Washington at Detroit Divisional Playoff Thread

[mjsmithz]

Just like everyone else this was the matchup I was hoping for.

Hopefully anzalone being back will help with contain of Jayden.

Hopefully the offense rolls. I feel like anytime I hear such and such team is terrible against the run the lions go pass heavy or struggle to run for whatever reason.

I have no doubt MCDC will have this team ready to go. Primetime at home for a trip to to the NFCCG at home lets go!

[-Deborah-]

Nervously excited, here.

[RoaryFontes]

My friend converted to a Lions fan during last years run. He was a Redskins fan his whole life since we are from Maryland and in his mind there was no Redskins team anymore. They do not exist and therefore he cannot root for a team that doesn't exist anymore he says. He was very unhappy about the direction of the team and the previous ownership. We've known each other for almost 25 years and he's always quietly rooted for the Lions with me and supported them right behind his Skins. Last year during a night of heavy drinking, I handed him a stuffed Lions ball, had him stand under my blue bar lights, I pulled out my phone for a video, and had him take an oath to enter into fanhood. lol. I asked him how he felt about this game and told him this will test his mettle. His response was "I love it, let's destroy those losers." He passed the test.

[Marko69]

My friend converted to a Lions fan during last years run. He was a Redskins fan his whole life since we are from Maryland and in his mind there was no Redskins team anymore. They do not exist and therefore he cannot root for a team that doesn't exist anymore he says. He was very unhappy about the direction of the team and the previous ownership. We've known each other for almost 25 years and he's always quietly rooted for the Lions with me and supported them right behind his Skins. Last year during a night of heavy drinking, I handed him a stuffed Lions ball, had him stand under my blue bar lights, I pulled out my phone for a video, and had him take an oath to enter into fanhood. lol. I asked him how he felt about this game and told him this will test his mettle. His response was "I love it, let's destroy those losers." He passed the test.

That is absolute class, Roary.

Can't speak for everyone but a name change would kill it for me also. Especially a stupid fucking name like "The Commanders". Your buddy is top notch and you're an awesome buddy to your top notch buddy!

[Mainevent]

Jayden Daniels is going to be an interesting challenge. And McLaurin is a big time threat at WR. But the Lions should be able to put up points against this team.

[-Deborah-]

Time of possession will do the trick. Run it and eat the clock.

[Coop]

Redskins are an up and coming team. Getting rid of Snyder was the best thing that has happened to that franchise for decades. This is a home game and should be fun to watch.

[Iron Lion]

My friend converted to a Lions fan during last years run. He was a Redskins fan his whole life since we are from Maryland and in his mind there was no Redskins team anymore. They do not exist and therefore he cannot root for a team that doesn't exist anymore he says. He was very unhappy about the direction of the team and the previous ownership. We've known each other for almost 25 years and he's always quietly rooted for the Lions with me and supported them right behind his Skins. Last year during a night of heavy drinking, I handed him a stuffed Lions ball, had him stand under my blue bar lights, I pulled out my phone for a video, and had him take an oath to enter into fanhood. lol. I asked him how he felt about this game and told him this will test his mettle. His response was "I love it, let's destroy those losers." He passed the test.

Nice job, recruiter!

I'll never forget my first game. I'm a little 5th grader, I don't know shit, but the Lions are my team I decided. My favorite animal was and probably still is a wolf, and my favorite color was grey but now it's blue. Anyway, the Lions were the closest to what I was after. I had a vague idea of who Barry Sanders was, but didn't even know he was on the team. The year is 1995, btw.

I'm living in SoCal, my Dad is a Rams fan. The playoff game at Philly was the first game I got to see because you ain't getting no Lions games in SoCal. I wasn't aware of the Thanksgiving game. So anyway, we're down fucking 51-7 in Philly, I turn around and I see my Dad, apparently he was looking at me and pointing and waiting for me to turn around so he could start laughing on cue. I'm like, fuck this shit I'm going outside to play with rollie pollies.

A few years later, Brady gets the Rams in the Super Bowl, I hear my Dad saying "fuuuuuck" as Vinatieri puts it thru, and I'm laughing in his face.

Good times.

[whatever_gong82]

Campbell recap: Lions coach emphasizes situational execution to roster, offers thoughts on mobile QB struggles

Justin Rogers
Jan 13


Allen Park — The Detroit Lions returned from the team’s bye-week break on Monday to begin earnest preparations for Saturday’s Divisional round game against the Washington Commanders.

