Detroit Lions are all too familiar with the sort of injury woes that the Carolina Panthers are facing down ahead of this week's game.
After news of Jaycee Horn's quad injury seemed to deliver a blow to the Panthers' cornerback depth -depth already being tested with Mike Jackson also dealing with an injury - it was revealed that left guard Damien Lewis would be out for a few weeks with a UCL injury in his elbow.
This leaves the Panthers' offensive line quite vulnerable, as the team is already only 25th in pass block win rate through three games and set to get even worse with Lewis down. The Lions need to take full advantage of this weakness with another excellent showing from their defensive line.
Kelvin Sheppard must dial up the pressure against Panthers
The Lions' defensive line has been really strong to begin this season. They're 11th in the league in pass rush win rate through three games, and they seem to have found a great Al-Quadin Muhammad replacement in DJ Wonnum. The additional pressure up the middle from players like Alim McNeill and Skyler Gill-Howard have also helped to reinvigorate this line.
Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard has been utilizing this line in some fun ways, namely blitzing at a very high rate to begin the season.
READ MORE: Jared Goff's immunity to pocket pressure this season has Lions' offense soaring
The Lions are blitzing 43% of the time, relying heavily on their pass rush unit to cut off teams' offenses. Unfortunately, that has left the Lions vulnerable in the air - they're allowing a league-high passing yards per game and total passing yards through three games, but they also have the second-most total team sacks on the year.
So, if it's not (that) broken, don't fix it, right?
Lions' secondary could get into a groove in Week 4
Another key injury to monitor for the Panthers: wide receiver Jalen Coker, who could be a game-time decision for Carolina. He's been one of Bryce Young's favorite downfield targets, with the young receiver having already picked up 222 receiving yards and two touchdowns so far this season.
If he's out - or even just a step slow - that helps the Lions' secondary a bit to get their footing amid some experimentation with the unit. Ennis Rakestraw Jr. figures to receive some more snaps in this contest as the Lions are figuring out how to replace Rock Ya-Sin in the starting unit, or how to at least complement D.J. Reed in the unit. Roger McCreary and Keith Abney II are also options there.
The Panthers also have a scary target in Tetairoa McMillan, so looking to shut his water off in addition to Coker's will be a huge test for whatever new look unit Sheppard tests out in this game. Still, this feels like a contest that will come down to how effective the teams' pocket pressure can be in throwing off Young's passing game.
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