Lions News

[froot loops]

A lot of the discourse around quarterbacks in this 24/7 sports are.less.about merit on the field and more about what can sustain a 15 minute segment on Get Up, First Take or whatever bad show is on ESPN. If a quarterback has some skill that is unusual or has a big personality that's good for the networks. Goff rarely says anything that is noteworthy and his unique skill is he has great throwing mechanics and is the best in the game at in breaking routes now that Brady is finally retired. A very important skill that doesn't excite any highlight package.


Goff like Stafford are cursed (or blessed) that they don't have really big public personality. But that doesn't fill segments. At least Stafford had a cannon for an arm with weird arm angles along with his wife and Dan Orlovsky as hype men. Goff's nickname is JG.

[chemiclord]

That's... kinda the thrust of it. Goff's skills are the sort of "fundamentals" stuff that coaches love to see but fans don't find particularly exciting to watch (unless the team is winning).

And it's also why upgrading from Goff is a lot harder than a lot of people might think (just like it was finding an "upgrade" from Stafford). The Lions might have lucked into someone with a Goff-like arm with that added mobility in Hooker (a guy who the Lions would never have gotten in the 3rd round if not for that injury)... but even first-round draft talent isn't all that great of odds to actually develop into that "elite QB" that fans constantly long for, yet can never really define except to point at unicorns like Mahomes or Brady.

[whatever_gong82]

Sorry for posting this late.

Detroit Lions film review: What the tape showed with ineffective pass rush


Justin Rogers
The Detroit News


Allen Park — When watching a football game live, we often focus on the result of a play, but it can be difficult to understand the why of that result in real time. On notable plays, such as turnovers and touchdowns, we're gifted the opportunity to watch replays — often in slow motion — which highlight some of the nuances we might have initially missed, but when we get into bigger themes from a game, it requires a thorough second (or third, fourth and fifth) review to understand the reasons things developed the way they did.

Such was the case with the Detroit Lions' lack of success rushing quarterback Geno Smith during last Sunday's game. We can look at the box score and quickly realize it wasn't good enough, but why did it take 58 minutes for the Lions to lay a hand on the QB, who completed 78% of his passes on the day?


Asked about the struggles the day after the loss, Lions coach Dan Campbell highlighted a myriad of reasons, including sluggish reaction time to Seattle's play-action, individual players not doing their jobs or winning their one-on-one opportunities, all while saying the team's most reliable players needed to start being more reliable.


Reviewing the tape from the contest, all those things did show up, but they weren't the lone concerns. Let's review our findings.


Play-fakes


Let's start with a couple of the concerns Campbell provided with his diagnosis.

First, let's give credit where credit is due. The Lions came into the contest intent on stopping the run, after allowing Seattle to rack up 500 yards on the ground in the previous two meetings. And for the most part, they did that. After allowing Kenneth Walker III to gain 14 on the first snap of the game, the Seahawks mustered just 68 yards on 24 carries the rest of the way (2.8 YPC).


To have that kind of success, you have to commit resources to the run, so it shouldn't be surprising to learn Detroit's defensive linemen, particularly their edge rushers, would slow their feet on many of Seattle's run fakes.



I'd contend the bigger issues with play-action came in the second level, where Detroit's linebackers were routinely slow to recognize the keys provided by Seattle's tight ends, who were free-releasing into the second level and doing major damage. The uncovered tight ends affected the pass rush because they provided Smith with an open target on his first read, eliminating his need to work through his progressions and hold on to the ball.


Rush-lane integrity


Let's start with this: the Lions were better at keeping Geno Smith from scrambling than they were a week earlier, when Patrick Mahomes had a good deal of success breaking free of the pocket, due to a lack of defender discipline.

Of course, that doesn't mean the Lions were without issues in this contest. Aidan Hutchinson overran the pocket a couple of times in the first half, while Charles Harris also got too vertical, on occasion, getting pushed past Smith by an offensive tackle on a 15-yard scramble that was a key play on Seattle's go-ahead touchdown drive in the second half.


And in the third quarter, on a cornerback blitz coming from both directions, both corners overran Smith, allowing him to step up and deliver a 15-yard completion.



These are physical errors that should be easily correctable.


Coverage challenges


Outside of play-action, one of the most effective ways to negate a pass rush is the quick-passing game. Unwilling to bust out a stopwatch for every dropback, I leaned on Pro Football Focus to confirm what I was seeing. Smith got rid of the ball within 2.5 seconds 19 times, completing 16 of those passes for 121 yards.


A lot of that had to do with Smith's first read being open, more often than not. We highlighted that in the section in play-action, but another big component to that was Detroit playing soft zone coverage underneath, conceding many of those short throws, 3-6 yards beyond the line of scrimmage.

There's good reason to play conservatively deep against Seattle. Smith ranked among the top 10 in deep throws last year with his two outside options, Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, combining for 46 targets when 20 or more yards beyond the line of scrimmage.



