Just Want A Title Posted November 14, 2021 Share Posted November 14, 2021 This is one of the craziest games I can recall watching. It may be a tie but maybe there are some things to build on. That said: Coaching: Aaron Glen is doing an amazing job. Our no-name secondary is holding up surprisingly well. Mark Gilbert, Jerry Jacobs and AJ Parker all played pretty well today despite the fact that they are rookies. Even Will Harris made a play. The reflects pretty well on Aaron Glenn. The offense was putrid. They need to have the courage to make a change at QB. Dan Campbell got more involved with the offense and produced a huge improvement in the running game. As a Head Coach, he is growing along with this young team. I think Dan Campbell deserves a fair amount of credit for the fact that this team doesn't back down and shows a lot of tenacity even after going 0-8. Offense: QB: Is David Blough that much of a downgrade from Jared Goff at this point? Seriously. RB: We put up big numbers in the running game but it took a lot of "heavy" formations. It was a lot less effective after Matt Nelson went down. It was nice to see Jermar Jefferson flash. Surprisingly, Godwin Igwebuike made some good plays also. D"andre Swift had a pretty good game but it seems like they are having a hard time getting the ball in space. WRs: Amon Ra St. Brown had a couple of nice plays in the passing game but otherwise, we didn't get much. Trinity Benson is starting to get a few snaps but hasn't made any plays. Its tough to judge this group with Goff playing QB TE: TJ Hockenson has some not-so-great penalties and didn't contribute in the passing game too much. As with the WRs, its tough to judge him too harshly with how Goff is playing O-Line: I know Taylor Decker is a really good LT but I don't see the dominant line that many expected. Even without Frank Ragnow, we should be getting more consistent push. They weren't perfect in Pass-Protection but Goff generally had time to see the field. Sewell made some good plays and helped spring Igwebuike for a long gain. Defense D-Line: We did a solid job of limiting Najee Harris. They collapsed the pocket a few times but the lack of consistent pressure was pretty noticeable. That really needs to improve. LBs: They did a pretty good job of limiting the Steelers running game. Charles Harris continues to show well against the run and has solid pass-rush skills also. Trey Flowers did a pretty good job setting the edge and recovered a fumble at the end of the game. He might be over-paid but he does a lot of good things for our defense CBs: We are short on bodies right now but they are hanging in there despite the adversity. AJ Parker, Jerry Jacobs and Mark Gilbert played pretty well. Orunwariye got burned early but made some plays later on. I still think he might be better off as a safety. S: Tracy Walker continues to play well against the run and pass. He would benefit immensely from an improvement in our pass-rush. Dean Marlowe was solid also. Will Harris actually made a play at the end which was nice to see. Special Teams: Ryan Santoso should be out of a job. Our coverage units were pretty good. Jack Fox might be our MVP at this point. The Lions may have gotten a today but I think they will get a couple of wins before the season is over. This team is showing a lot of grit and it will pay off sooner or later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karnage84 Posted November 15, 2021 Share Posted November 15, 2021 Agreed 110% on Glenn. I think he's going to be a HC in 3 - 4 years. He's running decent defenses with no name guys and a pile of injuries, especially in the secondary. An injection of talent with that kind of coaching/playcalling is going to put us in position to be remotely competitive, even with this anemic offense. I only really came in around the 3rd quarter and was wondering why every play was Swift running either inside or outside. Goff's injury does make sense but I didn't hear what happened to Anthony Lynn (and why Campbell was calling plays now). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Want A Title Posted November 15, 2021 Author Share Posted November 15, 2021 Like I mentioned above: Is David Blough really a downgrade from Jared Goff. If he can complete passes more than 5-yards downfield, he is a definite upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nnivolcm Posted November 15, 2021 Share Posted November 15, 2021 3 hours ago, Karnage84 said: I didn't hear what happened to Anthony Lynn (and why Campbell was calling plays now). Quote During the game, Campbell could be seen switching between channels on his headset, indicating he could be conversing with other members of the staff. “This is a collaboration here,” Campbell said. “I’m taking a lot of input. I still talk to A-Lynn, plays come in. But yes, I was giving (play calls) to Jared (Goff).” Lynn had called plays in previous games. Heading into this matchup, Campbell decided to switch it up. “I thought, ‘Hey, one of the things is why don’t we change it up a bit?’” Campbell said. “I wanted to be able to talk to (Jared) in-game and sometimes I think when you’re able to get into the flow of the game when you’re the one who’s calling it, it helps to know exactly where to go.” Throughout the game, Campbell said he still took suggestions and play calls from Lynn. Detroit's first-year head coach said he would evaluate his performance as a play-caller during the upcoming week and a decision will be made on whether he will continue play-calling going forward or not. https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/dan-campbell-reveals-he-called-plays-against-steelers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karnage84 Posted November 15, 2021 Share Posted November 15, 2021 10 hours ago, Nnivolcm said: https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/dan-campbell-reveals-he-called-plays-against-steelers Thanks dude. Makes more sense now. Interesting. Campbell isn't really known as a play-caller and I think just about anyone of us could call "run by Swift; run by Swift; run by Swift; Punt". Assuming that Goff has been battling through injury - 1) Does this mean that he couldn't throw the ball? 2) If so, why was he still left in at QB? 3) Was he really that much better than David Blough? If not, why didn't we kick the tires on Cam Newton or another FA QB? