Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions (6-4) and New York Giants (2-9) will square off in a Week 12 matchup at Ford Field. The Giants’ record is rough, but their talent is better than it suggests. New York will fight to stay in this game, but they’ll need to find a way to keep things together when the game is on the line—something they’ve struggled to do this season.
“This team has been in a ton of these games,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said of the Giants on Wednesday. “And a few of these games, they’ve been up a couple of scores and lost a tight one there a few times. And so they’ve been in most of these games, had a chance to win them, they’re competitive, they play hard. It’s a good unit. I know they made the change a week ago, but they had a chance last week again in that game.”
If the Lions want to continue their winning ways, they’ll need to follow the keys to victory laid out in this week’s Honolulu Blueprint.
For a detailed look at the opposing scheme, make sure you check out our complementary breakdown piece: Lions Week 12 Preview: Breaking down Giants’ offensive and defensive schemes.
Much has been made of the Lions’ rushing attack taking a step back from previous seasons. They’re below average in EPA per rush (-0.04, 18th), success rate (41%, 22nd), and explosive run plays (21 rushes of 10+ yards, 21st). However, it’s not all bad. So far in 2025, they’re in the top 10 in rushing DVOA (eighth), rushing yards per game (130.1, seventh), rushing yards per play (4.6, 10th), rush yards over expectation (157, ninth), and yards before contact (1.72, seventh).
The most notable stat, though, is that they average nearly 100 fewer rushing yards per game in losses (66) than in wins (162), underscoring the importance of the run game to this offense’s success. And coming off a loss to the Eagles in Week 11, the Lions could really use a boost to their rushing attack to help them get back on track.
Hello, Giants.
The Giants’ defense prioritizes stopping the run, and they were expected to rank among the top 10 this season. Unfortunately, things have not played out as planned. Their overall defense ranks 28th in DVOA, and their run defense checks in dead last. Heading into this matchup, the Giants rank in the bottom five in run defense in multiple categories, including:
To illustrate how bad things have gotten, the Giants’ EPA per rush allowed is...