So, if stopping the run was the top priority, preventing explosive plays in the passing game was clearly another for Detroit. And again, Detroit did a reasonably good job with that objective, outside of Seattle exploiting a coverage mismatch and hitting tight end Noah Fant for a 31-yard deep ball against rush linebacker James Houston.

But, when you're willing to concede the short pass, you have to tackle well. The Lions didn't, failing to wrap up 13 times, mostly on those short, quick throws.

And speaking of zone coverage, Smith went outside of his scouting report to exploit the weaknesses in those defensive looks, working heavily outside the numbers. According to data provided by the NFL, Smith went 19-for-22 for 189 yards and two touchdowns on those throws. He targeted receivers outside of the numbers on 57.5% of his targets Sunday, his highest rate as Seattle's QB.


Detroit's best coverage snaps came when they played man. The Lions had some losses there, as well, including a critical third down on the game-winning drive, but there's clearly some struggles with the unit's switch to being more zone-heavy. And the concession of those short passes is negating the ability for the pass rush to have an impact.


Answer key


Finally, the Lions tried to rattle Smith with blitzes. I didn't count them up, so again, I'm going to lean on PFF to provide the raw number here. According to that stat service, the Lions sent an extra rusher after Smith 16 times on Sunday, and that doesn't even include Alex Anzalone's sack late in the fourth quarter, which was more improvisation than design, as that play broke down.

The Lions were creative with their blitz usage, sending linebackers, safeties and cornerbacks into the rush mix, often with good results. By that, I mean those extra rushers had clear lanes to Smith and were disruptive on several snaps.

But, the counter to that is the remarkable job the veteran quarterback did in making quick decisions. The purpose of a blitz, if it doesn't get home, is to pressure the quarterback into making a bad decision with the ball. Smith notably did once, on a third down in the red zone, when his pass was nearly picked off by safety Kerby Joseph.


But outside of that instance, Smith was remarkably poised executing his pre-snap plan, delivering the ball, often under duress and off-platform to an open man.



You can expect that with the league's elite quarterbacks such as Mahomes or Joe Burrow, but Smith's play in those situations shows that experience and mobility are enough to allow any QB to succeed in those circumstances. Still, it is somewhat surprising how consistent he was in those moments. Credit to him and Seattle's coaching staff for having him prepared.


Conclusion


To be honest, Detroit's pass rush looked better than I expected. There were a number of instances where Hutchinson, Harris and Romeo Okwara had individual wins, but that alone wasn't enough to get to the quarterback. And I liked the aggression they showed with their varied blitz concepts, although it felt like there was some hesitation by those blitzers as they closed in on Smith, whether because they respected his mobility or feared the NFL's strict rules safeguarding QB hits.


The bigger concern, in my opinion, is Detroit's coverage decisions and execution. If you're going to play off coverage and deeper underneath zones against most NFL teams, they'll happily take what you're offering. That's a fine strategy on second- and third-and-long situations, when you're just trying to get to fourth down and force a punt, but the Lions would benefit from playing a little tighter and mixing in a bit more man coverage on the outside, where they had success a year ago.

That said, some of the zone lapses we've seen early in the season should get better as the unit develops better chemistry, although that's easier said than done with some of the recent injury issues that have cropped up in the secondary.


jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @Justin_Rogers

[whatever_gong82]

Amon-Ra St. Brown, David Montgomery among 6 who miss practice for Detroit Lions


Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press


The Detroit Lions practiced Wednesday without their leading rusher and top receiver.

Lions running back David Montgomery did not practice because of a thigh bruise that knocked him out of last week's loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and Amon-Ra St. Brown was out with a toe injury.

Lions coach Dan Campbell called St. Brown day-to-day.



St. Brown injured his toe in the second half of the Seahawks game and finished the game with a protective metal plate in his toe, according to the Fox broadcast.

Asked about the possibility of St. Brown playing with a toe plate this week, Campbell said, "If it is, we’re going to put a steel toe in the other shoe, too. Because we had a player who did that and only put it in one and then wondered why his other foot hurt. So, we’ll make sure we balance it out. But we could. Look, we’ll look into all of that, and we’ll do whatever is needed to get him to where he feels right."



St. Brown leads the Lions with 12 catches and 173 yards receiving through two games. He led the team in both categories in each of the past two seasons.


Montgomery worked alongside cornerback Emmanuel Moseley in the Lions' rehab group during the open portion of practice Wednesday. He has a team-high 141 yards and two touchdowns on 37 carries so far this season.

Moseley, who is still at least a week away from returning from knee and hamstring injuries, safety Kerby Joseph and offensive linemen Taylor Decker (ankle) and Halapoulivaati Vaitai (knee) also did not practice Wednesday.


