Detroit Lions need more snaps under center, less shotgun

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BALTIMORE, MD – DECEMBER 3: Quarterback Matthew Stafford #9 of the Detroit Lions calls a play in the huddle against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on December 3, 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

In 2017, the Detroit Lions most effective game on the ground utilized handed snaps. This team must find a balance between this and thrown snap formations.

For 2018, general manager Bob Quinn has given the Detroit Lions a new look at the running back position. Running backs LeGarrette Blount (via free agency) and Kerryon Johnson (via the draft) are sure to be at the top of this year’s depth chart.

The running game was atrocious last year. The Detroit Lions ranked dead last with 1,221 yards as a team. A decent number for one back, but pretty sad as a group. That averages out to just 76.3 yards per game on the ground.

The Detroit Lions only broke 100 yards rushing as a team twice last season:

2017, Week 2 – at New York Giants – 138 yards
2017, Week 10 – Cleveland Browns – 104 yards

Again, that was as a team. The streak for not having a player gain 100 yards on the ground is now up to 68 games. The last player to do so was running back Reggie Bush in 2013 (Week 13 against the Green Bay Packers).

So, the Week 2 match-up looks like a good place to start an analysis of the Detroit Lions rush offense. That 138 yards against the Giants is actually less than what the league’s best ground attack, the Jacksonville Jaguars, averaged last season (141.3 yards per game).

That kind of discrepancy really shows how bad the Lions are at running the ball.

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