Detroit Lions: No more ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ versus Cowboys
When the Detroit Lions face the Dallas Cowboys this Sunday, will we see the team that got hammered by the Jets, or the one who hammered the Patriots?
The Detroit Lions surprised fans by dominating the New England Patriots this past Sunday. Although the Patriots were without a couple of players, it wasn’t an implosion by New England quarterback Tom Brady and Co. The Lions delivered a good old-fashioned beat down to the Patriots.
What does that mean for the upcoming game against the Dallas Cowboys? Will we see the team that got hammered by the New York Jets, or the team that did the hammering at home versus Bill Belichick and the Patriots dynasty? Let’s discuss it!
One thing that Kick in the Crotch Weekly was astonished about during the Sunday night contest is that the Lions possessed the football for almost two-thirds of the game.
In fact, the Lions almost doubled the Patriots in every offensive statistic! For the Lions to continue along their winning trajectory, they will have to continue to produce in some key areas.
Detroit Lions O- line
Perhaps the greatest improvement came up front for the Lions offense. Right tackle T.J. Lang was healthy, the other starters played very well, too, and the Lions controlled the line of scrimmage for the whole game.
They amassed 159 yards and a 5.8-yard average. That production paved the way for the way for the Lions rookie running back, Kerryon Johnson, to break the 100-yard game curse! Johnson was able to accomplish the feat on just 16 carries, averaging 6.3 yards per tote.
It wasn’t just the run game that was working, as the Lions also gave quarterback Matthew Stafford a clean pocket for most of the night en route to a 27 for 36 (75%), 262 yard, two touchdown performance. They have only surrendered three sacks and ten hits on Stafford.
Lang continues to struggle with injuries and has been limited, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Defensive improvement
Another stat that stood out last week was the Patriots were held to 89 yards rushing after the Lions defense had given up an average of 180 yards per game through Week 2. As of this week, they still have the most rushing yards against them of any defense in the NFL, according to the NFL’s website. That being said, the Lions defense is still ranked 7th best in yards given up. The main problem has been the points; the Lions have given up an average of 29.3 per game, ranking seventh worst.
The sack numbers have been good, with 10 thus far, even with franchise defensive end, Ziggy Ansah, being sidelined with an injury. Two linebackers are the sack leaders, Devon Kennard, and Eli Harold, both of whom have 3.0 sacks. If you were watching, though, many of their sacks were due to good coverage downfield.
Next. Ranking the 5 best Lions draft classes of the past 30 years. dark
What else do the Detroit Lions have to continue to do, or not do, to beat the Dallas Cowboys this weekend? Discuss below in the comments!
Follow me CoachKirk @mkirk2 on Twitter for more Detroit and Michigan sports content, plus some other random interests.