Inside the Article:
What’s good Detroit Sports Nation? I am Eric Vincent, your host here at the DSN News Desk. Thank you for being here. We appreciate your time and support. Even though today’s feeling like a bit of a gut punch. This is a bit of a reality check for the Detroit Lions and its fan base.
Quite A Humbling Performance By The Detroit Lions
And maybe we might have needed it a little bit. Because this was quite a humbling performance today by the Detroit Lions on the road against the Carolina Panthers losing in an ugly fashion. 37 to 23 final score. The final score not really indicating how bad the game truly was. Because the Detroit Lions really just didn’t really seem to have any continuous momentum that they could build on throughout this game.
Came out with a pretty good drive to score right away. And then outside of that, they fumbled in the very next drive. In the red zone of the 10-yard line and never picked up any kind of momentum from there. And that was just the offense, what we’re talking about. The defense got dog-walked up and down the field the entire game.
This Was A Really Bad Game For The Defense
And it was ugly to watch. It was really bad. 570 total yards were given up to the Carolina Panthers by the defense. Oh man, really bad. 320 rushing yards. 240 rushing yards in the first half alone. D’Onta Foreman got 165 yards on 21 touches. Got himself a touchdown as well, and found the end zone. Chuba Hubbard, 12 for 125 yards.
And even Sam Darnold was gashing them with little option plays where they would score, at the five-yard line, or just be able to convert third downs. Crushing back-breaking catches, led up to DJ Moore. This is a really bad game for the Detroit Lions defense in every way possible. And especially with the run game where you had seen so much success be established with this defensive unit.
By showing the ability to control the clock, and dominate the line of scrimmage. And put themselves in a position where they were winning in the trenches and making their defense the focal point. Where they can make quarterbacks wanna play desperate, throw more, and put the ball in harm’s way more often.
Sam Darnold Looked As Comfortable As You Could Imagine
And in this game, there was none of that whatsoever. Sam Darnold looked as comfortable as you could imagine. If he would’ve played this game in a robe and slippers, I would’ve believed. Why? Because he didn’t look bothered in any way, shape, or form. We maybe got a couple of rushes in on him, but he wasn’t sacked at all.
Didn’t throw any turnovers, and didn’t fumble the ball. Just very poor to allow Sam Darnold to perform. And put the Detroit Lions in a position where they didn’t have a chance to stop him. Or the offense. Again, where a young quarterback like Sam Darnold, where he’s still trying to establish himself as a competent and consistent quarterback in the league.
The way to do that is by putting help around him. And they have a run game that put him in a place where he didn’t have to do everything. And the holes he was able to run through were unbelievable. I don’t know how many times we saw them run untouched up the middle of the gut. An offensive line where he wasn’t touched until Kerby Joseph, on the third level of the defense. Absolutely disgusting, man.
The Detroit Lions’ Offense Was Out Of Sync
I’m very disappointed with what I saw. The offensive line didn’t look strong. Taylor Decker allowed two three sacks to Burns. For whatever reason, the Detroit Lion’s offensive running game has basically disappeared. And I don’t really understand what has happened. Only 45 yards mustered up today. Jamaal Williams hasn’t seen the end zone in a few weeks now at this point. D’Andre Swift doesn’t look like the same running back at this point.
This is another disappointing run by them, man. You don’t want the Detroit Lions to be in a position where Goff has to do everything. And even with a game like today where he was tossing it all over the field and had these super inflated-looking numbers. You see how stagnant they look as well sometimes when you don’t have a running game to complement what he’s doing.
So even if he does throw, what, 25 of 42, 355 yards, three touchdowns, that sounds super good on Madden. But when you look at how the Detroit Lions played and you look at how this offense moved, they were out of sync for a lot of their game. Especially after that fumble in the red zone. And even with the like numbers that I’m seeing from Goff. This is the problem with Goff.
This Is The Problem With Goff
And I think this is why so many fans are not ruling out the possibility of still finding a quarterback in the draft. Or sometime this off-season to move on and find something for the future. Goff is at his best when everything is on the script. And I feel like at this point in the NFL, and even with an offense, like with what the Detroit Lions present. Where they have guys who can improv. That he has shifty weapons around him.
An offense like that kind of requires a quarterback that can also think off-script. And Goff isn’t great at that. I don’t think he’s terrible at it, but it’s not a strong suit of his. And you see that with how stagnant this offense goes at times. So even when he’s throwing for these super-inflated numbers, you see the Detroit Lions offense showing strides of stagnant ability when he’s throwing the ball and constantly putting your offense in the four-down territory.
When Goff Can’t Play On Script, The Offense Completely Falls Apart
Because on third down, he can’t improv and throw beyond the first down conversion line. Or maybe run, he had a couple of runs today. But outside of that, that’s not his strong suit. That’s not something that you can rely on with a Jared Goff. He can make plays occasionally, but he’s at his best when he’s putting the ball in the receiver’s hands, where they can get yak opportunities. Or if you’re dropping it over the top to a DJ Chark who has really come on strong these last several weeks. He is really been playing some good football.
