Lions News

[dsred]

Hutchinson nas to be one of the most frustated players in the league. Lots of effort and not much result. I haven't seen the percentage of snaps lately but is probably too many...But the team doesn't have much choice.

He cut his hair and it helped (Not mentally). Might be time to Crosby up. Shave the head and get inked up! J/k

Well, the NFL is "protecting" QBs now, so holding is allowed in certain situations that technically violate the written rules. The only way you get a call now is if you totally beat your man so badly that if the refs can't ignore it.

There's still way too much "discretion" in whatever "directives" and "training" that the NFL gives its officials in regards to the real time interpretation of the written rules that can't possibly account for any individual situation.

I'll leave it up to you to decide on whether or not it's gotten worse since widespread legal sports betting has become common.

[whatever_gong82]

Some potential good news:

The Detroit Lions could clinch a playoff berth this weekend with the following :

Lions beat the Denver Broncos

Washington Commanders beat the LA Rams

Philadelphia Eagles beat the Seattle Seahawks

[whatever_gong82]

Lions need more from Jared Goff, Aidan Hutchinson and their other best players



By Colton Pouncy
Dec 12, 2023



ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Perhaps lost amid the fact the Detroit Lions aren’t playing their best football in December is that the Lions’ best players aren’t playing their best football in December.

Coach Dan Campbell made sure to mention that during his Monday afternoon news conference. But not for reasons you might think.

“Here is the most encouraging thing about what happened yesterday,” Campbell said Monday, the day after his team fell to 9-4 in a 28-13 loss to the Chicago Bears. “Some of our best players on the team did not play well and that’s encouraging going into this one because those are prideful guys, and those are our dudes. And believe me, those guys are going to come back — no different than us as coaches. We’re going to be at our best. I just know what kind of locker room we’ve got, what kind of players, and we will respond. We will respond.”



That right there is both a not-so-subtle challenge and a vote of confidence from Campbell. And he’s not wrong. The Lions need their best players to play well because the roster isn’t strong enough to overcome prolonged stretches of below-average play from their stars. And yet, many of their best have struggled at the same time.

And while Campbell didn’t mention anyone by name, we have a few guesses, based on the eye test and underlying numbers.



QB Jared Goff


The Lions will go as far as their offense will take them in the postseason. As the quarterback, all eyes will be on Goff. How he performs in the postseason is crucial. But his current stretch leaves you wanting more.

Goff isn’t playing like the QB who propelled the offense forward in 2022 and early in 2023. The first six games of the season, Goff had just three turnovers. Taking care of the football and distributing it to the playmakers around him is Goff’s job in this offense. He’s the point guard, essentially. But Goff isn’t seeing the court right now.



He has eight turnovers in the last four games alone. Not all of them have been egregious, or even entirely his fault, but they were wasted possessions all the same. Against the Bears in November, Goff threw three interceptions and had a few more turnover-worthy plays that didn’t count as turnovers. Against Green Bay, he fumbled three times. And against the Bears again on Sunday, he threw two more interceptions and was part of a bobbled exchange leading to a turnover. When the turnovers pile up, Goff looks far from comfortable. It has a snowball effect on the rest of the offense.

Goff’s overall play has regressed. His EPA per dropback of minus-0.03 ranks 20th in the league since Week 7. He’s thrown 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions since then, compared to 11 touchdowns and three interceptions the first six weeks. Overall, the Lions’ offense hasn’t been what it was early in the season. It needs its QB to return to form.


The offensive line


If you’re looking for a reason for Goff’s struggles, start here. Detroit has the second-highest-paid offensive line in the NFL. It hasn’t played like it of late.



That’s an issue, because much of Goff’s success is directly tied to the performance of the offensive line in pass protection. He’s a different quarterback when pressured — plain and simple. Per Pro Football Focus, Goff’s turnover-worthy play rate under pressure of 5.9 percent is tied for the eighth-highest. When facing pressure, Goff has thrown four touchdowns and eight interceptions — second-most in the NFL. His passer rating under pressure is 58.8 — 27th out of 39 qualified QBs.

When kept clean, Goff’s turnover-worthy throw rate of 0.9 percent is the second-best mark among qualified quarterbacks. His passer rating of 111.3 when kept clean ranks third in the league. He’s thrown 17 of his 21 touchdowns and just two of his 10 interceptions when kept clean. Night and day.



The first six games of the season, Detroit’s offensive line allowed pressure just 32.6 percent of the time — eighth-best in the NFL. Since then, it’s hovering around 21st in the league at 37.6 percent. Health is a factor, as it always is. Jonah Jackson has been in and out of the lineup. Frank Ragnow missed Sunday’s game with a knee injury. The shuffling has been enough to limit the ceiling of the group, leading to some struggles by inserted pieces and, quite frankly, even some starters like Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell.

That said, the offensive line is still the strength of this team. If it gets right, the rest of the offense should, too.




