After last week’s disappointing game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Detroit Lions have put together one of football’s best halves of all time. They went 22-0 up against the Washington Commanders at halftime and it probably should have been an even bigger lead for Detroit given how they controlled all three phases of the game.
And though Washington made a valiant effort to come back and almost level the game, the Lions have plenty to celebrate in Sunday’s performance, and that’s reflected in this week’s Detroit Lions testimony.
Let’s get to the notes.
Quarterbacks: B+
It’s fair to say that Jared Goff wasn’t very good in the first half despite the team scoring 22 points. He missed consecutive touchdown shots, resulting in the Lions’ first red zone drive being scoreless. He took at least one unnecessary sack, almost threw a terrible interception and missed a prime opportunity to hit DJ Chark with a deep play before the end of the half.
But here’s the thing: Goff was almost perfect in the second half. When the Lions needed to keep up with an increasing Commander offense, Goff always seemed to have the answer. Goff’s finest moment came right after Washington’s goal to make the game 29-21 with just under 11 minutes remaining. The Lions quarterback went 4-for-4 on the ensuing drive for 51 yards and a touchdown. He threw a great pass for 18 yards to a diving TJ Hockenson, followed by a safe play to Amon-Ra St. Brown, converted a third and two with a laser to Brock Wright in the seam, and capped the drive with a perfect 11- Yard touchdown pass to St. Brown.
Goff’s last stat line (20 from 34, 256 yards, 4 TDs, 121.7 passer rating) is probably a little better than his overall performance, but I believe him in that type of play nine times out of ten.
Running backs: A
D’Andre Swift touched the ball seven times, converting that into 87 yards and a touchdown. That’s efficiency. Yes, he had a drop he’ll regret, but for a guy with a butt on the ankle, that’s a brave effort.
Elsewhere, Jamaal Williams had a very productive 53 yards on 12 carries (4.4 YPC) and even Craig Reynolds filled in well with 16 yards on three carries.
Tight Ends: C-
TJ Hockenson had another loss or two in that game, and he wasn’t as important a factor as you’d hope against a Washington team struggling to cover midfield. Hockenson had just 26 yards on three catches. In fact, Brock Wright, who was also a tight end, nearly passed Hockenson on a play for 25 yards.
Wide receivers: B+
St. Brown is just absolutely ridiculous. He’s a great gaming machine and one of the most reliable players on the entire team. In addition to extending his streak of eight catch games with a touchdown, St. Brown was a huge weapon in the running game, leading the team with 68 rushing yards.
“He’s as stable as they come,” said coach Dan Campbell. “I mean, he’s as solid as a rock now. You can always count on what he brings every day, not only on Sunday but also on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.”
It was a much quieter day for the rest of the receiving corps. DJ Chark was left off the box score while Josh Reynolds only had three catches for 38 yards, but he had that impressive toe-tap touchdown.
Also, this group should continue to get kudos for the rough work they’ve done as run blockers. This week it was Reserve Quintez Cephus who got a lot of praise for his block at the end from St. Brown.
“Let me say this, Cephus made a damn good block now,” Dan Campbell said after the game. “And that was one of those ones that you circle around and say – ‘Hey, Q, this is your piece.’ And he went in there and I mean it was brilliant and took a traveler, he blocks a traveler, now we go to the races and St. Brown does the rest.”
Offensive line: B+
What an absolutely brave performance by this entire group. With the three inside starters all injured, Evan Brown, Logan Stenberg and damn Dan Skipper handled their own in running play against an impressive Commanders defensive front. Detroit rushed for 191 yards on 8.0 yards per carry — and while half of those were won in two games, the Lions still managed a reasonably respectable 83 yards on 22 carries (3.7 YPC).
But the point is, this team has been consistently making big plays on the floor now, and the top five has a lot to do with that. Take this nugget from PFF’s post-game recap:
“The line allowed two sacks, each from backups starting in place of injured starters, and the Lions rushed 137 yards from contact.”
