Lions News

[whatever_gong82]

Riley Patterson 'doing exactly what we expect' to solidify Detroit Lions kicking game



Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press


The kicking game has been an afterthought for the Detroit Lions this season, which is exactly how Riley Patterson likes it.

"I don’t want anyone to think about me," Patterson told the Free Press on Thursday. "I want them to say, 'All right, Riley’s out there, it’ll go through,' and then go on with their lives."

One of the Lions' biggest question marks entering the season, Patterson is a perfect 5-for-5 on field goals and 13-for-13 on extra points through four games.

It's a small sample size and Patterson has yet to attempt a kick longer than 38 yards, but a quarter of the way into the season the Lions might finally have found some stability at a position that's long been a thorn in their side.



"He’s doing a good job," Lions coach Dan Campbell said. "He’s doing exactly what we expect him to do and when he’s called upon to make those kicks, he’s been nailing them so got a lot of confidence in him and he’s doing a good job for us."

The Lions used six different kickers in games in the 2021-22 seasons and have rostered 11 kickers total since letting Matt Prater leave in free agency in March of 2021.


Patterson, in his second stint with the Lions, made 13 of 14 field goals during a seven-game cameo with the team in 2021 and won a training camp battle that really wasn't with Parker Romo this summer after spending last fall with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

He said he has improved significantly as a kicker since first go-round in Detroit. Physically, he has made technical adjustments such as using the ground more to get better distance on his kicks, and mentally he has been better about staying locked in on his job.


"I understand games a lot more," Patterson said. "My rookie year, obviously everything’s new, NFL’s new, but just managing yourself throughout the game, understanding situations in the game and just staying in a consistent mindset and feel the ball coming off my foot during game day is where I think I’ve learned the most. And then in Jacksonville, learned a lot throughout the season, growing the confidence throughout the season and now I have that confidence with me here. So, yeah, mostly just mindset stuff has changed for the better."


As a rookie in 2021, Patterson said he occasionally let his mind wander between kicks. He'd catch himself watching games or thinking back to what happened in practice that week, and while it didn't impact his performance he said he has a better sense now of what it takes to be a pro.


“You pretty much know when you can be told to go out there and kick a field goal," Patterson said. "It’s not like we have a playbook, but just making sure throughout the entire game that I’m ready at every moment for a pick-six or whatever, and making sure my leg feels good the entire game. Making sure I’m thinking about contact, not thinking about anything else during the game. Little things like that I think separate guys in the NFL and I think that’s something that I’ve grown a lot over this past year in just being a professional and not just learning stuff on the fly."


Patterson made 30 of 35 field goals with the Jaguars last season, with a long of 53 yards. In the playoffs, he went 3-for-3 and made the game-winning 36-yard field goal as time expired in Jacksonville's 31-30 wild card win over the Los Angeles Chargers.


The Lions traded for Patterson this spring, after Jacksonville signed Brandon McManus as his replacement, in part because of his playoff success, and Patterson said he's glad the Lions' faith in him has paid off so far.

"It means the world, man, for them to give me a shot," he said. "But at the same time I got to just make sure I think about myself, too, and not worry about other people’s affirmation or anything like that. Just making sure I stay in my zone, know how to hit my ball, know how to hit my kicks, and everything else will kind of figure itself out."


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

[whatever_gong82]

How Lions DT Alim McNeill’s offseason training regimen turned him into a rising star



By Colton Pouncy
Oct 6, 2023


DETROIT — The best performance of Alim McNeill’s young NFL career just so happens to be the one he’s most trying to forget.

It was Week 11 of the 2022 season. The Detroit Lions ventured to the Meadowlands for a matchup against the 7-2 New York Giants. The Lions had just scratched the surface of what would become a late-season turnaround. McNeill, a 2021 third-round pick and one of the better young defensive tackles in football, said he woke up with a feeling, a hunch, a certain energy that gave him knowledge of what was to come.


His Lions were winning that game. McNeill’s play would ensure it.

Against the Giants, McNeill looked like a man possessed, disruptive against the run and as a pass rusher. He recorded a sack and a career-high 10 pressures — a record for a player weighing 320 pounds or more, per PFF. Seeing what he’s capable of, it was the type of performance that left you wanting more.

