Detroit Lions: 10 observations from Monday night’s big win

In case you didn’t stay up for the Detroit Lions’ 24-10 Monday Night win over New York, here’s what you missed out on: a team that’s maturing in many ways.

Well, that was…exciting? I guess? Having trouble processing what was a wire-to-wire, drama-free, dominating endeavor at MetLife Stadium. With a subtle but brilliant game from Stafford, superb special teams play, and suffocating defense. And Detroit Lions ran the ball well too??

Here are my top 10 observations while watching last night’s shockingly thorough 24-10 Lions win:

About Last Night…

1. Stafford keeps getting smarter. I’ve been accused of having a man crush on Stafford. That may or may not be true. What definitely is true is that Stafford’s situational savvy is noticeably growing each year.

Tonight he correctly audibled away from blitzes at least five times, which not only gained solid run yardage, but also probably saved him from about at least two big hits. What I also loved was how he earned two free plays from a hopeless a 3rd and 23 situation. He first pushed the tempo to catch the Giants with twelve men on the field. On the next play, he caught the defense offsides.

On this particular drive, they didn’t end up getting the first down. However, that type of growing awareness is exactly why guys like Brady and Rodgers are able to make much of what they do look so easy. It’s a growing command of the entire field.