The schedule is shifted forward a day because of the Saturday date. The team will conduct a walkthrough on Tuesday and practice on Wednesday and Thursday. On Monday, coach Dan Campbell met with the media. Here’s a recap of that press conference.


Situational football means more

Campbell started the week by revisiting the situational miscues from the weekend’s Wild Card games to remind his roster of the importance of situational football and attention to detail.


“I think they understand what’s at stake,” Campbell said. “I know they watched these games this weekend and they watched that game last night. Inevitably — I mean, I showed the team, really, every game, just different situations that popped up, a snapshot of what happened, and you just look at what could’ve cost the team, whether it’s a drop here, whether it’s a penalty, whether it’s a situation, whatever it is.

“They’re littered all through the week, and that’s what playoffs are,” Campbell said. “It’s, man, that one extra play, just doing your job in the heat of the moment, and if you do that, you give yourself the best odds, if not, the other team’s going.”


From Sunday's two NFC games, Campbell had no shortage of examples. In Washington’s victory, the momentum flipped when Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield lost a fumble deep in Tampa Bay territory following a botched handoff.

And in the other matchup, the Packers fumbled away the opening kickoff, quarterback Jordan Love added three more interceptions, and the team committed eight penalties for 85 yards in the 22-10 loss to the Eagles.


Threat of the dual-threat

There’s considerable concern about how the Lions will handle Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels’ mobility given some of Detroit's defensive struggles in the past. But Campbell quickly pointed out that his team's problems corralling dual-threat passers isn’t exclusive to them.

“I know this, running quarterbacks are hard,” Campbell said. “They’re hard to defend, and it’s like, somebody tells you that, ‘We don’t handle running quarterbacks very well.’ Well, tell me the team that does.


“…When you’re trying to deal with (Ravens quarterback) Lamar (Jackson) and you’re trying to deal with a guy like this over there, or (Bills quarterback) Josh Allen, there are a lot of teams that struggle against those guys. They’re not easy to stop and there’s a reason for that. So look, we know we’ve got our hands full, but we’re going to have a plan in place, (defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn) AG’s going to have a hell of a plan, our guys are going to execute it, and you know what, (Daniels) may make a run. He may pop a run or two. That’s just the nature of the game and the way that some of these guys are able to maneuver, but that doesn’t mean that you win the game.”

I followed up, asking how much the Lions have constructed their defensive personnel around the league's evolution toward dual-threat passers, noting all four quarterbacks drafted in the first round this year have above-average mobility.


"I think it’s something you always think about," Campbell said. "You’ve got to be able to corral these guys up, but I think there’s a discipline to it, too. Look, the better your athletes are on defense, the better suited you are to contain mobile quarterbacks. Yet there’s a discipline that’s got to go with it, too. I mean, you can’t rush these guys the same as you do somebody that’s just a pure pocket passer.

"You have to be much more disciplined and it’s a lot harder," Campbell said. "I mean, you really do, you have to stay in your gap, you’ve got to close down, you’ve got to just continue to push, you can’t take an edge, you can’t. That takes an enormous amount of discipline."


In addition to the scrambling, Commanders use the threat of Daniels’ legs to incorporate a heavy dose of run-pass options in their offensive play-calling. I asked Campbell how valuable it is to have veteran linebacker Alex Anzalone back to help diagnose some of those designs and relay the adjustments to the rest of Detroit’s defense.

“Look, Alex is always going to help,” Campbell said. “Getting him back, I mean, just having him back the other day (against Minnesota) paid huge dividends. It was one of the reasons that we did well, that we played a really good game defensively. He’s certainly one of those reasons. To get him back, the production he brings, the athlete, but then just what he brings mentally — because he understands the game well, he studies, he’ll know this offense, he’ll know what they’re trying to do, and he can kind of help everybody out around him. Yeah, it helps having him.”


Injury update

Campbell was asked if he had a greater appreciation for the No. 1 seed and the bye week after watching the physical toll some of the weekend’s games took on the participants. For the coach, the math was simpler.

“Honestly, the best thing you get is that it’s one less game,” Campbell said. “So the odds say, well, that’s one less game that you’re playing to get to your ultimate goal. That’s the benefit, really.”


On the injury front, Campbell had little to offer before his players take the practice field later in the week. He was asked specifically how cornerback Terrion Arnold and guard Kevin Zeitler were trending after exiting the team’s Week 18 contest against Minnesota.