Four catches, and 108 yards for him. Seven catches for 76 yards for Amon Ra St. Brown. Who I think now officially went over a thousand yards for the season with today’s performance. And again, I love seeing the Detroit Lions thrive. They still are not including Jameson Williams in the game plan. Bothers me a little bit.
Goff tried to throw one pass to him, but it was three yards shy and Jamo couldn’t even get a shot at catching the ball. So again, sometimes it feels like when Goff can’t play on the script, the offense completely falls apart. I’m not saying he’s the problem, and I’m not saying that it’s something that needs to be addressed immediately.
Upgrading The QB Position For What The Offense Needs
But for me, if we’re looking at the best player available in the draft. If we are assessing everything fairly within the Detroit Lions roster, you have to at some point consider upgrading to the quarterback position. For what this offense needs and how suitable they would be with a quarterback that can improv and make plays on the fly when everything doesn’t work out perfectly.
And it seems like that has to be the formula for Jared Goff. This for the most part has worked because again, he’s had an offensive line to protect him or run game behind him to give him some support. Receivers that don’t drop a lot of passes. Rookie tight ends that are stepping up and playing well.
Shout out to Shane Zylstra, who got three touchdown catches today. James Mitchell had some big plays. Brock Wright with another catch. Like they’re getting production out of those guys. But I feel like you can take them to another level with a quarterback that’s able to make plays on the fly. I’ve constantly said, and I stick to this, and I know it might be a crappy take, I don’t care.
Bryce Young: The Only QB The Detroit Lions Should Pick High
I truly believe this. At this point, if the Detroit Lions are gonna take a quarterback high, I’m only okay if it’s Bryce Young. I don’t want CJ Stroud, I don’t care about the quarterback from Kentucky. Bryce Young is the only quarterback I’ll be okay with the Detroit Lions drafting high on. I could see them waiting and getting somebody else later, like a Malik Hooker or, the quarterback from Florida.
I could see them waiting in later rounds instead of going high right away. But my point is this. At this point, there are some games that Jared Goff has played this season, especially on the road, where he showed the flaws and the cracks of this offense. And how they struggle and why they struggle, especially on the road.
He shows a lot of those reasons why when he’s underthrowing balls. He’s not able to scramble out and really improv, catching the defense off their heels. He doesn’t have the ability to do that. And sometimes that keeps this offense stagnant. And it puts them in this constant necessity to go forward on fourth down, which I don’t always love.
Watching Goff These Last Few Games Is Gonna Be Important
So hopefully they find a way to make that more consistent. But I believe watching Jared Goff for these last few games is gonna be important. Again, he’s not the problem for this team, but I don’t think he’s the solution that people are trying to pin him as. As of right now, he’s played well. He’s had some good games and he’s had some games where you look a little shaky.
But for the most part, I think it needs to be least in the Detroit Lions’ mind, going into the draft, going into free agency. Going into how they decide to build this roster for the future. One of those pinpoint plans has to be addressed in a quarterback position. But again, I’m not pinning this all on Goff.
I’m not being a Goff hater. I don’t wanna slander him. Because there were a lot of other things to look at. The defense was terrible. The secondary was getting picked apart. Looks like they really missed Deshon Elliott today. Didn’t see any kind of rush from the defensive line, and they let up a lot of dumb penalties. And really just again, didn’t find any kind of consistent flow to build on the momentum that they’ve been having.
And these are the kind of games that you worry about for a young team, an experienced team that’s in a playoff hunt. That’s in a position to, work for the postseason, and that dream isn’t lost yet. The Detroit Lions still can get into the postseason. I think Seattle lost today. The Giants lost to the Vikings in a dramatic fashion. So it’s not over yet.
The Lions Still Have A Chance…
The Lions still have a chance, but they have to play a thousand times better than what we saw today. They can’t go in the Lambo playing the way they did today. You can’t even go home against Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears who can get sporadically hot every so often in a game. And against a division rival.
It very well could be you next. If you don’t take them seriously enough. So hopefully this game is a big wake-up call for the Detroit Lions. Again, I didn’t love what I saw. I don’t think a lot of fans did, and they need to tighten it up again. I thought they were due for some ugly muck-up games, but I didn’t think it was gonna get to this portion.
They could have definitely pulled a win out, a comfortable win, but Lions didn’t seem to be too prepared today. Got two more games left. Gotta close it out right. Going on seven and eight for their record for the season. Two more games left. We’ll see how things unfold.
Talk To Us!
Talk to me in the comment section. I’d love to hear from you. What did you think about the Detroit Lions game today? As they drop down to seven and eight, losing to the Panthers today. I’d love to hear your feedback on the game. Make sure you like the video. If you’re on the video. Make sure you subscribe to the channel.
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I will be uncovering the game in more detail on Beyond the Box, Monday at seven o’clock. I really hope you guys get a chance to check that out with me and AJ every Monday. Seven o’clock gonna be unpacking some NFL and the Detroit Lions football and just kicking it off to really get on the wrap for the great holiday season.
So, unfortunately, get off to the start we wanted with this Detroit Lions’ result. But I do hope you guys have a great holiday season with you and yours and, hopefully, we can get a better result next week from the Detroit Lions. Thank you again for supporting. I really appreciate you watching. I’ll be back again soon with another update right here from the DSN News Desk.
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