It was clear heading into the season that the first six games of 2019 was going to be the measuring stick that showed just how close the Lions were to competing in the NFC North. They emerged from that early gauntlet 2-3-1, and it was a wild ride. The Lions have many strengths and a whole bunch of weaknesses too, but they have been consistently competitive throughout the season. Now it’s time to start beating the teams you are supposed to beat, and that’s exactly what they did in week 8 against the Giants.

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Righting the ship

Things had gotten a little emotional in Detroit after their recent three-game skid. After a back-and-forth duel with reigning NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes, illegal use of the hands-gate in Lambeau, and an offensive clinic by the Vikings, the Lions needed a stress-free day at work in the worst way. That’s largely what the Giants were able to provide in week 8.

It wasn’t a perfect performance, but that was to be expected after the Lions expended so much emotional energy over the past month. They recently lost Kerryon Johnson for at least 8 games, and possibly the year if they fall out of contention. Defensive captain and beloved locker room presence Quandre Diggs was traded away for a meager return (5th rd pick), which ruffled some feathers in the locker room.

Winning has a way of calming everyone down, from fans, to media, to the players themselves. The Lions are now back to .500 and could very well be looking to improve their roster heading into the Tuesday trade deadline, rather than looking ahead to next season. Let’s go over some takeaways from the wire-to-wire win over the Giants.

Trey Flowers is blooming

Something positive to say about the Lions defensive line? FAKE!

Make no mistake about it, this position group has been a colossal disappointment in 2019. The Lions now allow the second-most total yards per game in the NFL, sandwiched right between the Dolphins and Bengals. Those two teams are a combined 0-15. Not exactly the company one wishes to keep.

However, it is becoming more clear who along the line is responsible for the Lions overall struggles, and it ain’t Trey Flowers. I unearthed this nugget from Pro Football Focus that showed Flowers has actually been the second-best run defender at his position this season.

You might say “That’s all well and good, but you don’t pay $90 million dollars for an edge rusher just to stop the run”. Point well taken, and I concur. But Flowers has started to flash some of the pass disruption prowess that made him the prized defensive acquisition of the offseason. Flowers had two fourth-quarter sacks, one of which forced a fumble from Giants quarterback Daniel Jones. He also helped keep Saquan Barkley and his thighs in check, holding him to a measly 3.4 yards per carry. 

Snacks is still wack

I vowed last week to use up less of my word count on this bum, but he deserves it so I have to get a few jabs in.

Harrison’s snap count clocked in at 42% this week, as apparently he is just a rotational player in 2019. This man has gone from one of the premier defensive tackles in the game to a complete afterthought in one offseason. He had a lengthy track record of success before coming to Detroit, and the impact he had on the Lions was immediate. He is simply a shell of his former self, and I would be shocked if he made an impact this season, let alone played more than half a damn game. Good riddance.

Remember when the Lions secondary was good?

What a fall from grace for the Lions secondary the last two weeks. Kirk Cousins and Daniel Jones looked more like Warren Moon and Y.A. Tittle against this lot.

Not having Darius Slay, and to a lesser extent Quandre Diggs, certainly plays a role here. Safety Tracy Walker also went down in this one, though it’s not believed to be serious. But Rashaan Melvin and Justin Coleman have been getting roasted of late. Melvin allowed two touchdowns to Giants receiver Darius Slayton, who isn’t exactly a household name. Coleman, meanwhile, was credited with five missed tackles, and was graded by PFF as the worst Lions defensive player in this game by a wide margin.

Coleman’s struggles are particularly surprising, given the lucrative contract the Lions dished out to acquire him in the offseason. He looked like he could be a potential star earlier in the season, routinely making big plays and forcing fumbles with his patented “punch out” maneuver. Those big plays have been MIA lately, with Cousins and Jones combining for 8 TDs against 0 INTs. The Lions now allow the most passing yards per game in the NFL (289.7). 

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Stafford is a stud, but you already knew that

This is becoming an old bit, but Matthew Stafford logged another star performance as he continues to carry this team without the help of a running game. Stafford threw for 342 yards and 3 TDs, and eclipsed 10 yards per attempt in a game for the first time this season. He also logged his highest QB rating in a game this season (129.4), and was a perfect 12-12 in the second half. He’s now up to 16 passing TDs for the season, trailing only Russell Wilson (17) for the league lead, while playing one fewer game.

