The NFC North was so competitive last season that if a few matchups had gone the other way, the division standings would have flipped. If the Detroit Lions had simply split the season series against the Green Bay Packers, they would have made the playoffs instead.
In those two games, Packers quarterback Jordan Love threw six touchdown passes without an interception while completing 65.4 percent his passes. He also posted the second and third-best passer ratings he had in a game last year against the Lions.
Kelvin Sheppard is tasked with improving the results in his second season as Lions' defensive coordinator. There are strong indications of a shift away from playing so much base personnel, and toward more nickel with another defensive back on the field.
It's fair to wonder what other changes Sheppard with author, as he looks to fully make the Detroit defense his own. It's probably a year overdue to do that, albeit with players that have come or gone driving the effort to change things up, but better now than never.
According to FTN Fantasy, via Aaron Schatz's Football Almanac, the Packers were No. 1 in the league against man coverage last season and eighth against zone last season. Love himself was the No. 1 quarterback in DVOA against man (of course) and No. 9 against zone.
Not than any coverage scheme was particularly effective against Love last season, at least in terms of DVOA, but it's clear which way opposing defenses should lean.
Lions are in line to change their defensive playbook against Jordan Love (and everyone else)
Under previous defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, the Lions played man coverage at one of the highest rates in the league. Last season Sheppard kept that template, with the third-highest rate of man coverage (32 percent, according to Sharp Football Analysis) as they only trailed second place by .1 percent.
How injury-impacted the Lions' secondary was made it fair to question putting cornerbacks on an island like that, and that adjustment has to be part of Sheppard's evolution as a coordinator. Making opposing quarterbacks hold the ball a little longer, with a wider array of coverage schemes, would also help the pass rush.
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While shifting to more zone coverage against Love feels like a prerequisite for the Lions, Bears' quarterback Caleb Williams was also a top-10 quarterback in DVOA against man coverage last season. So with the move toward a more modern defensive scheme, which needs to happen, more nickel should also yield a heavier dose of zone coverage.
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