McNeill wants more, too, which is why he’s doing everything he can to put that game behind him.


“I try not to think about that Giants game because I want more like that,” McNeill said in July. “I’m trying to put that in the past so I can show other performances. But that Giants game, that’s what I want to do every game. I know I can do that. That’s just a confidence in me and knowing my ability. … With where I was last year body-wise, composition-wise and all that, I just wasn’t feeling that. I had to get right.”

The process of getting right leads us to where we are today. McNeill, now 23, has his sights set on a career year. This Lions team is vastly different from the one with which he entered the league. There are meaningful expectations. Detroit is 3-1, in the driver’s seat in the NFC North. The goal is a division title and a playoff run. McNeill knew this by the end of last season.


The Week 18 win over the Packers in Green Bay instilled confidence in much of this team, McNeill included. This was the year they could take a step forward.

“I didn’t want to be that guy holding us back or anything like that,” he said. “I want to be able to help us win games like everybody else.”


As soon as that game was over, McNeill went to work.

First up, his diet. McNeill wanted to shed some weight. He cut out red meat. He focused on portion control, fitting the food he loves into his diet without overconsuming. As a result, he’s down 13 percent body fat and 22 pounds — from 327 to 305 — looking leaner and lighter on his feet this offseason. You can see it in practice as he nimbly sheds blockers.


McNeill took up yoga this offseason, too, going once a week plus stretching on his own every morning and evening. The idea of a 300-pound defensive tackle hitting a downward-facing dog might seem funny on the surface, but McNeill says it has helped with his hip flexibility. That matters when getting after the quarterback.


He also took it upon himself to add some moves to his repertoire. He flew to Dallas this offseason to attend a pass-rush summit put together by renowned college and NFL defensive line coach Pete Jenkins. There, he learned about hand placement, different types of steps and stances and what to read as a defensive tackle before the snap. It offered a little bit of everything as defensive tackles past and present came together to share tips of the trade.

“I was just doing the D-line stuff, kind of traveling around wherever this offseason,” McNeill said. “I was just working hands, feet, hips, eyes. Just watching videos, talking to different former players and stuff like that. Just trying to get insight.”


This idea was not forced upon him by the coaching staff, the front office or anyone else in the organization. There were no concerns about McNeill’s playing weight. But McNeill knew more would be on his plate this year. He spent parts of his first two years playing nose tackle. These days, he’s playing more three-technique than ever, a position at which rushing the passer is a more regular requirement.

Getting his body right was a commitment to himself and his team. With the Lions on the rise, McNeill felt he needed to rise with them.


“I’m not gonna say I didn’t like last year, but I didn’t like last year,” McNeill said. “There were some changes and some things I was doing on the field that I was like, I know I can do this differently and do this a lot better because I’ve done it before. So it was just, ‘I gotta get myself back to where I feel like Alim again.’ It was just a lot of weight on me. I didn’t really feel the same. I was kind of stiff. I just made an emphasis to stretch. I’m eating good, I’m sleeping good, just taking the whole professional approach.”

What you’re seeing with McNeill is a young player developing veteran habits. It’s a scary thought, considering how rock-solid McNeill was before these adjustments. McNeill has been Detroit’s best defensive tackle since he entered the league. The flashes were there, but the consistency was not.


Everyone around the team could see the changes coming from a mile away.

“It’s exciting to see how Alim has come from Year 1 to Year 3 to where he’s at, the way he’s changed his body, how athletic he is,” Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said before the season. “I’m expecting a big year.”

There are numerous examples from the early portion of the season of McNeill being a difference-maker on the field. Against the Packers a week ago, he was an absolute force, even when it didn’t show up on the box score. Take the play below, for example.


McNeill (No. 54) began this play lined up against Atlanta Falcons right tackle Kaleb McGary (76). Atlanta ran play action, with quarterback Desmond Ridder faking a handoff to running back Bijan Robinson. It was pretty well blocked. Except for McNeill.




McNeill squeezed through the B-gap, turned the corner when he recognized the play action and had a clear path to Ridder before the quarterback had even scanned the field.


