Week 11 - Bears vs Lions Post Game Observations

[Just Want A Title]

This was one of the craziest Lions games I can remember.  For abut 53 out of 60 minutes, the Bears were the better team.  Almost every statistical category says they should have won this game.  The late TD from to Jameson Williams gave the Lions the spark they had been missing.  The got the stop on defense when they needed it the most and took the ball downfield for the winning score.  This wasn't winning ugly--this was winning a game they should have lost.  This team showed a lot of resilience and mental toughness today.  That said:

Dan Campbell:  This was one of those games that despite the not-great results on the field for most of the game, a lot of the problems weren't really with Dan Campbell as a HC.  The initial game plan on offense and defense wasn't very effective and some of that lies with him and his staff but they can't play the game for the players.  However, they made adjustments and took a lead into halftime.  However, the last 6-7 minutes of the game were brilliant.  Late game decision making and clock-management that used to be problematic have seemingly become a strength of Dan Campbell.  The one thing that continues to be an issue is the lack of production in the 3rd quarter on both sides of the ball.  Still, it was a solid day for him.

Ben Johnson:  For most of the game, it wasn't a great day for Ben Johnson.  It seemed like the Bears were telegraphing his play-calling for a good chunk of the game.  The Lions failed to establish their identity as a strong running team.  There was no vertical passing-game either.  Points were tough to come by. The Bears followed the Ravens formula by taking away the middle of the field and that still seems to flumox Ben Johnson.  I don't know why Jahmyr Gibbs didn't get any serious looks for most of the 1st quarter but when he did get involved, the offense was productive.  The offense was flat coming out of halftime again.  Then Jameson Williams caught his TD late in the 4th quarter and the offense found its groove long enough to win the game.  The Bears opened up the middle of the field late in the game and that is when the offense came to life.  The call on the 2-Pt conversion was awesome.  The Bears might have a good defense but Ben Johnson needs to jump-start the offense a little sooner in the game.  

Aaron Glenn:  I think Aaron Glenn is a good DC but this wasn't a great game for him.  The pass rush was non-existent for most of the game and when it did create pressure it took too long to collapse the pocket.  He know what it is like to play against Justin Fields and for whatever reason won't put a "spy" on him.  Justin Fields may not have had a lot of yardage but he shouldn't be 16-23 either.  He made adjustments in the first half and the second half to keep them out of the endzone but the Lions couldn't get off the field on 3rd down.  Much like Dan Campbell, he doesn't shoulder all of the blame.   Players weren't swarming to the ball the way they know they should.  Missed tackles were a problem.  Still, the defense is more bend but don't break and sometimes passive when it should attack.  All of the training camp smack talk about ball-hawking and getting to the QB isn't showing up.

Offense:

- Jared Goff: He had one of his worst days as a Lion until the last 5-minutes of the game.  He seemed out-of-sync or rattled most of the game.  He looked like he had a dead arm at times.  Still, he came alive at the end of the game and helped get us the win.  That says a lot about his mental toughness.  Staying calm and nailing that 2-pt conversion was pretty solid.  Jared Goff has been playing really well this year but he could be faulted for being too reliant on his "security blanket" receivers.  It seems like opposing defenses are jumping some of his check-down routes.  Hopefully, he recognizes that and adjusts accordingly (and Ben Johnson).  

- David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs:  They played well when given the chance.  Ben Johnson didn't even try to establish the running-game early.  Both RBs made huge plays on the last drive.  It was cool to see David Montgomery get the game-winning TD against his former team.  They had a good day but weren't really leaned on until the end of the game when our offense came to life.  Hopefully Ben Johnson noticed that.

- O-Line:  Much like the rest of the offense, the O-line was really good late in the game when we needed it the most.  They really seemed to miss Jonah Jackson.  I think they had a solid day as a group but were kind of hamstrung by the play-calling.

- Sam LaPorta:  He was quiet most of the day and seemed to be making uncharacteristic mistakes early.  However, he had some important catches late in the game including the 2-pt conversion.  The rookie TE deserves a lot of credit for staying calm and making that catch.

- ARSB:  ARSB was ARSB today.  He carried the passing game for most of the game.  He moved the chains early and late.  He put a TD on the board early when we really needed it.  

- Jameson Williams:  He made another tough catch over the middle and got the long TD late that brought our team back to life.  He is playing with a lot more confidence.  The Lions need to make a more deliberate effort to get him more targets.  His break-out game is coming and the Thanksgiving Day game against the Packers seems like the perfect game for that to happen.

Defense:

- Aidan Hutchinson:  He wasn't perfect but he still had a huge day, especially late.  He wasn't perfect against the run. The Bears ran right past him on a 3 and 6 conversion.  However, the late strip-sack was the big play we needed when we needed it the most.  Hutch was was clutch today

- Alim McNeil:  I don't know what to think about Alim McNeil.  He notched another sack today but he wasn't consistently disruptive.  He goes for long stretches where he doesn't pressure the pocket or get sacks.  That was the case for most of the game.  I don't know if his inconsistent play is due to the scheme AG is using or if he just isn't going to take the next step most folks have been expecting him to make.  

- Brian Branch:  He had his best game since returning from injury. He wasn't perfect be he made a ton of plays today including 3 TFLs.  That late penalty seemed like a bit of a weak call.

- Alex Anzalone (15 tackles), Derrick Barnes (8 tackles) and Jack Campbell (9 tackles):  They made a ton of tackles today.  They weren't perfect.  A lot of their tackles were further downfield than you would prefer.  Jack Campbell looked tentative early but was playing better at the end of the game.  Much like Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes had some issues early but played well late in the game.  Alex Anzalone was pretty consistent and was credited with 15 tackles (11 solo).  Still, the fact that they were making plays too far downfield contributed to the 3rd down struggles of the defense.  

- Kerby Joseph:  He had a decent day but Justin Fields got him to come upfield to play the run before uncorking that TD pass to DJ Moore. That left Jerry Jacobs in single coverage and he isn't going to win that battle.  He was holding onto DJ Moore's ankle for dear life but couldn't get any one to swarm to the ball early.  DJ Moore can do that to a lot of people though.

- Josh Pascal:  He made a couple of nice plays but also made couple of not so-great plays.  Along with anyone not named Aidan Hutchinson on the D-Line, he hasn't taken the step forward that most were expecting.  He hasn't played a lot so hopefully that will change.

- Cam Sutton:  He had an important forced fumble early and helped keep DJ Moore bottled up outside the long TD.

 

Summary:  Good teams find ways to win.  The Lions should not have won this game but somehow they hung around and pulled out the "W".  They deserve a lot of credit for making the late comeback.  They also have some pretty significant issues to clean up, especially on defense.  They continue to struggle with putting pressure on opposing QBs giving them too much time allowing them to make easy completions.  The offense gets bogged down if the middle of the field is taken away.  This team continues to come out flat in the 3rd quarter also.  Yet, here they are at 8-2 for the first time since 1962 (got that from the TV broadcast).  If they can get these very fixable issues nailed down, their games will be far less exciting in the best possible way.

Complaint about the broadcast crew:  The broadcast crew couldn't keep the game clock on the screen late in the game.  I don't know how you mess that up.  I know it is the Lions vs Bears but it shouldn't be amateur-hour for the broadcast crew.  Holy cow.

 

[General Tso]

This team needs another padded practice asap. The missed tackles are just awful.