Briefly

The Lions officially signed running back Zonovan Knight and guard Kayode Awosika to their 53-man roster from their practice squad Wednesday and added four new players to the practice squad: Offensive tackle Dan Skipper, running back Devine Ozigbo, cornerback Darius Phillips and linebacker Mitchell Agude. Ozigbo was with the Lions in training camp, and Skipper played in 16 games and made five starts for the Lions last season. The Lions released defensive lineman Chris Smith from the practice squad.


Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

[whatever_gong82]

Disappointed by how camp battle played out, Lions' Glasgow fired up to start vs. Atlanta

Justin Rogers
The Detroit News


Allen Park — When he re-signed with the Detroit Lions this past offseason, offensive lineman Graham Glasgow didn't expect to be handed a starting job, but he hoped he would at least get every opportunity to compete and prove he deserved it. But the versatility that made Glasgow an appealing addition, also proved to be a curse with those aspirations.

With the organization committed to spelling starting center Frank Ragnow regularly during training camp, as he battles a long-term toe issue, Glasgow was asked to backfill that role those days. That drew him away from competing for the job at right guard, which ultimately went to Halapoulivaati Vaitai.

The way things played out didn't sit well with Glasgow.


"I was pretty upset," Glasgow said. "I felt like I was more upset about it because I had played so much center. At the end of the day, I had to do it. That's unfortunately the way things are, but it's also kind of the reason they brought me back. That's just the way it shook out and I was upset; I was pissed off. At a point, I'm not saying you have to move on, but you, well, I guess you do have to move on and focus on other things."


Publicly, the Lions praised Glasgow. Days before the start of the season, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said he felt like he had six starters along the offensive line, even if the team could only play five. That was nice, but the words hardly made Glasgow feel better about serving as a reserve.

An important part of the cultural changes in Detroit under coach Dan Campbell has been an emphasis on direct and honest communication from the staff to the players. Glasgow referenced it when he re-signed, noting the staff was full of "straight-shooters." The other side of the equation is players are encouraged to be authentic and straightforward with their coaches, something Glasgow took advantage of when voicing his displeasure.


"I'll tell you, I let them know how I felt about it and I was not filtered either," Glasgow said. "Some places might hold it against you, but I don't think that's the way it is here. I think they understood why I felt jilted, in a way, and I think that they didn't really push me on it too much. They weren't asking me to be chipper about it, which was fair."

Throwing himself into the weekly routine of game-planning helped ease the sting of the team's decision, and now, two weeks into the season, Glasgow is on the cusp of entering the starting lineup, after Vaitai suffered a knee injury last Sunday against Seattle. It's unclear how long he'll be sidelined, and obviously, it's not the way Glasgow wanted his opportunity to come, but he's also not going to take it for granted.


He's eager to show the coaches, his teammates and the fan base what he can bring to the table against some formidable competition, the loaded interior defensive front of the Atlanta Falcons.

"It means a lot," Glasgow said. "This week in general is a really good test. I didn't really know much about their team until I was looking it up yesterday. They've got Grady Jarrett, David Onyemata and Calais Campbell. These are good players. I know they've always had Jarrett, but I didn't know they'd added the other two. I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be some good competition and I'm looking forward to having a good week."



jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @Justin_Rogers

[whatever_gong82]

From yesterday's Athletic. Still important information here though.


How the Lions can improve their struggling pass rush, even amid injuries


By Colton Pouncy
Sep 19, 2023


Think back to training camp. What were the biggest questions facing this Detroit Lions roster? Offensive line depth? Not enough at wide receiver? Run defense? Would the rookies be ready to go?

These days, most questions seem to center on an aspect coaches felt good about this offseason, thanks to its collective depth. That would be the pass rush.

It’s early, of course, but it’s hard not to question the production. The Lions have one sack through eight quarters and change, tied with the Chicago Bears for second-fewest in the NFL and behind just the New York Giants’ zero sacks. Opposing quarterbacks have had plenty of time to throw, either in the pocket or on the move thanks to open lanes. It’s worth a review to assess what hasn’t worked, and how the team might improve with some corrections in the weeks to come.

Let’s take a look.


What’s not working


Coach Dan Campbell believes the Lions’ pass-rush woes have more to do with how they’re rushing the passer versus the plan in place. On several occasions, the Lions have over-pursued or failed to contain, leaving gaping running lanes for opposing quarterbacks to take advantage of.

Take the play below, for example. It’s second-and-20, a favorable spot for the defense. Even a moderate gain makes for a difficult third-down attempt. Not only did the Lions fail to win their one-on-one matchups, they also failed to contain Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith.


Here’s an example. You have Aidan Hutchinson on one end and Charles Harris on the other. When you rush too high, you create lanes for mobile quarterbacks to step up in the pocket and take off. That’s exactly what happens here.


