift out to the edge in big sets.
Despite the extra bulk, the Titans still ran for 195 yards on Sunday, with Henry accounting for 147 of them.
The Lions’ strategy made sense. The issue is, they lack the talent to compete in the trenches right now. With starters Trey Flowers, Danny Shelton, and Da’Shawn Hand are all on injured reserve, along with Everson Griffen out due to a stint on the COVID-19 list, the Lions are asking a lot of their other players and they aren’t able to get it done.
Not much is expected to change over the final two games. Maybe Griffen returns. Maybe Flowers too. But this is an issue that speaks to a bigger issue with the roster that is going to need to be addressed in the offseason.
That and more in this week’s snap count review.