Behind Enemy Lines: Previewing Week 7 with Lions Wire
The Detroit Lions are the team I grew up watching, and their struggles over the years prepared me in many ways for a career covering the Atlanta Falcons. In Week 7, these two maddeningly inconsistent franchises face off in probably the toughest game of the entire weekend to try and predict.
To help us get some insight into this 2-3 Detroit team, we caught up with our pal Jeff Risdon, the managing editor over at Lions Wire. Risdon knows the Lions about as well as anyone in this business, so let’s check out what he had to say about Sunday’s matchup.
Falcons Wire: The Lions are 2-3 this season, but per usual, they’ve lost a few games they probably should have won. Where has the team struggled the most in 2020 and where has Detroit improved from last year?
Jeff Risdon: There have been many struggles, but the biggest is the inability to stop the run and set up the defense in more advantageous situations. It’s tough to play defense when it’s 2nd-and-3 all the time. It has impacted the anemic pass rush, which doesn’t create well and also doesn’t finish sacks very adeptly.
The biggest improvement has been the offensive line. Taylor Decker signed a big contract extension this summer and he’s played up to it. It’s the big left tackle’s best season and it really shows in the run game. He’s destroying people off the line. Rookie left guard Jonah Jackson has been a good hit for a third-rounder. Center Frank Ragnow should be a Pro Bowler. Right tackle Tyrell Crosby has also played better than ever before. New OL coach Hank Fraley deserves a lot of credit for putting together a much more technically proficient blocking group.
Matt Patricia’s seat was nearly as hot as Dan Quinn’s before winning two of his last three games. While former Lions coach Jim Caldwell certainly had his flaws, the decision to replace him with Patricia hasn’t translated into more wins. Where is this team better under Patricia than it was under Jim Caldwell?
JR: It’s a more balanced team on offense. Caldwell and his offensive coordinators basically asked Matthew Stafford to play conservatively. Patricia and OC Darrell Bevell have been more committed to running the ball and at having Stafford take more shots down the field. His average air yards per attempt have gone up and it suits him well.
They also haven’t yet had to take a timeout because of only having 10 defenders on the field, something that happened multiple times with Caldwell.
Matt Stafford is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the NFL. After another slow start, with a potential rebuild on the horizon, is there any scenario where you could see the Lions trading Stafford, as has been rumored lately?
JR: He’s not going anywhere during this season. The cap hit isn’t in Matt Ryan territory but it’s simply not viable for another team. After the year? It’s a different conversation.
There has been an ownership change with Sheila Ford Hamp taking over, and her loyalty to Stafford isn’t as known as her mother, the prior owner. His contract is more readily moved this offseason, and if there is a coaching/front office change, it will at least need to be a discussion. Stafford has never shown any inclination or desire to leave.
What are your early impressions of former Georgia star and current Lions running back, D’Andre Swift. Why hasn’t he been more involved this season prior to his breakout performance in Week 6?
JR: Swift was a different guy in the win over Jacksonville. He was decisive with his runs and didn’t wait, he just ran. He had been a little indecisive at attacking the hole prior to that.
The Lions offense is very much a committee approach to RB, with Adrian Peterson and Kerryon Johnson also prominent. Peterson has played well, though he had a rough outing against the Jaguars. Johnson is phenomenal in pass protection and has shown some juice as a runner too, so Swift isn’t just going to get carries because of his draft status or pedigree.
Then there’s the drops. He had the game-winner in Week 1 in both hands on a perfect throw from Stafford and he dropped it. In Arizona a would-be huge gain hit him in the back because he wasn’t ready for the throw. He ran the wrong route once in Week 6 and it ended a drive too. He’s got to clean those gaffes up.
Who wins on Sunday and what is your final score prediction?
JR: It’s hard to trust either team with a lead. I’m a big believer in the interim coach bounce, that teams get a huge lift from the change the first week and then it crashes back. I think the Falcons are vulnerable to that, aside from the startlingly bad pass defense. I would predict these teams to each win five of every 10 games they play. This week, I like Detroit 33-30.