Harris rushes high and takes himself out of the play, essentially. The defensive tackles aren’t in on the action. Hutchinson is the only player who closes in on Smith, but because of the clear lane created, Smith simply takes off and picks up 15 on second-and-20, leading to a manageable third-and-5.


The Seahawks would convert and ultimately score a go-ahead touchdown on this drive.

“We can’t rush high,” Campbell said. “We’ve got to close this in on the quarterback. We rush high and we don’t have somebody that can cover, we’re going to be in trouble. … You get one guy who’s doing it right and a couple of guys and the next guy’s not and we give them a void.”

When the Lions did bring some pressure, the Seahawks were often ready for it, using quick passes and misdirection to confuse the Lions and keep them off balance.

Take the play below, for example.



The Seahawks show a look with linemen blocking left, which gets the linebackers to shift that way initially. The Lions dial up some pressure with C.J. Gardner-Johnson (No. 2) closing in off the edge, but the play design allows for tight end Will Dissly (No. 89) to run a crosser over the middle. Malcolm Rodriguez gets caught flat-footed, then trails Dissly for the remainder of the play, thanks to the initial look shown.


Smith fires off a pass before Gardner-Johnson gets home, Dissly hauls it in, breaks a tackle and all of a sudden, it’s a gain of 13 down to the Detroit 28.


Seattle would score a go-ahead touchdown on this drive. To make matters worse, Gardner-Johnson is expected to miss extended time — perhaps even the rest of the season — after suffering a torn pectoral muscle Sunday.

“Credit to them,” Harris said after the game. “They did a great job of mixing up some of those plays, throwing a lot of misdirection and then getting the ball out quick.”


Close but no cigar


The underlying numbers suggest the Lions are close. Per TruMedia, the Lions have the eighth-highest pressure rate in the NFL at 38.9 percent. They’re tied for fifth in total pressures with 35 through two games. Most notably, they’ve accomplished this with the 23rd-highest blitz rate in the league — just 20.2 percent — perhaps a sign that they’re less reliant on the blitz than they were a year ago when they ranked seventh in the NFL at 33.5 percent. It should allow them to be more selective when dialing up the blitz, which could catch opposing offenses off guard. These are encouraging signs.

This is a perfect example of how pressures can impact plays, even when you don’t complete the mission. The Lions send Brian Branch from the slot on third-and-goal. He does a good job of disguising it until just before the ball is snapped. Rodriguez is also blitzing, as Harris sinks into coverage.


It’s not a sack, but the pressure from Branch — an excellent blitzer at Alabama — forces a rushed throw from Smith, looking for Jaxon Smith-Njigba.


Kerby Joseph is monitoring the slot on this play. He knows if the pressure is there as intended, Smith will be forced to get the ball out early. This is smart football. Joseph is one of the better young ballhawks in the NFL, and this allows him to do what he does best — make a play on the ball.


If Joseph catches this in stride, it’s 6 points the other way. It was that close. But it’s a win for the defense regardless, with Seattle settling for a field goal.

Some of the Lions’ miscues were just poor execution. The players were put in a position to succeed and just didn’t make the play. In the still below, you’ll see the Lions dialing up a cornerback blitz — Cam Sutton on one side and Jerry Jacobs on the other. Seahawks wide receiver Jake Bobo is in motion pre-snap.


Sutton is lined up against Seahawks left tackle Stone Forsythe, perhaps an unfair fight. He ends up on the turf. On the other side, though, Bobo fails to recognize the corner blitz in time, giving Jacobs a clean shot at Smith. All he has to do is make the play.


That didn’t happen. Smith shakes off Jacobs, steps up in a relatively clean pocket and fires a bullet to DK Metcalf for a first down. That’s the difference between a 6-yard sack and a 15-yard gain.



Granted, pressures can be polarizing. They only mean so much if the sacks never come. It’s on the Lions to turn these pressures into sacks. Close or not, Sunday’s performance wasn’t good enough. But if the Lions iron some things out, there could be better days ahead.


Where the Lions go from here


It’s important to note that we’re just two games into the season. The Lions have faced two quarterbacks so far. One is Patrick Mahomes, a magician who’s arguably the best in the business at creating out of structure. The Seahawks, meanwhile, had an excellent game plan and a quarterback who makes smart reads, gets the ball out when he needs to and generally avoids mistakes.

However, Detroit’s depth has taken a hit. The Lions emerged from cut day with seven edges on the roster. They’re down to just four now, after injuries to Julian Okwara, Josh Paschal and James Houston — all out for the foreseeable future.

