Stress-free football this was not, but regardless, it will go down as a win for the Detroit Lions over the Green Bay Packers.
Both teams did their best to win and lose this game, with a fair number of blunders and botches leaving points off the board. Despite a game in which both teams combined for over 700 yards of offense, the final score was a mere 20-17. Thankfully for Detroit, they emerged on the winning side of that high-wire act. The bye week proved fruitful for the Lions, getting a win over one
divisional foe. With the Minnesota Vikings on deck, here is hoping they can string two NFC North wins together.
Which players emerged from an eventful Sunday tilt as a winner or loser?
Note: The label of “loser” is used to evaluate and contrast in-game performance and is not an indictment of a player’s ability, value, or character. The term is not intended to be disrespectful in nature.
Winners: Jameson Williams and Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR
“The best way to keep the Packers’ defense honest and open is to test them deep with Jameson Williams.”
That was a quote from Erik Schlitt in his keys to the game, and he hit the nail on the head. Even though Amon-Ra St. Brown led the team in receiving yards, I would argue that Williams was just as impactful. The speed of Williams was a genuine threat for the Packers defense and it facilitated a lot of the offense’s successes. The Packers boast a solid pair of safeties, but with their attention turned to covering Williams and the deep shots, that left a lot of room for St. Brown to dice up the defense.
St. Brown was dynamite, recording nine catches for a whopping 153 yards. He was contributing in a multitude of ways, from catching the long bomb (40 yards) to churning out yards-after-the-catch. As for Williams, he was no slouch either, scoring two critical touchdowns and coming a toe away from a third. He ended the day with five catches for 91 yards and two touchdowns.
It’s not hard to see how well these two compliment each other. On any given week, one or both of them could breakout—opposing defenses have to pick their poison.
Loser: Cade Mays, C
The much-anticipated debut of the Lions’ big ticket free agent went about as poorly as can be. Mays struggled in the trenches, perhaps a symptom of being out for over two months. In pass protection, he was often getting pushed back into the pocket (he was credited with the lone sack allowed). As for the run game, a majority of the Lions’ success came on plays towards the perimeter, away from Mays.
Unfortunately for Mays, he was at the forefront of two pivotal fumbles. On the final drive of the first half with the Lions primed to at least score a field goal, Mays unintentionally forced a fumble on Jahmyr Gibbs, netting the Lions zero points. The Lions received the football to start the second half, but it was squandered on a botched snap between Mays and Jared Goff. Goff blamed himself for the play, but it is nonetheless an unfortunate stain on Mays’ debut. That fumble was recovered by the Packers. Instead of the Lions being up by multiple scores, the Packers were able to score and take the lead in a back-and-forth affair.
Given that Juice Scruggs had been playing well prior to Mays’ return, there will be an active discussion about how the Lions should approach the center position going forward. I think it would be too harsh to bench him so soon, but I would like to see him rebound in his next start.
Winner: Brian Branch, S
Welcome back! The Lions needed a game-changer in the secondary and they got exactly that with Branch. The Lions still had their share of misplays in the defense, but adding Branch to the lineup gives them a higher ceiling and a higher floor. He made a great ball-hawking interception to give life to Ford Field after back-to-back drives ending in fumbles. His impact goes beyond picks, however, as he plays a pivotal role in run defense (four tackles, three of which were stops per PFF) and pass defense (one pass defended and zero receptions allowed, per PFF).
With just Chuck Clark and Keith Abney at safety, they were having to shoulder the burdens of a struggling secondary. Now that Branch is in the mix, everyone’s job gets easier. Clark and Abney were solid on Sunday, while the secondary in general looked sharper. Branch’s snap count will continue to ramp up in the coming weeks, but it is clear that they need him on the field early and often.
Loser: Sam LaPorta, TE
On one hand, when St. Brown and Williams are humming, it is not unexpected to see them dominate the target share. However, given how often the Lions were airing it on (32 attempts from Jared Goff), you would expect to see LaPorta at least somewhat involved. Instead, LaPorta was a ghost.
LaPorta had a mere two targets on the day, only one of which resulted in a catch. This was, to his credit, a big 18-yard gain to help spur a late-game drive, but those types of plays need to happen in every quarter, not the dying minutes of a game. This performance looms large after his public complaints regarding his contract status this past week. One game like this won’t change his price tag to Detroit or another suitor, but you would nonetheless hope for a bigger impact.