WR Amon-Ra St. Brown


It has been a quiet few games for St. Brown, after a torrid stretch. It’s hard to fault him for a down game or two given his remarkable consistency, but based on where the Lions are right now, they can’t afford for their star players to play below their standard. Best believe St. Brown was one of those “prideful guys” to whom Campbell alluded.



St. Brown has been targeted 15 times the last two games. He has five receptions for 70 yards to show for it. Against the New Orleans Saints, he received increased attention and coverage. That allowed the Lions to feed Sam LaPorta, who was excellent in that game. But you can’t expect nine-catch, 140-yard outings from a rookie tight end week in and week out. St. Brown admitted last week that he was frustrated with the increased attention in New Orleans.

Against the Bears, St. Brown couldn’t get much going, either, despite more volume. He caught just three of his nine targets for 21 yards and was also credited with two drops, per PFF. That doubled his total for the season. Goff’s passer rating when targeting St. Brown was 45.1. That’s the second-lowest passer rating when targeted of St. Brown’s career.



Getting Goff and St. Brown back on the same page will help. It’s almost shocking when they aren’t in sync, given their chemistry. But their relationship is built on timing, and when the timing isn’t there, you see the effect it has elsewhere.

St. Brown hates losing, hates drops and hates letting his team down. He’s likely due for a bounce-back effort.


Edge Aidan Hutchinson

No one would like to forget Sunday’s loss more than Hutchinson. You could argue it was his worst game at this level, because his play negatively impacted the game in more ways than one. Visibly upset in the locker room, Hutchinson looked more frustrated by his performance than ever before in his young NFL career. Let’s talk about it.



Hutchinson’s first mistake came in the third quarter, in a game tied at 13. The Lions thought they had a sack-fumble of Justin Fields on a third-and-13, or perhaps an intentional grounding. Neither was called. Instead, fourth-and-13.

The Bears’ offense stayed on the field with no intention of ever snapping the ball, hoping to draw the Lions offside. Hutchinson fell for it.



“Disgusted with it, that play,” Hutchinson said. “That play just changed the momentum of the game, and that’s on me.”

Hutchinson took responsibility, and he’s still just in his second season. But that’s an inexcusable mistake in that scenario for any player — let alone one of his caliber. Even the Bears were caught off guard.



“Most teams are knowing that’s going to come,” Fields said.

“I thought no way in hell are they jumping,” Bears tight end Cole Kmet told reporters after the game. “They jumped. I don’t know how you could jump in that situation, but they did.”



Later in the game, after the fumbled exchange, the Bears offense faced third-and-goal from the 11. The Lions failed to contain Fields on the outside, running a stunt that had Hutchinson rushing inside. The lack of a defender in the vicinity allowed Fields to run freely into the end zone despite a well-covered play by the Lions’ secondary.

After the game, it was revealed that Hutchinson himself called a stunt in that scenario. Players have the freedom when they get the look they want. But it was clearly the wrong call, given the scenario and the quarterback they were facing.



“I think I put my D-tackle in a bad situation there,” Hutchinson said. “I put that one on. … It’s just, you know, you’re in game, you make decisions you think are right. It’s the price of this game, it’s the price of putting everything on the line.”

“Sounds like he took accountability, right?” Campbell said. “So, we’re good.”



Hutchinson is the Lions’ best defensive player. He’s made tangible strides in his second season. He can still surpass his rookie sack total of 9 1/2 with a strong finish. He has already topped his 2022 pressure total of 53, sitting at 76 with four games to go.

But he’s better than this. All the players on this list are. The Lions will need each and every one to bounce back.


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

[froot loops]

I would have had Sewell in there as well. He has not been his normal self since the SD game, he was superb in that game but since then he has allowed sacks, pressures and has had bad penalties.

[whatever_gong82]

Lions' Reeves-Maybin having impact on defense in effort to end personal playoff drought


Justin Rogers
The Detroit News



Allen Park — Lions linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin is patient. His 7-year-old daughter, not so much.

Having spent almost all of his seven-year career in Detroit, Reeves-Maybin has never experienced the postseason. The closest he came was his rookie season in 2017, when the Lions went 9-7 and fell a game short. In the five years that followed, the teams he played for peaked at six wins, and he's had to slog through a trio of three-win campaigns, including his one-year stint in Houston in 2022.

Jalen Reeves-Maybin 12-10-2023.jpg

But with the Lions sitting at 9-4 through Week 14, and holding a two-game lead in the NFC North, Reeves-Maybin is on the cusp of breaking his personal streak. That's something he readily admits is exciting.



"Yeah, it's definitely dope," Reeves-Maybin said. "I make the joke to some of my friends; it keeps your football spirit high when you know you're playing for something. I've always been like if I get an opportunity on Sunday, it's time to play. I don't try to make too much of it, but it definitely keeps you prepared knowing there's something at the end of the season you're fighting for, just keeping that in mind every day."