The absences of Houston and Paschal, in particular, will hurt. They were two players you could point to as a reason why the Lions didn’t need to draft an edge in 2023. It was fair for Detroit to want to see what it had in those players, who were part of an already-crowded edge room. Paschal was a second-round pick who played his rookie season hurt, and was versatile enough to kick inside and rush on passing downs. Houston was stuck on the practice squad until he earned the trust of the coaching staff and his impact down the stretch improved Detroit’s pass rush drastically. Even this year, Houston’s 23.1 percent win rate leads all Lions edge rushers and ranks 10th in the NFL among the position. It was reasonable for the Lions to expect growth from both. Now, each will miss a handful of games, if not more.


The Lions need others to step up. Hutchinson demands so much attention, to a point where he’s been visibly frustrated by the lack of calls from officials. He could stand to be a bit more disciplined, but his PFF win rate of 17.3 ranks 20th among edge rushers (minimum 15 pass-rush snaps). He needs help from Harris, John Cominsky and Romeo Okwara, Detroit’s other healthy edge rushers. Meanwhile, Alim McNeill’s win rate of 4.9 percent ranks 79th among 99 qualified defensive interior players.

The Lions simply haven’t been able to get home, giving opposing quarterbacks far too much time to operate. Through two games, the Lions have allowed an average time to throw of 3.27 seconds — worst in the NFL, per TruMedia. For reference, the league average is 2.81 seconds. They have only eight PFF hits, which is tied for 22nd. And their sack rate of 1.2 percent ranks as second-worst in the NFL. The rush and coverage haven’t worked in tandem the way the coaching staff would like, and that gets even harder without Gardner-Johnson.

All this to say, the Lions haven’t gotten it done. But there are 15 games left. All it takes is one effort to get back on track and alleviate concerns.

It’s on players to turn those pressures into sacks.



Colton Pouncy is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Detroit Lions. He previously covered Michigan State football and basketball for the company, and covered sports for The Tennessean in Nashville prior to joining The Athletic. Follow Colton on Twitter @colton_pouncy

[Tom]

Wade Philips always seems to get the most out of his defensive talent. But I think he is a 3-4 guy and it might take a while to transition to his defense.

But I doubt Campbell lets Glenn go. They seem tied at the hip.

[whatever_gong82]

Dan Campbell: Detroit Lions 'train doesn't stop' because of C.J. Gardner-Johnson injury


Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press


C.J. Gardner-Johnson will undergo surgery on his torn pectoral muscle, but the Detroit Lions aren't ruling out a return for the safety later this season.

"Don’t quite know," Lions coach Dan Campbell said Wednesday. "But I know that the reports that we’ve gotten back on it is that it was a very clean injury and that’s normally good for surgery, recovery, all of those things. So I certainly think that there’s a chance that we get him back."


Gardner-Johnson tore his pec on the opening series of the Lions' Week 2 loss to the Seattle Seahawks but played 70 of a possible 72 defensive snaps in the game.

Torn pectoral muscles typically take three to four months to recover from, though players who are able to rehab the injury in lieu of surgery can return sooner.



Gardner-Johnson, who will be a free agent after the season, was one of the Lions' key offseason additions and Campbell said his absence will "hurt" the team in a variety of ways.

"He’s an impactful player and his energy is infectious," Campbell said. "And look, I hate it for him. I hate it for him, hate it for us, but man, this train doesn’t stop. And so, with that, I think him being around has definitely made guys better, those around him better."


Tracy Walker, a defensive starter for most of the past four seasons, will take Gardner-Johnson's spot at safety and make his first start since tearing his Achilles tendon last September this Sunday when the Lions host the Atlanta Falcons at Ford Field.

Walker played nine defensive snaps against the Seahawks and made one tackle.



"Having a guy like Tracy, who’s got time on task, somebody we got a lot of faith in, trust it, that alleviates a lot of pressure and stress for us, cause we know he’s game ready, he’s been in it, he hasn’t batted one eye at it," Campbell said. "He just goes to work, and he does anything we ask him to do. He’s been playing special teams, been playing for us a little bit here so certainly he’s taken on a big role now. We have a ton of faith in Trace, so he’s another guy I’m glad he’s here with us."



Campbell said outside linebacker James Houston, who fractured his fibula while covering a kick against the Seahawks, has a similar timetable to recovery as Gardner-Johnson in that it's possible he returns late in the season.

The Lions placed both players on IR on Tuesday.

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

[whatever_gong82]

Wade Philips always seems to get the most out of his defensive talent. But I think he is a 3-4 guy and it might take a while to transition to his defense.

But I doubt Campbell lets Glenn go. They seem tied at the hip.

I'd rather take Phillips than Glenn any day of the week, and twice on Game Day.

[whatever_gong82]

Silver lining: Lions could get key defensive players back by end of season

Nolan Bianchi
The Detroit News


Allen Park — Compared to injury news of the past few days, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell delivered some positive updates in Allen Park on Wednesday.

Following the Lions’ crushing 37-31 overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Sunday’s home opener, the team was dealt significant injury news on both sides of the ball, but especially on defense, where two key players on Tuesday were put on injured reserve.


Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson reportedly suffered a torn pectoral muscle, while second-year edge rusher James Houston injured his fibula. Campbell doesn’t have a complete timeline for their return, but while some have speculated they’ll both be out for the season, he said they both have potential to return by the year’s end.


Gardner-Johnson will have surgery to repair the torn pec, Campbell said.

“You asked about how long, don’t quite know, but … the reports that we’ve gotten back on it is that it was a very clean injury,” Campbell said. “That’s normally good for surgery, recovery, all those things. I certainly think there’s a chance we could get him back.”



Houston, a former sixth-round pick, played 12 games in his rookie season and recorded eight sacks with a forced fumble. He left Sunday’s game in the third quarter.

“That’s a tough one, too. His (timeline) is — he could be very similar to (Gardner-Johnson). Could be end of the year, potentially. But, there again, I don’t wanna sit here and tell you yes, and then we don’t get him back. But, I do think there’s a chance by the end of the year we can get him back.”


The Lions are also dealing with a host of injuries offensively. Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) won’t practice Wednesday and is considered day-to-day, in addition to the bone bruise that David Montgomery (thigh) suffered in Sunday's loss. Wide receiver Josh Reynolds (groin) popped up as limited on Wednesday's practice report. The injuries are made more complex by the fact that Detroit will be playing at Green Bay on a short week next Thursday night.

"There are a couple of guys it could be — alright, if it's close enough, do you try to play them this week, knowing that, maybe if you do, then they're probably out from Green Bay anyway?" Campbell said. "There's a couple of those guys. I'm not gonna say who they are, but that may have a little bit (to do with the decisions)."



The Lions promoted two players off their practice squad Tuesday, running back Zonovan Knight and guard Kayode Awosika.

Injury report

In addition to St. Brown and Montgomery, offensive tackle Taylor Decker (ankle), safety Kerby Joseph (hip), cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (knee/hamstring) and offensive lineman Halapoulivaati Vaitai (knee) did not practice Wednesday.

Center Frank Ragnow (toe) was a full participant.


nbianchi@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @nolanbianchi

[froot loops]

They have the guys to play a 3-4 right now. The way the league is now, a lot of teams play a hybrid style where you are mixing and matching defensive lineman and you are almost always in nickle. It's not like in the 80s when there was a clear difference between a 3-4 and 4-3.

I like the Birkett article about the defense. I noticed the ends were rushing too high on occasion and it generally burned them when they did. I expected the first half of the season to see some communication issues with coverage from the revamped secondary. We didn't see it that much against KC but it may have been an issue against the Seahawks.

[whatever_gong82]

Lions' Tracy Walker ready to 'make a lot of plays' in return to starting gig

Nolan Bianchi
The Detroit News


Allen Park — 364 days after tearing his Achilles on the Minnesota turf, Detroit Lions safety Tracy Walker will be introduced with the defensive starters at Ford Field.

If you would have told him this at the end of last season, or even a few months into the offseason and training camp, it would hardly come as a surprise. But if you would have said this a week ago? It would have sounded like a lie.


Walker's hope to pick up where he left off following the injury was dashed in training camp. The combination of C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Brian Branch played him out of a starting job. He admitted Wednesday, "it wasn't the best situation" at the time — but he may have come out the other side a better teammate and leader.



And now, with Gardner-Johnson set to miss extended time — maybe even the rest of the year — with a torn pec, Walker believes he's a better player than before he got hurt.

"I just had to learn that that was my new role at the moment, and I had to just take what came with it," Walker said. "After I talked to the coaches, that's just the decision they decided to make, and like I said, I'm a team player. At the end of the day, I'm just going to support whatever (decisions) the coaches make, and whatever the decision is, that's it. I just gotta come out here and do my job.



"... It sucked to get away from the game of football last year the way I was, but I was able to learn and develop and grow mentally, physically, and emotionally."

The timing of his return is not lost on Walker.

"Honestly, I'm a very spiritual man. I believe in God very, very heavily, and I just feel like this is all God's plan. He took me away from the game last year at this time, bringing me back into the game in this situation, so that's it," he said.



"... It's gonna be very emotional for me. It's gonna definitely spark some emotions and some feelings, but at the end of the day, I still gotta go out there and play ball. But I'm gonna be so happy to fly around. ... Y'all gonna see 21 (Walker's jersey number) make a lot of plays."




Even though it'll get him back in the starting lineup, Walker called Gardner-Johnson's absence a big loss for the team. Gardner-Johnson often was touted as one of the Lions' biggest — if not the biggest — offseason additions. It was impossible to not feel his presence.

"He definitely brought a different aspect to our team. His energy, his enthusiasm, is definitely going to be missed," Walker said. "Like I said, he was a great player for us. For me, I just look at it as a great opportunity for me to come back from, considering I'm coming back from my injury."



