Not to be hyperbolic, but the Detroit Lions’ 27–24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings might go down as the most surprisingly unprepared and disappointing efforts of the Dan Campbell era. Coming off a bye, playing
at home as near double-digit favorites against a quarterback making just his third career start, and facing a defense they’ve historically shredded—this should’ve been a statement game. Instead, it looked like the Vikings wanted it more, while the Lions were still out trick-or-treating.
Now sitting at 1-2 in the division with more losses than they had all of last regular season, Detroit has squandered the post-bye advantage and will be searching for answers. This week’s stock report—heavy on the red arrows—reflects just how far off their game they looked on Sunday.
Stock down: John Morton, offensive coordinator and Hank Fraley, run game coordinator and offensive line coach
Not many excuses can be made for a Lions offense that’s been among the NFL’s best the past few seasons to come out flat-footed, listless, and without any easy answers. It’s indefensible that the Lions had no counterpunch to—and couldn’t properly protect against—a blitz scheme they’ve often shredded in the past.
Detroit’s offense was completely overwhelmed by Brian Flores’ defense. The run game lacked any teeth again, generating just 3.25 yards per carry with a sub-25% rushing success rate for the second straight game—and no explosive runs for the first time since 2023. Getting away from gap-scheme blocking after the first drive was highly questionable as the game continued to spiral.
The passing game wasn’t much better. Jared Goff was sacked a season-high five times, and the team’s 40.5% passing success rate marked their second-lowest of the season (only behind Week 7’s 35.3%, the fourth-worst mark of the Dan Campbell era). The Vikings appeared to crack Detroit’s protection rules and kept exploiting them—particularly by dropping their edge rushers and hammering Graham Glasgow and Jahmyr Gibbs with responsibility for the same damn spammed crossbuck linebacker blitzes.
Dan Campbell spoke after the bye about improving on third downs—and instead, the Lions went 2-for-13 (15%) on 3rd-and-4+, averaging 2.5 yards per play, after going 1-for-10 (10%) in similar situations in Week 7. This was amplified by a four series stretch of three-and-outs. It’s the first time in years this offense has looked bad at situational football.
Yes, the timid screen calls are easy to point to, but deeper issues remain: the team isn’t moving people in the run game, there are no rushing lanes, the pass protection is breaking down, receivers aren’t consistently separating, and in-game adjustments are scarce. That falls on John Morton—and some of the blame belongs to Hank Fraley as well. They’re too reliant on players making plays instead of designing plays to make life easier on them. Minnesota was the more physical, better-prepared team, and Detroit’s offense became one-dimensional and self-destructive—that will never be the recipe for success.
There’s no cohesive plan on offense right now. Defenses are diagnosing plays too quickly, everything feels predictable and hard-earned, and the Lions’ offensive talent is far too good for that to be the case. Something has to change—perhaps even Morton moving to the sideline to call plays directly with his players—because this group has become one of the league’s most inconsistent offenses, and that’s not acceptable for a team with championship aspirations.
Stock down: Lions’ offensive line
Once the Lions’ most reliable unit—the foundation of their identity—the offensive line can no longer be counted on the way it once was. Sunday’s loss made that clear. For most of the afternoon, Detroit’s front failed to elevate the skill players or put the offense in a position to succeed, regardless of what the final box score might suggest.
It didn’t help that at various points Taylor Decker, Christian Mahogany, Tate Ratledge, and Penei Sewell all left the game to be evaluated. But even before the lineup started unraveling, the group was struggling. Decker and, at times, Glasgow looked worn down and were consistently out-executed. Dan Campbell said this week that Mahogany and Ratledge “aren’t young anymore—they’re veterans now,” yet both had communication lapses in pass protection and were inconsistent in the run game. On the left side, Decker and Mahogany never found their rhythm, and several combo blocks and stunt handoffs were mistimed or missed entirely.
The result was a performance that couldn’t get drives going. Just four of Detroit’s 20 rushing attempts gained more than four yards, and running backs were contacted within one yard of the line of scrimmage on 80% of their carries. The group failed to generate push to the second level—against a Minnesota front that had just surrendered 200+ rushing yards to Kimani Vidal, Jaret Patterson, and Justin Herbert a week earlier. In pass protection, it wasn’t any better: the Lions allowed an 11.9% sack rate and 42.9% pressure rate, both ranking fifth-worst in the league in Week 9 (before “Sunday Night Football”).
