Detroit Lions: Key for Matt Patricia is pressure without blitzing

The Detroit Lions defense needs to transform into an elite unit this season. Players doing their jobs and pressure coming from scheme – not blitzing.

On Friday, Jason McIntyre of FOX Sports picked the Detroit Lions as one of five new teams to make the playoffs this season.

McIntyre even provided a fake headline when speaking on The Herd with Colin Cowherd: “Well, isn’t Matt Special” – an amusing pun on the Dana Carvey church lady character from Saturday Night Live.

McIntyre believes that the Detroit Lions turnaround hinges on head coach Matt Patricia’s defense. On The Herd, he spoke of what would be different in the 2019 campaign (08-16-19, “Growing Pains in Arizona”):

"“[Matt Patricia] likes to pressure three or four and let his secondary do the work. Just like Bill Belichick. He didn’t have a pass rusher last year. They had no pass rush whatsoever.”"

Former Detroit Lions linebacker (and current preseason color analyst) Chris Spielman echoed these thoughts during Saturday night’s exhibition game against the Houston Texans. Spielman continually brought up the fact that Patricia wants pressure without blitzing.

The three or four guys creating pressure could come from just about anywhere on the defense. But the secondary is allowed more people in coverage, which is very important in a league that emphasizes throwing the ball.

Defensive end Trey Flowers is supposed to be the elite pass rusher for this defensive line. But the real key is going to be the amount of depth this defensive line and the linebackers are beginning to develop.

If there is enough depth and versatility in the front seven, then offenses will have a tough time identifying the pass rushers. And opposing quarterbacks will be dealing with pocket chaos throughout the game.

It is hard to say the Detroit Lions are ready to make that leap into the playoffs. But the one thing that is for sure is that an elite defense would go a long way towards that goal. But the offense has to come along as well.

This franchise is still counting heavily upon the leadership of quarterback Matthew Stafford. Hopefully, he can do what it takes to make this team great – although the Lions seem to be asking much more of him now than they have over the past decade. If Stafford plays as badly as he did last season, the Detroit Lions are nowhere close to the playoffs.

And if Stafford gets injured, the Detroit Lions have no one on the roster that can take the helm. Quarterback David Fales looked better in his second game, but the first outing set a low bar. Quarterback Josh Johnson looked lost after less than a week of practice, and Tom Savage’s concussions should give the Detroit Lions second thoughts about even keeping him around – unless they plan to carry a third guy as insurance.

The playoffs seem out of reach this season. But some real leaps by the defense and in the leadership of Matthew Stafford are absolutely attainable this season. It is definitely something to watch for, especially if this team fails to make a run.