I heart this man.

I pride myself on being a reasonable man. My brain tells me that this pace is unsustainable, and at some point, Stafford will return to being the volume-reliant quarterback we have seen for the better part of his career, rather than the ultra-efficient one he has been so for this season. But so many things about Stafford’s 2019 campaign suggest he might be able to keep up this pace and finally get the local (and national) recognition he deserves. 

Stafford is throwing touchdowns on 6.4% of his pass attempts, good for 2nd in the NFL. That’s higher than in his 41 TD season of 2011 (6.2%). Remember that year, when he became the fourth player ever to throw for over 5,000 yards in a season? Yeah, he’s throwing TDs at a higher clip than that this season. No Calvin Johnson either.

Just as noteworthy, he is throwing interceptions at the lowest rate of his career (1.6%). This is impressive, given the fact that Stafford has actually been pretty damn good in this area in recent years. He hasn’t thrown more than 11 INTs in a season since 2015. 

I feel obligated to hammer these numbers home because Stafford still gets a bad rap from many “fans” who think he is part of the problem as to why this team can’t get over the hump. If Matthew Stafford’s Lions career ends with no playoff victories it will be one of the great tragedies NFL history.

Although, he should already have one.

Back to work

There is still plenty of meaningful football to be played this season, so long as the Lions continue to win these types of games. This was the first of several winnable games the rest of the way for the Lions, who have a few teams to leapfrog to get back into the NFC playoff picture. But the schedule is the easiest in the division the rest of the way, and they have a quarterback that gives them a chance to win every week.

Up next is a road date with Oakland, who has proven to be a tough out this season. But they have been nearly as bad against the pass as Detroit, and while Derek Carr is having a fine season, he shouldn’t be able to keep pace with Stafford and the Lions passing game. It’s far from a gimme (the Raiders are actually favored at the time of this writing), but it’s another game the Lions should win given how well they’ve performed on the road this season.

*The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday at 4:00pm. I will update this post with any trade activity or fallout in the coming hours.

Deadline fallout…[crickets]

A whole lot of nothing happened as the 2019 trade deadline came and went Tuesday afternoon. 

Slay ride

Last season, with the Lions sitting at 3-4 and only one game back of the division lead, Bob Quinn shipped off WR Golden Tate to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 3rd round pick. It was rumored, after Darius Slay’s public displeasure with last week’s Quandre Diggs trade, that he might be the next big name to be flipped for future assets. But it didn’t happen.

Lions GM Bob Quinn is always working the phones, which is something I appreciate about him. For better or worse, this guy takes all emotion out of the equation and just makes business decisions. It didn’t matter that Golden Tate was one of the best receivers in Lions history, as well as one of the most beloved athletes in town. Bob Quinn knew he couldn’t (or at least didn’t want to) re-sign Tate at market price in the offseason so he flipped him to the highest bidder. It hurt the locker room and the fanbase at he time, but ultimately proved to be the right decision.

Slay is in a much different position contract wise. He will enter the final year of his contract in 2020 earning a modest $10 million, which still makes him a good value relative to his talents. It would have taken a major haul to pluck him from Detroit, and apparently no one wanted to mortgage their future to acquire him. This was going to be a win-win regardless of how it ended. You either keep an elite talent at a fair price, or Christmas comes early and you get a whole bunch of gift cards to buy new toys. The former happened, and i’m good with that.

Carry on till Kerryon

The Lions were also rumored to be in the market for a running back to bridge the gap until Kerryon Johnson returns, if he returns at all. They decided not to address this need, even though the price required to acquire Dolphins RB Kenyan Drake, the most logical trade candidate, proved to be very modest (conditional 6th rd pick). He was acquired by the Arizona Cardinals, who are in much better shape in the RB department than the Lions. 

This speaks to the Lions’ mentality toward their continued running struggles. If they couldn’t run the ball effectively with Kerryon Johnson healthy, why would things improve with a band-aid type replacement? The Lions’ inability to run the ball is more about scheme, playcalling, and winning the matchups at the line. If they improve in these area, it won’t matter as much who is getting the carries. It could be Ty Johnson or Ty Cobb. Paul Perkins or Paul Rudd. Tra Carson or Carson Daly.

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