In his last full season as a starter, Walker in 2021 made a team-high 108 tackles with six pass defenses and an interception. All things considered, the Lions are in a fortunate position with Gardner-Johnson's injury. There are few gigs in this league where the backup has 62 appearances under his belt. Lions head coach Dan Campbell complimented Walker's resiliency over the last few months.


"Yeah, it’s very valuable. We’re fortunate to have depth in a number of areas and that’s one of them is at that position there. So, having a guy like Tracy who’s got time on task, somebody we’ve got a lot of faith in, trust in, that alleviates a lot of pressure and stress for us because we know he’s game ready, he’s been in it," Campbell said.

"He hasn’t batted one eye at it. He just goes to work and he does anything we ask him to do. He’s been playing special teams, ... so certainly he’s taken on a big role now and we have a ton of faith in Trace, so he’s another guy I’m glad he’s here with us."


Standing at his locker Wednesday, Walker sounded like a man who was finally starting to make sense of it all.

"Every day, even when they made the switch to put Chauncey with the ones, I gotta say, each and every day, I was always reminded and told myself that I still gotta keep performing," Walker said.



"I’m a key guy and a key component to this team. And I said, ‘They’re going to rely on me one of these days,’ because everybody knows, this is football. Injury is gonna happen. That’s it. It’s the next man up.

"It’s an unfortunate situation, but it’s the next man up. So I gotta capitalize on my opportunity right now."


nbianchi@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @nolanbianchi

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Lions' new running back Knight trying to prove he deserves shot with Montgomery hurting


Justin Rogers
The Detroit News


Allen Park — In football, one man's injury is another man's opportunity. And while no one ever wants to see a teammate go down, every player on the roster has to be prepared to step up and fill the void.

Detroit Lions running back Zonovan Knight has only been here a few weeks, but he's been champing at that bit. A member of the team's practice squad until this week, Knight felt the energy of the home crowd at Ford Field last Sunday, and it was a tipping point for his patience. After pre-game warmups, he texted his best friend and former college roommate: 'I'm ready to get back here.' The response, 'Your time is coming.'


Hours later, when the team's starting running back, David Montgomery, suffered a thigh contusion that could sideline him the next couple of games, that time became now. The Lions officially promoted Knight to the active roster on Wednesday.



Serving on practice squads for much of his first two seasons, after going undrafted out of North Carolina State, has been a bitter pill for Knight to swallow. He's always been a starter, at every level, and he was a productive back for the Wolfpack, averaging 5.5 yards per carry and scoring 18 touchdowns during his three seasons. But things haven't come as easily at the game's highest level.


After initially making the Jets' 53-man roster out of training camp last year, he spent nearly two months on the team's practice squad before injuries paved a path for an opportunity. Beginning in Week 11, he started four consecutive games for the squad, rushing for 300 yards and adding another 100 on 13 receptions.

One of those starts came against the Lions. And even though it wasn't a productive day — 13 carries for 26 yards — they liked enough of what they saw there and on tape from his other appearances that they jumped at adding him to their practice squad when the Jets cut him after camp this year.



Knight, whose nickname, "Bam," suggests as much, is primarily a north-south runner, but he's quick to point out he's more athletic than a typical downhill runner. His testing coming out of college, where he posted elite numbers in agility drills, confirms that.

"I'm pretty explosive through the hole," Knight said.


Learning a new scheme, one with far different verbiage than he's experienced anywhere else, has been an adjustment, but Knight has started getting comfortable in Detroit. He intends to use this week of practice to show he understands his role in the scheme, that he can be trusted, and that he merits consideration for playing time as part of the team's backfield rotation for this week's game against the Atlanta Falcons.

"I don't know the full game plan or how they plan to utilize me because I'm obviously new," Knight said. "I think there's still some trust being built. I'm using this week of practice to prove to them I know what I'm doing and I can handle this. If I can prove that to them, I think I'll get an opportunity."



jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @Justin_Rogers

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Detroit Lions say they're built for adversity. Atlanta Falcons game a chance to prove it.


Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press


Dan Campbell straightened the packet of notes he brought with him to his Wednesday news conference and smiled.

After nine minutes of answering questions mostly about the myriad injuries his team suffered in last week's loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the third-year Detroit Lions coach had a gentle reminder for everyone who has spent the past few days hand-wringing over his team's 1-1 start.

"Listen, hey, I hate losing but I love this because this is — I just feel like this is what we’re all about," Campbell said. "And it’s, we’re back to reality, we’re back in the mud. And it’s doom and gloom outside of this building and this world and, man, let’s just hunker down and go to work."


The Lions have played their best football the past two seasons while mired in adversity.

They won three of their final six games in 2021 after a disastrous 0-10-1 start. They went 8-2 down the stretch last season after a 1-6 start prompted owner Sheila Hamp to give Campbell a public vote of confidence.