Or this nut:
The Detroit Lions average 3.8 (!!) yards from contact per rush in the league, according to TruMedia.
That offensive line is a fucking monster.
— Austin Gayle (@austingayle_) September 19, 2022
Passport protection, however, is a slightly different story. Stenberg, in particular, continues to struggle as a pass blocker, and Goff picked up three sacks and 11 quarterback hits.
Defense Line: A-
Speaking of hitting the quarterback, the Lions’ defensive line made Carson Wentz’s day hell. Detroit countered with 11 quarterback hits of their own, including four sacks — three from rookie Aidan Hutchinson. I’d still like to see the defensive front win a little more one-on-one, but defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn deserves a lot of credit for building the pressure and the players deserve credit for the execution.
Things went even better in the running game, where the commanders had absolutely no foray into midfield. Washington’s main running back, Antonio Gibson, finished with just 28 rushing yards on 14 carries.
Linebacker: B
Despite everything, Malcolm Rodriguez continues to play at a ridiculously high level. The linebacking corps was tremendous in Detroit’s solid run defense this week, but their contributions didn’t end there. Rodriguez had a big quarterback hit while he and Alex Anzalone looked determined and confident in cover.
There are still too many missed tackles in this group, but the improvement this unit has seen — especially compared to preseason expectations — is mind-blowing.
Defensive back: C+
Jeff Okudah continues to inspire more optimism than pessimism. It was mostly a quiet day for Terry McLaurin (four catches, 75 yards), thanks in part to Okudah. He continues to keep the offense in front of him and aside from a missed tackle that almost turned into a big game, it’s hard to get upset about anything Okudah did on Sunday. Let’s just get these spasms under control.
It wasn’t such a good story for the rest of Lions High School. Will Harris was occasionally teased throughout the game, but it’s about the converted safety, who caught a big interception to slow Washington’s aggressive second-half counterattack.
Special teams: A
All you can really ask for on special teams is to get your kicks in, prevent big plays in cover, and try to create an explosive play in the second leg. Check, check and check.
Austin Seibert was perfect on Sunday, including an important early 48-yarder. Their coverage teams were almost 100 percent clean again — barring a kick return to the 36-yard line (no big deal).
Then there was Calif Raymond, who had the longest punt return of his career. His 52-yard return resulted in Detroit’s first touchdown of the game.
Coach: A
The Lions went down 2-0 to fourth this week, but I agree with Campbell’s decision to try on both occasions. The first was a fourth and a goal for the 3 yard line and it probably should have been a touchdown. However, what happened in the end is just another reason to try. The Lions didn’t convert, but with Washington in their own end zone, the Lions were able to make a safety on the subsequent drive and score.
The second was a unique situation. By nine with 1:38 left and no timeouts for the commanders, Campbell had three options:
- Try a 51-yard field goal
- Puck it and make Washington go a longer distance
- Try Fourth-and-3 and end the game with a conversion
Either of the last two options would have been acceptable to me, but I like the idea of ending the game by offense on your own terms – and they almost did.
I also really liked that the Lions never really slowed down against the Commanders. That was evident when the Lions, already leading 22-0 in the first half, tried to squeeze out one more possession before halftime, taking a time-out when the captains were on offense and some deep shots fired when they got the ball back. They also chose some aggressive plays in the second half, which ended up being the explosive plays they needed to overtake Washington.
Almost everyone had nice things to say about offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, including the Washington players:
S. Darrick Forest said of the first-half problems: “It was a plan. I felt like they knew exactly where we were. It was a great offensive play-calling.”
— John Keim (@john_keim) September 18, 2022
But I think defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn deserves more love, too. The Lions’ game plan out of goal worked perfectly, with pressure packages making Wentz uncomfortable and the run defense doing its job. While the defense slipped in the second half – and you can at least partially attribute that to softer coverage – they did what they had to do at the end of the day.