All Ridder could do was give himself up, sliding to the ground as McNeill tapped him to complete the sack.

The Lions need their defensive line to win their one-on-one battles, and McNeill has largely done that this season. However, he’s not just winning those battles. He’s beating double-teams, too.


The Packers ran play action here, with quarterback Jordan Love faking a handoff to Aaron Jones. Despite a short-handed offensive line, the Packers did a good job of blocking this play. Again, except for McNeill, who was facing a double-team from Packers left tackle Rasheed Walker (63) and left guard Royce Newman (70).


McNeill used his strength to rip away from Newman and toss him to the ground, making quick work of the double-team before shooting up the middle to pressure Love.



That screenshot above — a lineman or two off-balance, a quarterback looking to get rid of the ball and McNeill closing in on him — has been a recurring image this season. It’s exactly the level of play the Lions believed they could get from McNeill.

“Man, when I first got here, I was like, ‘Mac is gonna light this league up’ — as he is now,” said third-year linebacker Derrick Barnes, who was drafted by the Lions one round after McNeill in 2021. “Amazing player, knows his role, has great technique, strong as hell. I don’t understand how strong he is — it’s crazy when you see him lift. But everybody knew he could be a star in this league, and just having him up front, knowing you’re protected as a linebacker, that’s a guy you want to play in front of you. … He’s gonna continue to shock people, so I’m excited for the journey for him.”


Early this season, McNeill’s improvement has been evident. His win rate of 12 percent ranks 30th among interior defensive linemen (with a minimum 20 percent of pass-rush snaps played). For reference, McNeill ranked 52nd with a win rate of 7.9 percent a year ago and 93rd at 5.8 as a rookie in 2021.

The last two games in particular have been two of his best as a pro. Per Pro Football Focus, McNeill totaled seven pressures, a 21.3 percent pass-rush win rate and two sacks against the Falcons and Packers. Those seven pressures were the 11th most among interior defensive linemen during that span. His win rate ranked sixth during that same time, and McNeill totaled nearly as many sacks in the last two weeks as he had in his previous 36 games combined (three).

As defensive tackle becomes a premium position in the NFL, and as many of his peers seek big paydays, McNeill has been paying attention. The main reason he’s worked to better himself was to help the Lions win. But he also wants to be viewed among the best at his position. He believes he’s capable of it.

“I’d be lying to you if I said that wasn’t a factor,” McNeill said. “That was definitely part of the motivation watching guys like Jeffery Simmons, (Rams lineman Aaron Donald), Quinnen Williams, a bunch of guys, you know? I want that, too. I feel like I can touch those same numbers. Obviously, I’m a team guy, but this is my job. It’s part of the game. That was definitely a motivating factor.”


Through an offseason of improving his work habits and dedication, McNeill is primed for a breakout season. The early results have been positive. He wants to be a player offensive coordinators have to scheme around. He wants to be an important part of the young core Detroit has been building. He wants these performances to be the norm, not an anomaly.

They’re starting to become that, thanks to the work he’s put in to get there.


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

[Iron Lion]

Detroit Lions No. 1 WR Amon-Ra St. Brown doubtful to play against Carolina Panthers



Dave Birkett
Detroit Free Press


They have won games without their leading rusher, starting left tackle and the emotional leader of their defense.

Why are these beat writers always so unbelievably and consistently incompetent?

[whatever_gong82]

Why are these beat writers always so unbelievably and consistently incompetent?

I wish I knew. They're getting paid better than us for what they do.

[TheLondonLion]

Question for Michiganders/US based Lions fans.

The turnout at Arrowhead and Lambeau this season have been absolutely insane. The most travelling fans at Lambeau from any teams in 30 years.

I’ve never thought of the Lions as a particularly well supported NFL team. All the data I’ve seen has us right towards the bottom, which you might expect. These road crowds look more like the 1970’s Dallas Cowboys when they were called “America’s Team”.

So are the Lions a sleeping giant? Is it just cos there’s finally something to believe in?

[Iron Lion]

Question for Michiganders/US based Lions fans.

