Tag: Aaron Glenn

Lions Dan Campbell sees encouraging signs from young defense

After hitting rock bottom two weeks ago, coach Dan Campbell said he sees the Lions climbing back out of the depths even after the 24-6 loss at Dallas.

“I’m encouraged by our defense, it was encouraging. It’s hard to lose but when you watch the way they played yesterday and I told them, I said this last night, they played exactly the way we practiced,’’ Campbell said on Monday. “It was high energy, they were intense, they were urgent, we got a ball out – we got a turnover. You could feel the pressure on third down. We hit the quarterback early. We challenged on the perimeter, our secondary was coming down hitting and tackling.’’

The Lions fell to 1-5 after the loss. The defense has been at the bottom of the NFL standings in points per game and yards allowed. For the talent on that side of the ball, more was expected.

After rock bottom — the 29-0 loss to the Patriots — Campbell, his staff and players took the bye week to examine what was going on, on both sides of the ball but defense was more of an issue. Even though the Lions offense was shut out in that Patriots game, it was one of the NFL’s most high-scoring offenses up to that point.

Defensively, coordinator Aaron Glenn and Campbell made changes including benching veteran defensive lineman Michael Brockers. Campbell called him a “pro’s pro” and said he is willing to help the younger guys even if he’s not playing.

Campbell said the loss was Jeff Okudah’s best game since he’s been in Detroit and it’s exactly how he practiced last week. He also noted that Julian Okwara had his best game.

“That’s encouraging because when your defense begins to start finding their way there a little bit, you’ve got a chance. It’s a credit to A.G. We changed a few things, kind of went back to what we were doing last year, just the way we played those big boys up front. Getting Hutch (Aidan Hutchinson) up in the 2-point, having (Josh) Paschal back and (John) Cominsky. I thought they all showed up.’’

He also noted the physical play of cornerback Amani (Oruwariye) who had been benched for the Patriots’ game and finished with 15 tackles on Sunday. Also, Campbell was pleased with rookie Kerby Joseph who forced a fumble in the red zone. 

“One of the reasons we liked (Joseph), he’s a ball guy. He’s got instincts back there, he’s got range and he’s this close. Every week he’s gotten better and better and better,’’ Campbell said of the third-round pick. “That was huge, we preached takeaways last week and he came up with a big one in the red zone. So he’s trending the right way.’’

The scheme has also changed. 

“We’re going to set edges and funnel everything inside to our backers, our two big guys, now anything pops through there, if it gets out to perimeter between edge setter and your linebacker now you put them in a phone booth for your corner, you don’t have to tackle on the perimeter where you have all that space,’’ Campbell said. “We just felt like it was going to help everybody and it did.”

Four rookies started on defense — Hutchinson, Kerby, Malcolm Rodriguez and Josh Paschal (in his first NFL game). Paschal, a second-round pick, also was called out by Campbell for having an encouraging debut. 

Campbell said he likes the young group because they’re football guys, have good FBI (football intelligence), high motor and ability.

Now about the offense, which was missing running back D’Andre Swift (ankle/shoulder) and wide receiver D.J. Chark (ankle). Plus, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown was taken out of the game early for a concussion test and not allowed back in under new NFL rules. He was cleared of a concussion and Campbell expects him back for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins.

The defense showed up with a few changes and the addition of Paschal and John Cominsky — and the return of Oruwariye — on Sunday.

Could the offense improve with Swift and St. Brown in the lineup?

“I would say this, it wouldn’t hurt,’’ Campbell said.

Five takeaways: Turnovers costly as Lions lose 24-6 to Dallas Cowboys

Coming off the bye week, the Lions defense played with confidence but the offense struggled in the 24-6 loss at the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. The Lions (1-5) took the early lead and held on with a 6-3 halftime edge, but they could not finish. Detroit turned the ball over five times in the second half. 

Coach Dan Campbell was clearly frustrated with the loss, but said he is not down. 

