Pride of Detroit
For the first time since sacks were tracked as an official NFL stat (1982), the Detroit Lions have gone three straight games this season without allowing a sack. After Jared Goff took four sacks in the season opener against the Green Bay Packers, the Lions’ protection plan has been sound, and Detroit’s offense has exploded, as a response. The Lions have scored at least 34 points in each of the last three games and now lead the NFL with an average of 34.25 points per game.
But as coach Dan Campbell pointed out on Wednesday, pass protection is a team effort—not just an offensive line duty. And he gave his flowers to three different units. The first, of course, was the offensive line. Campbell praised All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell, noting that his athletic skills are rare and he’s taken his football intelligence to a new level in 2025. As for the other bookend, Taylor Decker, Campbell praised his grittiness in fighting through a current shoulder injury. Throw in a veteran center capable of getting the guys in the right looks, and the offensive line is living up to the team’s standard.
“It’s always going to start with the O-line. I’m going to start there,” Campbell said. “The way those guys work together. We talked about our two tackles and how they all work in unison. Graham (Glasgow) sometimes turning the protection away if all things being equal and then we get a slide one way, so you’re helping the center which helps the guard, which the guard helps the tackle.”
But Goff, himself, deserves a lot of credit. Sacks can be just as much a quarterback stat as it is an offensive line stat, and the Lions quarterback has done an excellent job as sack avoidance this year.
“Goff has been outstanding in the pocket. He’s been really good,” Campbell said. “His pocket presence when he’s chosen to step up, he’s chosen to move, it’s been right on and that helps big time.”
The final piece of the puzzle is their receiver group. One of the best way to avoid pressure is to get the ball out quickly, but the quarterback can only do that if his receivers are getting open quickly. Check, check, and check.
“Our receivers are getting open with speed, they’re playing with urgency into the pass game,” Campbell said. “We talked about that last week. Those guys have to outrun the rush. And so, when you do all three of those things, good things happen.”
