Dallas Cowboys vs. Detroit Lions Ten In-Depth Observations
Jan 4, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Detroit Lions running back Reggie Bush (21) celebrates his touchdown run in the first quarter past Dallas Cowboys strong safety Barry Church (42) and Anthony Hitchens (59) in the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
2. Coming into the game, Murray knew he would have arguably the toughest matchup of anyone against the Lions league-best run defense, and I thought he played well. Averaging 3.9 yards per carry is a net win against the Lions front seven, and he finished the game with 19 carries for 75 yards and an easy but vital touchdown plunge. Murray, as he has done all season, made guys miss, but of paramount importance was his ability to run the ball with authority. I feel like Murray’s strength as a rusher gets underrated, and he looked every bit the hard-nosed rusher against a defense known for its toughness.
3. The highlight-reel run, though, belonged to the electrifying Reggie Bush, who made some absolutely vicious cuts en route to an 18-yard TD, which was tied for the longest run of the day. I love how the announcers readily praised elite run blocking WR Golden Tate for his work on that play, because Bush wouldn’t have been able to score without Tate’s effort. Of course, Bush deserves all the praise he can get for that TD, because he showed some nice acceleration to the outside, patience and vision to wait for the WR blocks, and some trademark shakes against the Cowboys defenders.
Overall, the Lions averaged 4.1 yards per carry on the ground, but most of that came from Bush’s touchdown. With 42 passes compared to 22 runs, the Lions never really stuck with the ground attack after establishing it early on, but they also run their offense differently than most. Their screen passes effectively act as a running game at times, because, like the running game, they use the screens to set up bigger plays. Joique Bell caught all four targets for 42 yards, but neither Theo Riddick nor Bush, who had just ten receiving yards on his three catches, had as much success catching the ball.
Next: Only one big play for Dez