Pride of Detroit
Another swing and a miss for me in the bold prediction factory. After thinking Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff would throw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns, Goff finished with two touchdowns and only 203 yards last week. That doesn’t mean I have to give up making bold predictions. I’ll get one right this season, and it starts this week.
After losing to the Kansas City Chiefs last week, the Lions head back home to play in another primetime slot on “Monday Night Football.” This game is bound to be a good one, like it was the last time they played on Monday night, but this time, at Ford Field. The Lions host the top team in the NFC, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who come into Detroit at 5-1. The last time these two teams matched up, the Bucs got their revenge from their 2023 NFC Divisional round game, and defeated the Lions 20-16.
The Lions have a good chance to win this game, and if they’re going to do it, it must be behind what they do best, running the football.
If you ask anybody what the Lions offense is known for, it’s running the football. The team has adopted the identity of being a run-heavy team ever since Detroit hired Dan Campbell as its head coach. Last year was the best year running the ball under Campbell, with Detroit rushing for 2,488 yards and 29 touchdowns. This year while not quite as explosive, the Lions are still doing well with the ground attack, rushing for 772 yards and eight touchdowns through six games.
When the Lions struggle to run the football, their offense has to lean on the passing game. And while that isn’t a bad option for them, Detroit wants to force teams to slow down its rushing attack. This season, Tampa Bay has been up for the challenge and is among the upper level of run defenses in the NFL.
Tampa Bay Bucs rushing yards allowed
Tampa Bay has allowed the sixth-fewest rushing yards this season (529) and five touchdowns. They have only had one game where they even allowed over 100 rushing yards; in their shootout against the Seahawks, and the longest rush allowed this season was for 31 yards. While they have slowed down opposing running backs, the Lions duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery is the best duo the Bucs have seen this year.
Detroit Lions rushing yards
