A season ago, the Detroit Lions finished last in the NFC North for the first time since 2012. How can they end their long division title drought in ’19?
This past season, the Detroit Lions embarked on a new era in terms of their head coach as Matt Patricia took over for Jim Caldwell. The latter produced a combined 36-28 win-loss record with the franchise the previous four seasons, led Detroit to a pair of playoff appearances in both 2014 and 2016 and finished with nine wins during his final campaign with the club. But just as has been the case with this franchise and his recent head coaching predecessors, there would be no postseason victory.
A year ago, Patricia and company got off to a 0-2 start and looked bed in doing so. A humbling 48-17 defeat at the hands of the visiting New York Jets on a Monday night was followed by a tough 30-27 loss at San Francisco six days later. But then the mystery of what would become the Detroit Lions’ 2018 season began to unfold.
They humbled the eventual Super Bowl champion New England Patriots on a Sunday night at Ford Field in Week 3. The team would own a 3-3 record after six games. But there would be only three more victories the remainder of the season and a 6-10 record gave them the bottom berth in the division standings.
But it’s another year and that always comes with hope. So if the Lions are to surprise many and win the NFC North in 2019, what are three aspects of their game that must improve to give Patricia’s team a fighting chance?
3. Better pass protection
It’s not as if general manager Bob Quinn and the team haven’t addressed their offensive line either via free agency or the draft in recent years. And perhaps the numbers are really an indication that the team’s offense has really lacked balance the last few years.
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But the bottom line is that, in four of the past five years, the Detroit Lions have surrendered at least 40 sacks. In 80 regular-season contests dating back to 2014, the Men from the Motor City has allowed a combined 214 quarterback traps — a total topped by only six teams in the league.
This past season, quarterback Matthew Stafford absorbed all but one of the 41 sacks allowed by the Lions. The 10-year pro has had better seasons. He completed 66.1 percent of his throws but threw just 21 touchdown passes while committing 15 turnovers.
A steady diet of the pass rushes served up by the Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers doesn’t make like any easier. Of course, a better ground attack would keep those enemy defenses a little more honest and take a little pressure off Stafford.
The Lions’ offensive front is spearheaded by recent first-round picks such as the left side combination of tackle Taylor Decker (2016) and Frank Ragnow (2018). All told, head coach Matt Patricia needs a better performance from this unit in general.
2. Regain that opportunistic touch on defense
With defensive-minded Matt Patricia taking over for Jim Caldwell as head coach, there were certainly high expectations for this team this past season when it came to his side of the football. And in terms of the final numbers in one regard, the Detroit Lions finished 2018 at No. 10 in the league when it came to total yards and rushing yards allowed per game. And only seven teams in the NFL surrendered more yards per game through the air.
One year earlier, it was a different story. Detroit allowed the sixth-most total yards and passing yards in the league in 2017. The team was a mediocre 18th vs. the run. And it’s interesting to note that while there was a stark contrast in the numbers from one year to the next, the Lions actually allowed more offensive touchdowns in 2018 (40) than the previous season (39).
So what was the difference? In 2017, only the Baltimore Ravens (34) and Jacksonville Jaguars (33) finished with more takeaways than Detroit (32). But that number dropped dramatically this past season as Patricia’s team managed a mere 14 takeaways, split evenly between interceptions and fumble recoveries.
Can the Lions turn things around when it comes to coming up with the big play in terms of forcing their opponents into mistakes? It would certainly help the team’s cause in more ways than one.
1. Commit to the running game
It was supposed to be different this past season and at times, the Detroit Lions’ ground game appeared to be on the verge of making some real progress. From 2014-17, the team totaled the fewest rushing yards in the league over that span. The club ran for less than 100 yards in 48-of-64 contests. That doesn’t including playoff games in 2014 and 2016 in which the Lions failed to rush for at least 100 yards.
There was a big effort in the team’s 26-10 primetime win over the Patriots in Week 3. Three games later, then-rookie running back Kerryon Johnson and the club gashed the Miami Dolphins for a total of 248 yards on the ground. The 2018 second-round pick would wind up leading the club with 641 yards rushing (three touchdowns). But he would miss the final six games of the season.
Ironically, the Lions would run for 100-plus yards in five of their final six contests. They finished 23rd in the NFL in rushing yards per game. It marked the first time since 2013 that the club averaged 25-plus running plays and at least 100 yards per contest.
Now enter new offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, known mainly in the NFL for his days with the Seattle Seahawks. It’s safe to say that those teams knew a little something about running the football. A healthy Johnson, the offseason addition of C.J. Anderson, contributions from Theo Riddick and Zach Zenner and a game plan that stresses the run could result in an improved ground attack in the Motor City.