Fraley’s unit is suffering from a mix of inexperience and veteran wear, and they sorely missed Frank Ragnow in a game where blitz pickup and protection identification were recurring issues. Until they regain their cohesion and physical edge, Detroit’s offense will struggle to find its rhythm.
Stock up: Jack Campbell, LB
Jack Campbell was a force against Minnesota, flying downhill and delivering a tone-setting performance as arguably the Lions’ most disruptive defender.
He met Aaron Jones head-on a handful of times in the run game and even chased him down on a 30+ yard swing pass after defensive backs lost containment—a hustle play that prevented a longer gain. But Campbell’s biggest impact came as a blitzer. He notched one of Detroit’s most impressive sacks of the season on a crucial third down in the red zone of a tie game, bulldozing Jordan Mason and taking down J.J. McCarthy to force a field goal. He also flushed McCarthy from the pocket on Aidan Hutchinson’s fourth-quarter sack and added another strong blitz that drew a questionable roughing-the-passer penalty.
Campbell’s aggressiveness and presence helped create a handful of negative plays for Minnesota’s offense and served as a reminder of how destructive he can be now when cut loose as a pass rusher.
Stock down: Jared Goff, QB
Life wasn’t easy for Jared Goff against the Vikings. The run game offered little consistent threat, pass protection was shaky, and Goff himself wasn’t processing at the level he’s known for. While the offensive line shares responsibility, much of the burden for pre-snap blitz recognition falls on Goff, and he allowed pressure to affect him even on snaps where he had more blockers than rushers. The simulated pressures gave the offense fits and Goff wasn’t able to expose the holes left by players rushing from the second level.
There was an aimless sense that Goff was experiencing a “seeing ghosts” effect. On several plays, he bailed on his reads immediately after the snap, hesitated to pull the trigger, and appeared uncomfortable in the pocket. Games like this—with a nonexistent run game and pressure consistently getting home—are a stark reminder of Goff’s limitations and the challenge he faces in lifting the offense when things break down.
Stock up: Sam LaPorta, TE
LaPorta was a ball magnet on the opening drive—the only time the Lions offense looked like itself. On that touchdown march, he hauled in three catches for 66 yards, three first downs, and a score. The first offensive play of the game featured his patented sideline juke to move the chains, and his touchdown came with a barrel of YAC to finish the job.
Overall, LaPorta tied Amon-Ra St. Brown for the team lead with 97 receiving yards on six catches and led the team in both first downs (four) and yards after catch (57).
While LaPorta’s run blocking has improved dramatically in his third season, there were a few rough snaps in this one. On two David Montgomery runs to the left side, he was tasked with blocking Jalen Redmond and got bullied off the spot—a tough assignment, but one drawn up that way. He was also stood up in the hole by Jonathan Greenard on a failed wide zone run for Jahmyr Gibbs. Still, this was a strong overall showing and another reminder that LaPorta remains one of the most dependable pieces in an offense still searching for rhythm.
Stock down: Jahmyr Gibbs, RB
It was a rough day overall for Gibbs, averaging just 2.8 yards per carry—his lowest mark since Week 1—and posting a 16.7% offensive success rate on 12 touches, the lowest single-game figure of his career. After the opening drive, Detroit’s offense leaned heavily into horizontal concepts against a fast-flowing Vikings defense, and Gibbs had nowhere to go. Even as a receiver, there wasn’t a single successful play drawn up to get him in space.
Where things really unraveled was in pass protection. Minnesota’s cross-dog simulated pressures from the linebackers consistently exposed Gibbs, and he struggled to hold up. He was charged with seven pressures on 16 pass-blocking snaps—tied for the most by any running back in a game since at least 2018, per Next Gen Stats. The hope now is that this doesn’t become a recurring issue that limits his role on passing downs, as he had been an improved this season as a pass protector.