Winner: Khalil Dorsey, CB
Khalil Dorsey had been a special teams ace for the Lions, but he might be playing his way into a defensive role as well. He only saw limited action (14 snaps on defense), but he was nails when targeted. He was stride-for-stride with speedster Matthew Golden on an incompletion and later recorded a pass breakup on a deep shot to Bo Melton. He later added a tackle on Christian Watson along the sideline to limit him to a small gain of five yards.
The Lions have been rotating cornerbacks all season long trying to find an answer, and Dorsey was next up this week. Overall, it was a success, but we have to acknowledge it was a small sample size. His play should warrant more snaps in the coming weeks, though this might be out of necessity with Ennis Rakestraw nursing an ankle injury:
Winner: Kelvin Sheppard, DC
A paper tiger indeed. Despite the Packers coming into this game with a high-flying passing attack built on the YOLO ball (and fishing for defensive pass interference), the Lions had one of their best defensive showings on Sunday. The return of Brian Branch (who snagged himself an interception) undoubtedly helped with communication on the back end. Now, the Lions were limited to only a few busted coverages—progress!
The tape will be an interesting one to review, but you have to credit Sheppard’s defense for locking up what can be a potent offense. Josh Jacobs, making his return from suspension, tallied just 36 yards on 11 carries—the Packers run game as a whole continues to struggle. Christian Watson and Matthew Golden, the playmaking deep threats, combined for 11 catches for 96 yards. Tucker Kraft did get free for a touchdown, but you could also argue that Jack Campbell was interfered with by Watson running his route—whether legal or illegal, I will let you debate that.
The Lions did get help from subpar officiating, multiple Packers drops, and some coaching buffoonery from Matt LaFleur, but the defense as a whole has now put together back-to-back solid outings. If they can further crack down on critical downs (the Packers were 3-for-4 on fourth down), it’s not hard to envision this defense looking adequate. Given how the season started, that is welcome growth.
Loser: Drew Petzing, OC
Overall, the offense was effective, and I would normally keep Petzing out of the “Loser” category. However, the Lions were self-destructing in too many key moments.
Detroit was 0-for-2 on fourth-down attempts. One failed attempt came on a red zone drive that stalled at the six-yard line; three straight low-percentage passes will do that. The next turnover on downs was nearly game-ending. On fourth-and-1, the Lions telegraphed a run and Green Bay brought the house. The slow developing run was promptly stopped for a loss of two yards. This gave Green Bay the ball deep in Lions territory, but they lucked out with a Josh Jacobs dropped touchdown on third down and a missed/partially blocked 35-yard field goal on fourth down.
Key downs are when your offensive coordinator needs to be at his sharpest, and Petzing simply wasn’t that today.
Quick hits:
Winners: Tyleik Williams and Alim McNeill, DTs
Yet another game in which the Lions have ample interior pressure without sacrificing their run defense. The development of Williams and rebound of McNeill have been crucial for the Lions’ successfully defensive line so far this season.
Winner: Aidan Hutchinson, DE
Recorded himself a sack, drew a holding penalty, and brought relentless and frequent pressure—you take that from your star pass rusher.
Winners: Christian Mahogany and Tate Ratledge, OGs
Whereas Mays struggled on Sunday, the guards next to him had a productive day as pass blockers and run blockers. For Mahogany in particular, he has cemented the left guard spot for himself despite competition from Juice Scruggs.
Loser: Skyler Gill-Howard, DT
He is still a fun player to watch, but he was not as effective rushing the passer this week despite the Packers being down to their third-string center.
Winner: D.J. Reed, CB
A big game from Reed. He continues to be an asset in run defense, and he was feisty in coverage against some good Packers receivers. He had a pass breakup and also made a brilliant read on the Packers fourth-down attempt late in the game to force a turnover on downs.
Loser: Ennis Rakestaw, CB
Rakestraw was playing well, but left the game with an ankle injury. I hate to dock a player for an injury, but Rakestraw in particular needs to shake the injury bug that has plagued him so far in his career.
Winner: DJ Wonnum, DE
A modest day as a pass rusher was saved by a game-changing field goal deflection late in the fourth quarter.
Winner: Jared Goff, QB
Goff was mostly sharp on the day, racking up yet another 300-yard game while throwing for two touchdowns. He was putting some serious zip on his downfield throws as well. The reason why he doesn’t get a larger Winner section is that he was fortunate to avoid at least two interceptions. And if he is taking blame for the botched snap exchange, then that also hurts his overall day.
