The Detroit Lions have gotten big contributions from key players all season, and through two playoff wins. If they're going to beat the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, that will of course have to continue. The best players need to perform in the biggest games, that's no secret.
But the Lions would not be at this point, one win away from going to the first Super Bowl in franchise history, without other players stepping up in some crucial moments along the way. Last week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was linebacker Derrick Barnes who sealed the win in the Divisional Round with an interception. Others have had moments in the proverbial sun when the team needed someone to step up and make a play.
As has been said before, all week and pretty much everywhere, the Lions matchup fairly well with the 49ers. The two teams are very similar in a broad sense, perhaps setting the table for Sunday to be the start of a playoff rivalry for years to come.
But let's not get ahead of ourselves. If the Lions are going to leave Levi's Stadium with a win and a trip to Las Vegas for Super Bowl LVIII, these three players will be sneaky x-factors.
3 sneaky x-factors for the Detroit Lions in NFC Championship Game vs. 49ers
3. Kicker Michael Badgley
Badgley has been steady since being elevated from the practice squad to replace Riley Patterson as the Lions' kicker. He is 6-for-6 on field goals over six games (counting both playoff games of course), with two missed extra points on 22 attempts. Against the Rams in the Wild Card Round, he made a 54-yard field goal that proved to be vital in a one-point win.
The Lions have not played outdoors since Week 14 at Chicago, and Sunday's game at San Francisco will be just their second outdoor game since Week 7 in Baltimore. As such, Badgley has not kicked in an outdoor game for the Lions yet this season.
The weather is expected to be fine in Santa Clara on Sunday evening, not the rainstorm that happened during the 49ers-Packers Divisional Round game. But the field conditions at Levi's Stadium are always a question mark regardless of the weather, making footing a battle for players and a potential factor in the kicking game. No less authority than Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells, a mentor of Dan Campbell, acknowledged that footing issue with a simple message Campbell revealed on Thursday.
"Yeah, (he) said, ‘Congratulations, shoes,’” Campbell said of his conversation with Parcells after advancing to the NFC title game. “Shoes. Did you watch the game the other night, San Francisco Green Bay? All the slips, the falls, the everything."
“And that’s coach Parcells. Classic. And he’s right. He’ll always give you some substance.”
All season, whether anyone has cared to see it or not, the looming specter of a missed long-range kick in a big spot, or an overly aggressive fourth down decision driven by Campbell not trusting his kicker in a big spot, has lingered over the Lions.
In what promises to be a close game on Sunday, a missed field goal by either kicker could be the difference. Badgley has to continue his steady run when the lights are brightest, in potential less than ideal field conditions, or the Lions could be cleaning out their lockers on Monday.
2. RB Craig Reynolds
A huge hat-tip to Mike Payton of AtoZ Sports for this one.
Reynolds had his first carry since Week 8 in the Divisional Round against Tampa Bay, surprisingly scoring a touchdown on a 4th-and-goal. It was revealed this week, by wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown on his podcast with his brother Equanimeous, that Reynolds wasn't supposed to be on the field for the play.
"Bro, you know what’s crazy? He wasn’t even supposed to be in,” Amon-Ra St. Brown said about Reynolds touchdown that gave the Lions a 17-10 lead in the game. “Bruh, we had a different—the personnel got messed up.”
This week, Reynolds' role as the Lions' kickoff returner stands to be very important. The field position battle will be big on Sunday, and on the Lions need to win it within all the various components of that.
During the regular season, 49ers' kicker Jake Moody had one of the lower touchback rates among those with a large enough sample of kickoffs to be meaningful (60 percent). As a tentacle of that, San Francisco allowed the third-most kickoff returns and the third-most kickoff return yards in the league.
This isn't a call that Reynolds will have a kickoff return touchdown on Sunday. But he could break one or two returns in a field-tilting way based on a sneaky area the 49ers aren't very good in for whatever reason(s), capturing or sustaining momentum for the Lions as he does so.
1. WR Josh Reynolds
In the Wild Card Round against the Rams, albeit all in the first half, Reynolds had five catches for 80 yards (his first time over 50 yards since Week 5), He followed that with a touchdown in the Divisional Round win over the Buccaneers.
Reynolds has well-documented history with quarterback Jared Goff going back to their time with the Rams, and the (insert nickname Dan Campbell has for Reynolds) has been a trusted target for the Lions' signal caller since his arrival in Detroit.
Of Reynolds' 40 regular season catches, 32 of them went for a first down. Against the Rams, his first four catches moved the chains. Against the Buccaneers, his two catches were a touchdown and a first down on a drive capped by the touchdown early in the fourth quarter that gave the Lions a lead they never relinquished.
With Reynolds, it's never about the volume of targets he gets or the volume of impact plays he makes in a game. It's when he makes the plays he does, as reflected by having six touchdowns, moving the chains as regular as he does and coming up with a big play on a regular basis (15.2 yards per catch during the regular season;18th in the league).
A rib injury limited Reynolds in practice this week. But that's nothing compared to the injury it was reported he dealt with during the regular season. So he'll be out there on Sunday barring something unforeseen, ready to take advantage of favorable matchups against the 49ers' lesser cornerbacks as someone Goff will look toward in critical spots.