Pride of Detroit
After the Packers handed the Lions another disappointing Thanksgiving—completing the season sweep and flipping the script after Dan Campbell previously had Matt LaFleur’s number, while adding insult to injury with fourth-down success—Detroit now finds itself backed against the wall in terms of postseason survival. As Campbell put it this week, “time’s running out,” and the Lions must find a way to win the game in front of them.
Following losses in three of their last five games since the bye, Detroit now faces a red-hot Cowboys team in the Lions’ third straight home game. As the Lions have slid to their lowest point of the season, the Cowboys, meanwhile, have won three straight to re-enter the NFC playoff picture, including statement wins over the Eagles and Chiefs—two teams that handed Detroit a butt-kicking. The common narrative from national media being two ship’s passing in the night in arguably the best “Thursday Night Football” matchup of the season.
Despite their struggles, the Lions still deserve some faith. They’re undermanned on offense, but they were in Week 14 TNF last season as well—and still found a way to gut out a win in Green Bay while decimated on defense.
This preview dives into five key statistical matchups that will determine whether Detroit can come out on top in another chapter of the never-boring Cowboys-Lions series.
Note: Unless otherwise indicated, all statistics are sourced from NFL Pro, TruMedia, FTN Fantasy, or Pro Football Reference.
You may be surprised to hear that I’m not referring to the Cowboys’ three-headed monster that you’re thinking of in Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and George Pickens—but their newly formed interior defensive line trio.
The newly acquired All-Pro Quinnen Williams, recently added nose tackle Kenny Clark, and Osa Odighizuwa (who signed a four-year, $80M extension in March) have transformed the heart of Dallas’ defense. Along with the return of DeMarvion Overshown and the addition of Logan Wilson, that group has fueled the unit’s turnaround and recent winning streak. All three interior linemen are averaging at least 39.3 snaps per game over that span.
They’ve effectively done what the Lions have been trying to replicate: balancing heavy interior snap counts among Alim McNeill, DJ Reader, Tyleik Williams, and Roy Lopez. In the process, Dallas has also freed up its deep edge rotation of Donovan Ezeiruaku, Jadeveon Clowney, Sam Williams, James Houston IV, and Dante Fowler by resetting the roles and putting those players further in positions to succeed.
One of Detroit’s most surprising shortcomings this season has been how often its offensive line—particularly on the inside — has been overpowered at the point of attack. Physically, schematically, and from a communication standpoint, cohesion hasn’t always been there.
The Lions are:
No unit holds more influence over Detroit’s fate than the offensive line—and Thursday night will present one of its toughest challenges yet, similar to the...
