The banged-up Detroit Lions welcomed the rebuilding Seattle Seahawks to Ford Field today. The Lions entered the game without stars Amon-Ra St Brown and D’Andre Swift. On top of that, they were missing starters DJ Chark, Jonah Jackson, John Cominsky, and Austin Seibert. Despite the injuries, the Lions’ offense looked great all game putting up a huge 45 points to give them the league lead after the early games. However, the defense did not show up at all, leading to the Lions’ loss. Here is how it happened.
Game Recap: Detroit Lions Defensive Play Comes Up WAY Short
Defensively, this game was an absolute disaster. Giving up 41 points to Geno Smith is a pitiful performance for any team. The Seahawks did whatever they wanted the entire game. Rashad Penny busted huge touchdown runs twice on third down. One touchdown was controversial as it happened after the Lions appeared to stop the Seahawks on third down; however, the referees called for a replay of the down after a clock issue.
It wouldn’t be a Lions game without some referee controversy, and even if they did stop them there, the Lions still would have let up 37 points at home to Geno Smith. All in all, the Lions gave up 235 rushing yards on a whopping 7.1 yards a carry.
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Against the pass, the Lions were just as hopeless. Smith put up a stat line of 23/30 327 yards and two touchdowns. The entire game, he hit short passes to his tight ends and running backs on play action for good gains. When the Lions played up, he hit DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett over the top for big gains. On the incredibly rare occasions everyone was covered, Smith would scramble to move the sticks. A horrendous performance by the defense where the Seahawks did not punt once.
Game Recap: Detroit Lions execute on Offense despite injuries
Despite missing their two top players, the Lions did not miss a beat on offense. They were able to put up 45 points, albeit on a weak Seahawk defense. Without St Brown, Jared Goff relied on his tight end TJ Hockenson, and boy did he step up. Hockenson grabbed eight catches for 179 yards, 2 TDS, and a two-point conversion. A great game for the tight end, capitalized by a huge 81-yard catch and run. Josh Reynolds also stepped up, grabbing 81 receiving yards and a strong touchdown grab. Goff looked solid again despite ending the game with only three healthy receivers (Reynolds, Tom Kennedy, and Maurice Alexander). However, Goff needs to avoid huge mistakes like his pick-6 to start the half. With this defense, the offense cannot afford to give away even more points if they want to win.
The ground game continued its success as well. Jamaal Williams was his solid self, consistently generating positive yards. On top of the solid runs, Williams added a 51-yard touchdown run highlighted by a vicious stiff arm. Swift was missed in the passing game. Williams had two drops on the day, and none of the other running backs made an impact there. This offensive line and running back group continue to prove that it’s a machine, no matter who is in the lineup.
Final Thoughts: Looking ahead as the Detroit Lions take on the Patriots
Man, what a disappointing loss. The Seahawks were a struggling team on the road with a career backup quarterback. Up to this point, they had scored only 47 points on the season! That clearly did not matter, as they looked like the 2013 Broncos and absolutely destroyed the Lions’ defense. This week, Aaron Glenn and the rest of the staff need to go back to the drawing board and figure something out. If they don’t, Aaron Glenn could go from a head coaching candidate to the hot seat very quickly. On the bright side, Ben Johnson and this offense have it figured out. Johnson has Goff looking as good as he ever has been, and different playmakers continue to step up. The offense will look to keep up its momentum, and the defense will look to do something positive next week against the Patriots.
