Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions need wins in any capacity down the stretch, but we would appreciate some less dramatic ones going forward.
The Lions won the hard way against the New York Giants, rallying to force overtime before Jahmyr Gibbs capped off his masterclass with a 69-yard touchdown run. Following an Aidan Hutchinson sack to seal it in overtime, the Lions advanced to 7-4 on the season and are still firmly in the playoff hunt.
Yet going forward, did this win help alleviate any concerns about the Lions? A win is a win, but this was far from Detroit’s prettiest.
Today’s Question of the Day is:
My answer: A little worse.
The performance that Gibbs put on against the Giants was one for the ages—264 total yards and three touchdowns is a rare feat. He is officially the engine of the offense and the frontrunner for team Most Valuable Player. That being said, we already knew that Gibbs was an elite and special running back, and while the stat line is certainly impressive, I do not believe it is enough to bump the Lions up my power ranking. I needed to see a more complete game from Detroit, and I do not feel like we got that against New York.
The pros from this game are limited, though impactful. Along with the aforementioned Gibbs explosion, Amon-Ra St. Brown rebounded from a quiet game the week prior with 149 yards and a touchdown on nine receptions. The offensive line was floundering to start the game against the Giants, but I think things looked far better from the second half onward, paving the way for some crucial Gibbs rushes. I think the run defense looked solid, holding the Giants to a 3.1 yard per attempt average. Thomas Harper recorded a timely interception (albeit without a timely response from the offense on the subsequent drive).
Though there were encouraging signs, this was a game that the Lions should have won without the need for a dramatic overtime. The reason for the early deficit was the secondary getting carved up by Jameis Winston. The Lions defense had been making lemonade out of lemons in recent weeks, having lost starters like D.J. Reed, Terrion Arnold, and Kerby Joseph. With Reed making his return, the expectation was that the defense would improve further. Instead, everything somehow got worse.
Amik Robertson had one of his worst games as a Lion, while the linebackers and safeties were struggling to cover the likes of Theo Johnson, Tyrone Tracy, Isaiah Hodgins, and… Jameis Winston? The coverage was subpar far too often, and with some difficult offenses upcoming, they cannot allow quarterbacks and receivers to have free rein in the secondary. However, the defensive line was also liable for the coverage issues. Aside from literally the last play of the game, the Lions could not get home and sack Winston. To Winston’s credit, he did well to navigate...
