Christian Izien wasn’t interested in celebrating 24 points allowed.

The Detroit Lions escaped Ford Field with a 31-24 win over the New York Jets on Sunday, improving to 2-1 after a rough defensive start to the season. The victory mattered. So did the game-sealing strip-sack by Chuck Clark.

But Izien’s postgame assessment included a line that should get some attention in New York.

“We can’t give up those last two touchdowns,” Izien said. “I mean, we had some questionable calls, I think, for sure. But again, overall, we’ve got to play better. I don’t think we should give up 24 points to the outfit over there. They’re a good team, but I don’t think we should give 24 points to them. We’ll clean it up for sure.”

“The outfit over there.”

That’s one way to describe Aaron Glenn’s Jets.

Christian Izien Sets Higher Standard for Lions Defense

Izien’s comment had some bite, but the larger point was about Detroit.

The Lions entered Sunday needing a response after surrendering 41 points and 446 total yards in their Week 2 loss at Buffalo. Before facing New York, defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard had already identified explosive plays as the defense’s biggest problem.

Detroit was better Sunday.

It still wasn’t good enough for Izien.

The Jets rallied from a 24-10 deficit, scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns to tie the game. Geno Smith finished with 326 passing yards, while Garrett Wilson and Kenyon Sadiq both topped 100 receiving yards.

Those numbers explain why Izien wasn’t satisfied.

Detroit won. The defense finished the game when it mattered. Neither fact erased what happened before the final whistle.

Izien Has an Elite Number in Mind

Izien didn’t stop at saying 24 points was too many.

He provided a target.

“I think, honestly, 17 points is like an elite defense,” Izien said. “So, we’ve just got to keep them under that. But this team shouldn’t have scored that many points on us. So, we know that.”

That’s a significant standard for a defense that entered Week 3 near the bottom of the NFL in several major categories. Dan Campbell had already acknowledged Detroit’s coverage breakdowns following the Buffalo loss, and the secondary entered Sunday without injured starters Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph.

Izien was among the players asked to shoulder more responsibility.

He responded with an active afternoon near the line of scrimmage, where his physical style was evident. On one screen, Izien described his assignment in fairly uncomplicated terms.

“I had the mindset of just destroy anything that was in my way at that point,” he said.

Subtle? Not particularly.

Effective? Much more so.

Lions Finish the Job Against Jets

For all of Izien’s frustration, Detroit did something Sunday it desperately needed to do.

Finish.

After Jared Goff’s touchdown pass to Jahmyr Gibbs gave Detroit a 31-24 lead with 2:30 remaining, the Jets had one final opportunity. Sheppard dialed up pressure, Clark got home and forced the fumble that Jack Campbell recovered to seal the victory. The game-ending defensive call provided exactly the kind of closing play Detroit had been missing.

Izien said the Lions had practiced that situation during the week and knew New York recognized what was coming.

“We knew they knew it was coming,” Izien said. “So we had to beat them to the punch, and we did that for sure.”

That’s the part Detroit can build on.

The Lions didn’t suddenly become a finished product defensively Sunday. New York moved the football, erased a two-touchdown deficit and tied the game late.

But Detroit made the final defensive play.

Izien just thinks it should never have needed one.

And judging by his description of “the outfit over there,” he certainly wasn’t leaving Ford Field overly impressed with the offense that put 24 on the board.