Detroit Lions: 3 Standouts from Week 3 vs. Patriots
2. Matt Patricia
We live in a culture of overreacting, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that many around the NFL were thinking about Lions head coach Matt Patricia being on the hot seat after just two weeks with the teams. In fairness to that line of thinking, the man with the pencil behind his ear did nothing in his first two outings to inspire confidence as his team looked like one of the worst in the league after two weeks.
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Patricia changed that in a big way, largely with how he had this defense ready to play on Sunday night. Perhaps part of that was due to the fact that Patricia was familiar with what Tom Brady and Bill Belichick were going to throw at them, but Detroit’s defense submitted a supreme effort in slowing down New England’s offense. (And heck, Patricia even showed off his quarterbacking skills with the challenge flag.)
Brady finished the night with one of the most lackluster lines you’ll ever see from him, going 14-of-26 for 133 yards, just one touchdown and a crucial interception. What’s more, they shut down the running game as well, limiting Sony Michel to just 50 yards on 14 carries.
Darius Slay and Eli Harold both deserve shine with two sacks and a pick, respectively. In terms of the standout performer though, it has to go to Patricia for the way that he had the unit as a whole ready for such a crucial game for their season. If he can continue to coach the defense to play at this level, this Lions team could be much better than anticipated.