Pride of Detroit
The best cure for a blowout is to deliver one yourself.
The Detroit Lions held no quarter against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, blowing out the home team 44-22. The game was never close, with Detroit taking the lead early and running away with it. Even on the odd occasion when Washington scored, the Lions would answer right back—they finished the day having scored points on every full drive.
Such an offensive turnaround will help silence the voices of concern after a rough loss to the Minnesota Vikings the week prior. However, how the Lions turned around their offense could be a hot topic for the coming week. With coach Dan Campbell calling the shots in more ways than one, are the Lions back on track? The Philadelphia Eagles are due up next, so they will need to be in peak form against the former champions.
Who emerged as a winner or loser from the Lions’ rout of the Commanders?
Out of the bye week, the Lions made it a mission to get Williams involved more often. The speedster had a great 66-yard, one-touchdown performance against the Vikings last week, but there was a caveat: most of his production came late in the game when the Lions were airing it out. Going into a favorable matchup against the Commanders, could the Lions get Williams rolling from the start?
The answer to that question was a firm yes. Williams was involved early and often against Washington, totaling six catches for 119 yards and a touchdown. Williams’ longest catch of the day was 41 yards, but it came on a mere shallow crossing route. This highlights how his role on the offense has evolved from a pure deep threat to a more versatile weapon. It makes plenty of sense, too, given his game-breaking speed. The Commanders’ Mike Sainristil, in particular, learned how fast Williams can be, getting burnt on a pair of intermediate routes. This was arguably Williams’ most complete game as a professional.
Following a sloppy loss to the Vikings, the Lions needed to shake something up. Not only did they change their pants (welcome back silver!), but so too did they change their play caller. Much like during the 2021 campaign, it was head coach Dan Campbell taking up the mantle of play calling away from his offensive coordinator. With the Lions scoring 44 points in one of their best offensive showings of the year, it begs the question of what happens with John Morton going forward.
Will this be a situation akin to Anthony Lynn back in 2021? Per quarterback Jared Goff, no:
I will not pretend to know what happens behind closed doors in Allen Park, but despite the demotion from play caller, Morton was most certainly still involved in the game plan this week. Campbell deserves credit for calling a good game, but unless we hear about Morton getting phased out of the coaching staff entirely,...
