Five Things the Detroit Lions Can Improve Upon During the Second Half
By Max DeMara
Oct 26, 2014; London, UNITED KINGDOM; Detroit Lions running back Joique Bell (35) carries the ball during the second half of the game between the Detroit Lions and the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Flynn-USA TODAY Sports
2. The running game
Nobody figured the Lions to wildly excel at running the football, but most figured with Joique Bell and Reggie Bush that the team would at the very least be serviceable in this department.
Wrong again. Bush’s injury troubles have hurt, the offensive line has struggled and Bell hasn’t had a game where he’s truly gotten going early in the season.
Despite being able to close out games with a strong effort on the ground, Detroit needs to find a way to establish the run earlier in games, especially with the injuries to other offensive performers. Case in point? Bell struggled to 39 yards against the Atlanta Falcons, one of the worst run defenses in the league, failing to score.
Efforts like that can’t happen against the best or worst, and for balance sake, Detroit has to find a way to push through a few bigger outputs on the ground in the second half of the year. Perhaps mixing in Theo Riddick more would help.