And they're sitting in choppy water again entering Sunday's showdown with the Atlanta Falcons, one of nine undefeated teams in the NFL.

The Lions practiced Wednesday without eight key players — 15% of their 53-man roster — and will be without several starters this week.


C.J. Gardner-Johnson and James Houston are on injured reserve and potentially done for the season because of injuries they suffered against the Seahawks. Kerby Joseph and Emmanuel Moseley did not practice Wednesday, necessitating a personnel shuffle in a new-look secondary that's still in the getting-to-know-you phase. Taylor Decker and Halapoulivaati Vaitai are battling injuries on the Lions' suddenly thin offensive line, which was supposed to be the strength of the roster. And leading rusher David Montgomery and top receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown are day-to-day with injuries that could cause them to miss one or more games and will impact how they run their offense.


Rookie Jahmyr Gibbs is in line to have a bigger role at running back Sunday after logging 14 carries for 59 yards in his first two games. And if St. Brown can't go, the Lions likely will trot out a receiving corps of Josh Reynolds, Kalif Raymond and Marvin Jones against a defense that's tied for the second-fewest passing yards allowed in the NFL, though Reynolds was limited in practice Wednesday by a groin injury.

"We’ve been through a whole lot worse than this," Lions quarterback Jared Goff said. "We lost a tough game. We played well in parts, didn’t play well in other parts but we have some stuff to get better at and some stuff that we like that we can draw on and can use for the next week. But yeah, (Dan's willingness to embrace adversity is) a reflection of our whole team."



And a reflection of how far the Lions have come.

After two games, the Lions are tied for first place in the NFC North, with a win over the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and a record most predicted them for at the beginning of the season.


It's a spot both they and their fans would have killed to be in a year ago.

But last week's loss to the Seahawks, when Campbell was criticized for several late-game coaching decisions, and the injuries they've sustained ahead of a tough two-games-in-five-days stretch — the Lions visit the Green Bay Packers next Thursday night — have opened some seats on their once-overflowing bandwagon, and players have noticed.


"You know how it gets as far as on the outside," defensive back Will Harris said. "We can never forget kind of what we were saying last year when we started to turn things around. We can’t forget the inner nucleus that we have here and the things that we have here. We always have had to kind of rely on everything inside the building, cause things go (up and down) as soon as we didn’t come out on top last week and all of a sudden, it’s (a disaster).

"If they put us on the highest of high pedestals or the lowest of lows, either way we can’t be too high or too low. Somewhere in the middle is the most realistic and that’s what we try to do in here. You win a big game, go back to work. You lose one, you take it on the chin, you go back to work. That’s always been our thing."


For the Lions to bounce back this week, Campbell said they must get back to what they do well.


That's run the ball efficiently, strike for chunk plays off the run-action pass, play physical, aggressive defense, and do it all as a team no matter who's on the field.

"I just feel like that’s what we do best," Campbell said. "And I know our guys, I know our coaches. Man, this is challenge accepted. Challenge accepted. So, I feel really good, I do, and I know the opponent’s coming in and if we don’t get back to our identity this team will take your soul and so that’s the motivation."


Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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Lions' long-standing lack of interior pass rush has lingered into 2023 season


Justin Rogers
The Detroit News


Allen Park — The Lions' lack of an interior pass rush has been an issue for years, but there were reasons to think it could be better going into this season.

At the top of that list, Alim McNeill dropped more than 30 pounds and Levi Onwuzurike, the team's second-round pick in 2021, was healthy for the first time since he'd been in Detroit.


But through two games, that group is still struggling to affect the pocket. Combined with nose tackle Benito Jones, the interior trio has been on the field for 143 passing snaps and registered just five pressures.


"Listen, everybody on our defense has strengths and has weaknesses and you look at our run defense, you see what those interior guys are doing," defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. "They’re doing a really, really good job. Are they (Rams defensive tackle) Aaron Donald? No, they’re not. There are not many people in this league that are like that, so we have to do a good job, well I have to do a good job, of trying to scheme some things up so those guys can get a chance to get to the quarterback."



Detroit's pass rush has been an area of concern the first two games. They're moving the quarterback off his spot as well as any group in the league, but they're not getting home, recording a single sack in two games. The lack of interior push is a contributing factor to that problem since quarterbacks can step up in an otherwise clean pocket when pressured from the edge.

But to Glenn's point, the Lions have succeeded with the offseason focus of slowing down opposing ground games. Opponents averaged 86 yards rushing and 3.6 yards per carry through the first two weeks.



Injury update


Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) returned to practice on Thursday. Safety Kerby Joseph (hip), offensive tackle Taylor Decker (ankle), guard Halapoulivaati Vaitai (knee), running back David Montgomery (thigh) and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (knee/hamstring) remained sidelined.

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter/X: @Justin_Rogers