Quick hits
STOCK UP
- Tyler Lacy, DL: Delivered a solid showing in the big defensive end role over 31 snaps. He was stout against the run, tossing T.J. Hockenson into the hole on one rep, tag-teaming a read option with Jack Campbell on another, and later earning a “sack” by hustling to the sideline to bring down McCarthy on a failed rollout.
- Derrick Barnes, LB: Barnes was active once again and played an effective “hall monitor” role against McCarthy. He notched a clean-up sack from his spy position after McCarthy escaped pressure from Al-Quadin Muhammad and Aidan Hutchinson, forced McCarthy out of bounds on a third-and-goal scramble, and later brought him down on an aborted handoff fire drill late in the second quarter. His most impressive play came in coverage—a quick read-and-react on a throw to the flat that limited Mason to just one yard.
STOCK DOWN
- David Montgomery, RB: Didn’t fare much better than Gibbs on the ground, and you can’t cough up the football—his second second-half fumble against Minnesota in as many years.
- Isaac TeSlaa, WR: A non-factor. Logged just three snaps, his lowest total since Week 1. Those early-season catches in Weeks 1 and 2 raised expectations that haven’t come close to being met.
- Alim McNeill, DT: Started strong with a run stuff alongside DJ Reader on the Vikings’ opening drive and a slick club-rip pass rush that led to the second-quarter throw off Aidan Hutchinson’s helmet. But after that, he disappeared. Still working back into form after returning in Week 7.
- Alex Anzalone, LB: Something seemed a bit off for Anzalone. There were a few questionable run fits, hesitation as a QB spy on multiple McCarthy scrambles, and one of his worst angles in recent memory on McCarthy’s third-and-8 touchdown run near the goal line.
- Arthur Maulet, NB: In just 15 coverage snaps, Maulet was burned twice — first by Jordan Addison for 30+ yards on a third-and-9 early, then by Jalen Nailor on the final nail in the coffin. He’s been admirable as a midseason addition of the street, but during this game it was fair to wonder if Avonte Maddox or Rock Ya-Sin might be better suited as the third corner in some configuration.
- Brian Branch, SAF: Wore a lot of hats, even covering Addison stride-for-stride on a 9-route outside, but this wasn’t his sharpest game. Too often in the run game and on screens, he lost containment and allowed successful plays—not typical for him. Did have a nice stick on Jordan Mason after discarding T.J. Hockenson’s block, but generally got a bit lost in the wash.
- Dave Fipp, special teams coordinator: The questionable hold on Minnesota’s second huge kick return saved him from even more scrutiny, but it’s hard to ignore that Fipp’s units have quietly become a liability this season.
STOCK NEUTRAL
- Jameson Williams, WR: It was encouraging to see Williams finally get rolling again following the bye-week chatter. He caught three passes for first downs, including a late desperation deep-ball touchdown. That said, Detroit barely involved him until late in the third quarter when down double figures—aside from one incompletion and a screen that went backward. His drop on a drag route in the red zone, immediately after his huge third-and-14 catch-and-run, didn’t help matters.
- Kalif Raymond, WR/ST: Possibly the toughest 5-foot-8 blocker in football, and he showed it again — notably springing a block on Montgomery’s run before the fumble. But he was a non-factor as a receiver, finishing with no catches on 23 routes.
- Tyleik Williams, DT: Flashed on a few broken plays, including a heads-up effort after beating former Ohio State teammate Donovan Jackson to sock McCarthy following a botched snap, and chased him out of bounds on a goal-line bootleg. Still, he played a season-low 11 snaps (previous low: 21 in Week 5).
- Aidan Hutchinson, DE: The pressure was consistent—his seven QB pressures tied for his fourth-highest mark of the season—but this may have been one of his weaker efforts at the point of attack against the run.
- Terrion Arnold, CB: Possibly his best coverage outing yet, producing his first career interception and two additional pass breakups. However, he again left the game temporarily—a recurring concern—and had a few lapses in run support, possibly tied to his shoulder. Nothing alarming, as he’s been a strong run defender early in his career.
- Amik Robertson, CB: Justin Jefferson’s going to get his, but Robertson battled well and held his own overall.
