Who’s to blame for the Detroit Lions slow start?

Nov 27, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi during the third quarter against the Chicago Bears at Ford Field. Detroit won 34-17. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

Secondly, Joe Lombardi needs to learn quickly to adjust the play calling according to what the opposing defense is giving us.

If they are loading up the box and playing a lot of man coverage on the outside and blitzing inside, don’t call plays that are long routes to the receivers. This is the time for the quick dump passes and the screen passes to get the defense to respect the pass and back off a little bit. Then, the long game will come into play and he should know when to use it.

Also, he needs to not abandon the run game so quickly, let it develop. Once the opposing team realizes we have abandoned it, it allows them to easier set their defense to defend the pass. Granted, one key person in the Detroit Lions run blocking scheme, Brandon Pettigrew, was out with a hamstring injury, but there still are adjustments that can be made. To me, what I saw, was they tried a few times with putting in Burton where Pettigrew would line up, it wasn’t working, so the run was abandoned.

It’s never a good sign when your quarterback runs for more yards in a game than all of your running backs combined.

Next: Matthew Stafford