The turnout at Arrowhead and Lambeau this season have been absolutely insane. The most travelling fans at Lambeau from any teams in 30 years.

I’ve never thought of the Lions as a particularly well supported NFL team. All the data I’ve seen has us right towards the bottom, which you might expect. These road crowds look more like the 1970’s Dallas Cowboys when they were called “America’s Team”.

So are the Lions a sleeping giant? Is it just cos there’s finally something to believe in?

Great question but we Americans aren't really in any better position to answer than you are.

[froot loops]

There's a lot of Lion fans that have been in general hibernation over the years. Don't equate overall record with support. I've said for a long time that the Lions are an underrated juggernaut, any time you have a prime time game people tune in. A lot of it is the Thanksgiving game and stars like Barry and Calvin.

Lion fans are peculiar, in Metro Detroit everyone watches them, everyone follows them but you never see anybody Lion great unless you go to Ford Field. You are much more likely to see Wings, Tiger, Pistons and/or MSU/UM gear than anything Lion related.

Also something to consider is all the Michiganders who have migrated over the country.

[El Axe]

Pride of Detroit article "Film breakdown: Alex Anzalone is the rock that lets the Lions defense roll"

Nice article, but this quote from Anzalone was what got my attention:

“I feel like if you ask any coaches or ask around the scouting department and Brad (Holmes) and them, that’s really my true position,” Anzalone said. “I kind of just had to play (the MIKE) the past two years out of necessity. It feels a lot more comfortable playing a little more in space and in coverage, not as much A gap to B gap and striking linemen. I’m able to flow a little more, and that’s what complements my game.”

I hadn't realized that -- that he had been playing out of position at MIKE for the last two years and now finally gets to play WILL which better suits his talents. That makes sense and I'm sure is another reason why the defense has improved so much this year.

[jaadam4]

And it makes the point as to why he was always getting run over in the gaps. He was getting steam rolled his first few seasons as he wasn’t comfortable at his position.

He’s been so good with the change. Absolutely lights out. I remember a lot of people not happy with the resigning even though he came relatively on the cheap.

He’s great for this team

[wcfwtf]

If you compare them to university of Michigan you probably can see similarities but with the one big difference. Many Michigan fans are spread out throughout the country with roots going back to parents and grandparents etc. But they win and their uniforms are Iconic. The Lions have those same roots as far as family connections etc.
But the Lions have lost and therefore the support while still there in private isn’t displayed publicly.
If the Lions actually wins anything and maintains it then the shame will dissipate.
The last item are the colors. The colors blue and silver work really well. See the old 1994 throwbacks that previewed against Dallas on Monday night.
Btw you can still watch on you tube in its entirety.
The Honolulu Blue that they now use is not pleasing to the eye for many people.
You really have to force yourself to put it on unless your going to a game.

[El Axe]

This breakdown of the Lion offense -- in particular the blocking schemes -- is really well done.

edit: The first minute is just introduction, you can go straight to about the 1min mark to get into the illustrated good stuff.

[wcfwtf]

I actually watched that a few hours ago.

[ghandi]

Jamyr Gibbs likely out Sunday with a hamstring injury.

[Iron Lion]

And it makes the point as to why he was always getting run over in the gaps. He was getting steam rolled his first few seasons as he wasn’t comfortable at his position.

He’s been so good with the change. Absolutely lights out. I remember a lot of people not happy with the resigning even though he came relatively on the cheap.

He’s great for this team

Um. Who?

[-Deborah-]

Pride of Detroit article "Film breakdown: Alex Anzalone is the rock that lets the Lions defense roll"

Nice article, but this quote from Anzalone was what got my attention:


I hadn't realized that -- that he had been playing out of position at MIKE for the last two years and now finally gets to play WILL which better suits his talents. That makes sense and I'm sure is another reason why the defense has improved so much this year.

And it makes the point as to why he was always getting run over in the gaps. He was getting steam rolled his first few seasons as he wasn’t comfortable at his position.

He’s been so good with the change. Absolutely lights out. I remember a lot of people not happy with the resigning even though he came relatively on the cheap.

He’s great for this team

Um. Who?

Anzalone.