We Shouldn’t Be Having This Conversation
This Sunday, the Lions head to face Lions Offensive Coordinator Drew Petzing’s old team. By all accounts, the Cardinals are one of (if not the) worst teams in the NFL. So we shouldn’t have to ask this question. However, the Lions defense has not even come close to finding its footing. So let’s dig in on the stats and ask the question: Can the Lions stop the fluttering Cardinals?
By The Stats
The Lions offense is unquestionably better than the Cardinals offense. They are scoring more yards across the board on average, even coming off a down week. The Cardinals are being forced to settle for field goals more. With all the weapons the Lions have, and with Jared Goff playing some of the best football of his life, there should be no question that the Lions will win.
And then we look at the defense. The Cardinals hold the 23rd ranked defense right now, and the Lions average out to 30, but most rankings have them at 32nd. I am pretty sure the Lions would give anything for the 23rd ranked defense right now. However, the Lions defense has the same chance they did last week against the Panthers, and that is to take advantage of a struggling team.
The big difference this week is Jacoby Brissett isn’t anywhere near as mobile as Bryce Young in the pocket. As far as taking it and running it, he has tried to run 15 times this year and only gained 43 yards (that’s 2.9 yards per attempt per PFR). He will be slower and more immobile than Bryce Young and that should allow the one strength of the Lions defense, the defensive line, to feast. Maybe, just maybe the Lions defensive line can feast and can allow the secondary to find some confidence. Maybe they can find their footing: I am not holding my breath but these are the situations where they could bounce back.
Special teams have not changed week over week. Our special teams are still very good.
Let me be clear here, my key stat of the game is stops. If the Lions can stop the Cardinals just five times, I think the game is in the bag. Last week I talked about a curse that held up. This week I just want to see five third down / fourth down stops to get the ball back by the defense and get the ball back to that potent offense. That’s enough to win, and that’s enough to build on.
The Lions have had trouble with TE's through the ages. McBride is one of the best there is. The Lions are often clobbered by one man wrecking crews. Look at last week. Something is far off kilter with this team and the excuses are not reassuring.