But as excited as Reeves-Maybin might be, his daughter is more jazzed up. Given her age, and the fact her dad has spent most of her young life in Detroit, you could say she's a born-and-bred Lions fan. So her eagerness to see the team have success runs as deep as the rest of the fan base's.



"I think most of the pressure probably comes from my daughter, who is ready to go to the playoffs," Reeves-Maybin said. "She (constantly) brings it up to me. … She's been here for the whole ride. In a way, she's grown up here and she loves being a Lion."

Detroit's push to clinch a playoff spot has coincided with Reeves-Maybin carving out a larger defensive role. Almost exclusively a special teams contributor the first 11 games — where he's second in the league in tackles — he was asked to play situationally on defense when starter Alex Anzalone missed a week with a thumb injury. Reeves-Maybin performed so well in that audition, it's developed into something more consistent.



Not much went right for the Lions against the Bears last Sunday, but Reeves-Maybin was undoubtedly a bright spot. Seeing most of his work on third downs, he recorded a drive-killing sack in the red zone and later batted down a pass, validating the team's decision to expand his reps.

Reeves-Maybin doesn't know why it took the Lions so long to call his number. He's never been one to complain about his playing time, but he credits position coach, and former Lions teammate, Kelvin Sheppard for having him prepared.



"He's been in the league, so I think he harps on us to being prepared for every opportunity," Reeves-Maybin said. "If you're up for a game, whatever your role is, maximize it. I would say the thing he tries to push for us, just maximize your opportunity and be ready when it comes."

One thing is for sure, Reeves-Maybin's teammates aren't surprised with the instant impact he's been able to have.



"It's not shocking at all," Anzalone said. "He's a great player. … I think he's a great linebacker in the NFL and more than serviceable to be a starter. Definitely, when he goes in he makes plays. That's kind of what he does."

On Saturday, the Lions have a critical game in their playoff chase when they host the Denver Broncos at Ford Field. For the Lions, they'll be looking to stop a slide that's seen them drop two of the past three games against a red-hot visitor that has won six of seven.



jdrogers@detroitnews.com

@Justin_Rogers

[Mainevent]

The Ders are not beating the Rams.

[whatever_gong82]

Some potential good news if things go the Detroit Lions way this weekend:

2023 Detroit Lions playoff clinching scenarios.jpg

[whatever_gong82]

I've got a better version of Detroit Playoff clinching scenarios.

Courtesy of NFL Playoff Scenarios:

2023 Detroit Lions playoff clinching scenarios_A.jpg

[ghandi]

I would have had Sewell in there as well. He has not been his normal self since the SD game, he was superb in that game but since then he has allowed sacks, pressures and has had bad penalties.

Im guessing the OL changes have affected him somewhat...When he had Vitai or Glasgow beside him he was great....With Sorsdal or Awosika next to him, then I think he concerns himself with their problems and it affects his game.

[wcfwtf]

Clinched a playoff spot not good enough for my likes. Win the effin division like you should with the lead you have

[wcfwtf]

We have too much of a history of backing into playoffs. Go in like you mean it

[chemiclord]

The Lions have plenty of history of going into the playoffs hot too. It hasn't mattered.

[wcfwtf]

Hot- that’s funny

[-Deborah-]

Grrrrrrr.

Lions Lose Quinton Bohanna to Titans
Bohanna played three games for Lions.

• CHRISTIAN BOOHER
• 1 HOUR AGO

The Tennessee Titans have signed defensive tackle Quinton Bohanna off of the Detroit Lions' practice squad, according to reports Wednesday.

In a corresponding move, the Lions announced they have re-signed defensive lineman Chris Smith to the practice squad.

Bohanna played the maximum three games for the Lions as a practice squad elevation in 2023. He played in Week 11, Week 12 and Week 13, totaling six tackles in that span.

He was not elevated for Detroit's Week 14 game against Chicago, as practice squad players can only be elevated three times during the season. As a result, the Lions risked losing him by leaving him on the practice squad.

Detroit's defensive line took a hit when tackle Alim McNeill was placed on injured reserve prior to Week 14. Bohanna was believed to be a potential contributor as a result, but the Lions would've had to sign him to the active roster.

Before Detroit, Bohanna spent the last two seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. In that span, he played 27 games with 10 starts.

The Lions made another move last week in signing veteran defensive tackle Tyson Alualu to the practice squad. Alualu is entering his 14th NFL season and provides veteran experience in the event that he is elevated.

Without McNeill in Week 14, the Lions relied on the trio of Brodric Martin, Isaiah Buggs and Levi Onwuzurike to bear the vacant responsibilities.

[froot loops]

I liked the appearance of Bohanna more than the actual production. He was a big guy who looked like he was being disruptive, but his PFF grade was a poor 50.1. I don't think his production warranted waiving any of the other guys. I would have liked for the Lions to be able to keep him, but it was a numbers game.