“There’s things that pop up but that’s what we’re charged with. That’s what I’m charged with. it doesn’t matter who we have or what we’re doing or who we’re playing, the bottom line is you have to find a way to win,’’ Campbell said. “I really felt like we were on track to do that and we made a couple of mistakes that killed us, the turnovers.’’

Five takeaways from the loss:
1. The defense came out on fire. Aidan Hutchinson picked up a half a sack on the third snap and added a full sack later. Cornerback Jeff Okudah stood out with 15 tackles. Campbell said it was Okudah’s best week of practice and best game this season. He also praised rookie defensive lineman Josh Paschal for his explosiveness, versatility, high motor and intelligence in his first NFL game. Corner Amani Oruwariye, who was benched in the last game, was back as a starter and had a good game.. The Cowboys had not started a game with two three-and-outs since 1991 (per CBS). “I told those guys I feel you can win when you play that type of defense, they set the tone for the game, they played hard, they were on point, we were physical on the perimeter,’’ Campbell said.”I thought our corners and safeties really showed up. That was a step in the right direction.”

2. Jared Goff threw two interceptions which pretty much wiped out any success he had in the rest of the game. Goff was sacked five times by the Cowboys’ defense, one of the best in the NFL. He finished 21 of 26 for 228 yards. “There’s no excuse but some of those at the end you’re down a couple of scores, you’re trying to hold it a little bit to find a throw. We’ll look at the tape,’’ Campbell said.

3. It was the second straight game the Lions’ offense has not scored a touchdown. They were 3-of-9 on third-down attempts. Running back Jamaal Williams fumbled twice — losing the second one at the Cowboys’ 1-yard line. Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown suffered a concussion early in the game and was ruled out. He was missed not just for his catches but he excels at blocking. Tight ends T.J. Hockenson and Brock Wright had good showings on National Tight End day with a combined 8 catches for 105 yard. The offense was missing running back D’Andre Swift, who could return next week, and wide receiver D.J. Chark who was placed on injured reserve. “Offensively we played the type of game we needed to play against this opponent minus the turnovers and that’s what killed us – turnovers and inopportune penalties,’’ Campbell said.

4.  Two plays stood out as possibly questionable. On Goff’s first interception by Stefon Diggs it looked like maybe Diggs didn’t not have control of the ball when he hit the turf. However, Campbell said he was told by officials that indeed Diggs had possession. CBS analyst Tony Romo disagreed. Because it was a turnover, Campbell could not ask for a replay. Then when Brock Wright caught a 17-yard pass, there was a question of whether it was a touchdown or if he was stopped just short. Campbell didn’t have a good view, so he was waiting for his guy upstairs to call him and recommend whether he should challenge it. He didn’t get a call (he has a line solely for this purpose) so the next play was run and that’s when Williams fumbled the ball on the 1-yard line.

5. The defense still has work to do but Glenn made changes during the bye week, including benching captain Michael Brockers, that seemed to bring life back into the unit. The offense should immediately improve with the return of Swift. He was close this week, maybe next week against the Dolphins. St. Brown could be out a while going through the concussion protocol. That will hurt the offense too. It’s next man up, but it’s difficult to match the talent of Swift and St. Brown.

(Photo courtesy of Detroit Lions)

(Next up: Miami Dolphins at Lions, 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 30)

Five things to watch as Lions play at Cowboys; plus prediction

After a bye week of rest and reflection, the Lions will see if they found the answers during their deep dives into what went wrong (and right) in the first five games.

Detroit (1-4) takes on the Cowboys (4-2) at Dallas at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

The Lions were close in three games losing by 4 or fewer points. They got blown out by the Patriots 29-0 heading into the bye. 

“We’ve got to figure out how to make that one play now when we get in those close games. The key is, man, we can’t let this be like New England was for us when we’re not even in the game. We’ve got to give ourselves a chance to get back in it,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “You’re in it the last two minutes of the game, you’re either in two-minute or four-minute. And then, you’ve got to come away with those wins and that’s what we haven’t done. But we’re close.”