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehardlionfan Posted November 15, 2021 Share Posted November 15, 2021 8 hours ago, Karnage84 said: Thanks dude. Makes more sense now. Interesting. Campbell isn't really known as a play-caller and I think just about anyone of us could call "run by Swift; run by Swift; run by Swift; Punt". Assuming that Goff has been battling through injury - 1) Does this mean that he couldn't throw the ball? 2) If so, why was he still left in at QB? 3) Was he really that much better than David Blough? If not, why didn't we kick the tires on Cam Newton or another FA QB? He was likely left in because he’s the best option. I expect Blough isn’t viewed as an upgrade. Unless players fit for the long term why bring them in? What goal is achieved by bringing in a QB at this point? Win a pair of games? Maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Want A Title Posted November 15, 2021 Author Share Posted November 15, 2021 18 minutes ago, diehardlionfan said: He was likely left in because he’s the best option. I expect Blough isn’t viewed as an upgrade. Unless players fit for the long term why bring them in? What goal is achieved by bringing in a QB at this point? Win a pair of games? Maybe? If you are really trying to change a losing culture, yes, you start the guy who will get you some wins. Blough showed he has a solid arm and decent mobility. Both would be an upgrade at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karnage84 Posted November 15, 2021 Share Posted November 15, 2021 51 minutes ago, diehardlionfan said: He was likely left in because he’s the best option. I expect Blough isn’t viewed as an upgrade. Unless players fit for the long term why bring them in? What goal is achieved by bringing in a QB at this point? Win a pair of games? Maybe? We could see if we could find our Mike White/Tyler Heinecke/Gardnew Minshew... someone with potential upside/low risk. If Goff isn't the answer, you're on the books for his contract either way. Worth seeing if there's a young guy out there who might have some tools to build around for the short term and win some games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehardlionfan Posted November 16, 2021 Share Posted November 16, 2021 5 hours ago, Karnage84 said: We could see if we could find our Mike White/Tyler Heinecke/Gardnew Minshew... someone with potential upside/low risk. If Goff isn't the answer, you're on the books for his contract either way. Worth seeing if there's a young guy out there who might have some tools to build around for the short term and win some games. Okay, that makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehardlionfan Posted November 16, 2021 Share Posted November 16, 2021 5 hours ago, Just Want A Title said: If you are really trying to change a losing culture, yes, you start the guy who will get you some wins. Blough showed he has a solid arm and decent mobility. Both would be an upgrade at this point. Do you really think if Blough was an upgrade Campbell would have him on the bench? If so, why do you think he’s not starting! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karnage84 Posted November 16, 2021 Share Posted November 16, 2021 8 hours ago, diehardlionfan said: Do you really think if Blough was an upgrade Campbell would have him on the bench? If so, why do you think he’s not starting! Arm talent and mobility are only going to be useful tools if you have the processing ability to put them to use. Otherwise we'd just be putting another toolsy guy out there who is going to get confused against defenses, force plays and wind up giving the ball up with dumb mistakes. I'd rather have a guy that can make the majority of throws without a cannon but his processing is super quick and he gets the ball out. There's absolutely nothing wrong with getting 4-5 yards per pass with a consistent run game going. You're going to move the ball consistently, get 1st downs and put your team in a position to score points. As we have seen in years past, the boom-or-bust offense with a big armed QB and no balance is going to wind up in scenarios that are going to generate mistakes (turnovers). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karnage84 Posted November 16, 2021 Share Posted November 16, 2021 Speaking of Minshew, I would seriously look at bringing him on along with Trubisky. I don't think either guy is going to be the future but there is the potential for a reclamation project while we look towards the future. Guys like Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tyrod Taylor have made careers being in this kind of position. The fact that we do not have a set "guy" means that it really would be an open competition and any of these guys could win the job. It means there's an opportunity there which I would say both could be open to. We'd have to trade for Minshew but it is likely not going to cost much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lions017 Posted November 16, 2021 Share Posted November 16, 2021 I think that people are fondly remembering the one fairly good game that Blough had on Thanksgiving. The rest of his performances have not been good. Even that Thanksgiving game he only completed 57.9% of his passes and he threw a pick. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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