Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions (3-1) and Cincinnati Bengals (2-2) will square off in a Week 5 NFC North vs. AFC North matchup in Ohio. Entering this game, these two teams are headed in different directions. The Lions are riding a three-game winning streak and have scored 124 points over that time. Meanwhile, the Bengals’ starting quarterback, Joe Burrow, injured his toe in Week 2, and Cincinnati has lost both games with Jake Browning as their starting signal caller. In those two games, the Bengals lost 48-10 to the Carson Wentz-led Vikings (the largest margin of loss in Bengals history) and then lost 28-3 to the Broncos last Monday night. The 63-point differential is the most over that timeframe in Bengals history.
If the Lions want to win their fourth game in a row, 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 5 Preview: Breaking down Bengals’ offensive and defensive schemes.
When the Bengals rehired Al Golden, this time as their defensive coordinator, they made it a point to improve their run defense to accommodate his scheme. They signed former Packer starting nose tackle T.J. Slaton (6-foot-5, 330 pounds) and reserve nose tackle Mike Pennel (6-foot-4, 332) to pair with B.J. Hill (6-foot-311), and former Michigan Wolverine Kris Jenkins (6-foot-3, 311).
With a lot of bigger bodies in the trenches, the Bengals have leaned on a rotation to keep them fresh. Starters Slaton and Hill see around 50-60% of snaps, while Pennel and Jenkins put in 40-50%, with the nose tackles seeing a slightly lower percentage. After a stellar opening week, things looked promising, but since the Burrow injury, the offense has struggled to stay on the field, and opponents have used the run to wear down the Bengals’ defensive line.
Outside of the Bengals’ performance against a Quinshon Judkins-less Browns, Cincinnati has given up nearly 500 yards on the ground on 96 carries over three games; allowing almost 165 yards per game and 5.15 yards per carry.
Meanwhile, the Lions offense is capable of matching those numbers. Over the last three games, the Lions have run for 510 yards on 97 carries; an average of 170 per game and 5.25 yards per carry.
The game plan here should call for the Lions running Jahmyr Gibbs early, leaning on his speed to force the Bengals’ big bodies into chase mode. Then, as the Bengals’ interior wears down, hit them with a heavy dose of power from the hometown kid, David Montgomery.
One defensive adjustment the Bengals have made since Burrow went down is to try and be more aggressive in pressuring the opposing quarterback. The problem is, it’s hard to make sweeping changes on the fly, and the on-field results show it’s not working....