“Well, we didn’t have any injuries over these last three days, so I think we’re OK,” Campbell quipped. “I’ll know more tomorrow as to where everybody’s at, but yeah, I can’t give you a straight-up answer off of three days off, really. I mean, I just know everybody’s treatment has gone well and we’ll see.”


One player who remains on track to play against the Commanders is running back David Montgomery.

“It’ll mean a lot (go get him back),” Campbell said. “Five’s a big part of us. He’s a huge part of us, and to me, he’s a bell cow. He’s a tone-setter, he’s a catalyst, so there’s a place for him. There’s a place for him here, so there’ll be a place for him in this game. It’s going to be good to get him back.”


No news on the interviews

Campbell was asked if he checked in with his coordinators after Ben Johnson and Glenn each interviewed for multiple vacancies this week. Again, Campbell didn’t have much to offer.

“Well, why would I want to know that?” Campbell quipped. “You think I want them to leave? Yeah, I’ve got an idea of how they’re doing. I have not run in there and asked if they’re leaving yet. I didn’t do that, but at some point today I’ll talk to them about what transpired yesterday. Right now, I’m just trying to get ready for Washington.”




Email: jrogers@detroitfootball.net

X: Justin_Rogers

Bluesky: Justin-Rogers

[chemiclord]

The only thing I'll say is that the Lions had a reputation of not defending dual threat QBs well wasn't that there was a particularly "good" team at it, but that the Lions were exceptionally (and perhaps historically) bad at it.

The last couple years they've been MUCH better at blunting the damage.

[froot loops]

They were much better this season until the linebacking corps all got hurt. The thing about running quarterbacks is they can really have backbreaking plays that stand out, but you gotta do more than run or it only gets you so far. The Lions average 33 points a game. If all Josh Allen did to the Lions is run roughshod you can still win, the Bills won the game but he also has a cannon that threw strikes on that day.

[RoaryFontes]

Nice job, recruiter!

I'll never forget my first game. I'm a little 5th grader, I don't know shit, but the Lions are my team I decided. My favorite animal was and probably still is a wolf, and my favorite color was grey but now it's blue. Anyway, the Lions were the closest to what I was after. I had a vague idea of who Barry Sanders was, but didn't even know he was on the team. The year is 1995, btw.

I'm living in SoCal, my Dad is a Rams fan. The playoff game at Philly was the first game I got to see because you ain't getting no Lions games in SoCal. I wasn't aware of the Thanksgiving game. So anyway, we're down fucking 51-7 in Philly, I turn around and I see my Dad, apparently he was looking at me and pointing and waiting for me to turn around so he could start laughing on cue. I'm like, fuck this shit I'm going outside to play with rollie pollies.

A few years later, Brady gets the Rams in the Super Bowl, I hear my Dad saying "fuuuuuck" as Vinatieri puts it thru, and I'm laughing in his face.

Good times.

Do not sleep on playing with rollie pollies. Yeah early 90’s probably I became a fan. I just remember loving Barry Sanders and thinking why can’t these guys win anything? They definitely had no fans in Maryland where I was. Before I knew it I was always the Lions in Super Tecmo bowl and the rest is history.

[Iron Lion]

The only thing I'll say is that the Lions had a reputation of not defending dual threat QBs well wasn't that there was a particularly "good" team at it, but that the Lions were exceptionally (and perhaps historically) bad at it.

The last couple years they've been MUCH better at blunting the damage.

Sounds like you watched Coach's press conference today.

[chemiclord]

Sounds like you watched Coach's press conference today.

I saw snippets of it.

But yeah, Campbell kinda glossed over the fact that the Lions weren't simply "bad" at defending dual-threat QBs. They were arguably uniquely atrocious at it. One stat as an example was that Justin Fields has had something like four games where he rushed for a 100 yards. Three of them were against the Lions.

And you could go down the list with any dual threat QB the Lions faced. Pretty much every single one vastly overperformed their averages both running and passing against the Lions. The Lions simply didn't have the horses up front to contain properly, didn't have a second level capable of reacting quickly to minimize the damage, and didn't have the secondary that could cover when said QBs escaped contain and started extending plays.

It was a justified and legitimate criticism, one that no longer really applies (the Lions have done as well as anyone since late 2022), but narratives are hard to dispel when there's such a long history supporting it.

[TheLondonLion]

Revenge for the 1991 NFC Championship Game.

Never forget what they took from us. Revenge tour continues.