Five things to watch:

1. One of the deep dives during bye week had the defensive coaches examining the pass rush or lack of it in the first five games. The return of defensive lineman John Cominsky should provide a boost. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said while some may look at stats (the Lions have seven sacks total) he looks more at pressure. “When you pressure it ends up bringing takeaways, that’s what comes. I’ve talked to our guys about that. I understand from the outside they’ve been hearing about that, especially as a young player I know that Aidan (Hutchinson) is the guy everyone talks about,’’ Glenn said. “I’m trying to get him to calm himself down so he won’t get out of character just continue to work. We’re going to continue to do what we have to do to put you in positions, you just close yourself off from everyone and go play. I think he’s going to do a good job this week.’’

2. Missed tackles and missed assignments have also been an issue in the first five games. “Those are the things that we really looked at all week to make sure we cleaned that up,’’ Glenn said. … He said it’s an issue they can fix. “I would say more physical. Not wrapping up, shoulder tackles, not vice tackling, things like that, which are really correctable and that’s the good thing about it. And in this League, man, sometimes guys think that they can make a tackle just by diving and lunging. And I’ll tell you what, that’s the one thing across the League now, not just us but across the League that’s the one thing that you see that’s went down is tackling. But the thing is, I try to teach to our guys, well let’s be the guy, let’s be the team on the other side. Let’s not be like everybody else, let’s be a team that can tackle and we worked on that this week.’’

3. The Cowboys have the NFL’s third best defense allowing just 16.3 points per game. One reason is their rush. “That is the biggest challenge for us will be that rush, and not just handling it, but as much as we can to stay away from it, which means you’ve got to be good on first and second down. You have to be real good,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “But they do, they present a challenge. I mean (DE Dorance) Armstrong, he’s come on. It’s not just that, you watch him on punt rush, I mean, he’s a menace. And (DE DeMarcus) Lawrence has still got it, and ( LB Micah) Parsons we all talked about. We know what he is, and (DE Dante) Fowler off the edge, and so they can do it multiple ways. I mean, they can still bring ( LB Anthony) Barr too. But yeah, they present a challenge, but there again, I like our O-line. I like our tackles. We’ll have a plan. We can’t let those guys wreck the game, but yeah, that’s an issue, and it’s caused a lot of teams problems. That’s why this is one of the better defenses in the League.”

4. The bye week was bad timing for Detroit’s defense which was shut out by the Patriots. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said after careful study he came up with three points the offense needs to improve —  communication, fundamentals/technique and critical situations. “That’s what showed up in the first five games where there’s short yardage, third downs, two-minute, four-minute all those where we could potentially close the game out or end the game with the ball. We have to be better there. So, I think the guys took that to heart,’’ offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said. 

5. After years of being spoiled with Jason Hanson and then eventually Matt Prater, kicking is an issue with the Lions. Austin Seibert was 3-of-5 on field goals before he was injured. In the loss at New England, kicker MIchael Badgley didn’t play. Punter Jack Fox took care of kickoffs. Instead of taking a chance of a 50-yard field goal, the Lions instead went for it on fourth-and-9 and Jared Goff took a sack, fumbled and the Patriots returned it for a touchdown. “We’ll look back at this (kicking) thing at the end of the year and say, ‘You know what, we got good production out of that position. I think we can turn it around.’ So, it’s still early in the year,’’ special teams coordinator Dave Fipp said. “When you look at percentages right now, one miss makes a big difference on the overall percentage, so when you look at it that way, I think, yeah, it’s hard to swallow right now, but I would say, when it’s all said and done, I think it’ll be better than what we’re looking at right now, for sure.’’

INS and OUTS: DL John Cominsky is expected to return. Rookie DL Josh Paschal could see his first action this season. RB D’Andre Swift was officially listed as questionable on Friday’s team report.  CB Jerry Jacobs will come back from injury. The bad news is that WR DJ Chark was placed on injured reserve and CB Bobby Price is out for the season. Officially out will be DE Charles Harris, S Ifeatu Melifonwu and T Matt Lesson. 


(Prediction: Cowboys 30, Lions 28)