Amon-ra St. Brown – Page 8

Resilient Detroit Lions run down Cardinals in win; bottle up Kyler Murray

Five reasons for the bounce-back victory

Think of these Detroit LIons and the word “grit” immediately comes to mind. Hey, it’s a fact. However the resilience of the group, under coach Dan Campbell, carried them far last year and it continues early on this season.

On Sunday night, the Lions roared out of the gate and held on for a 20-13 win over the Arizona Cardinals on the road. Detroit was coming off a 20-16 loss at Ford Field to the Bucs last week.

“It’s good to get back in the win column. Our guys were locked and ready to go this week. I felt like we cleaned up a lot of things that needed cleaning up,’’ Campbell said. “It’s still not perfect but ultimately we knew, and our guys knew, that this was going to be one of those grinding, gritty, unglorious jobs that were going to need to be done on the O-line, D-line, receivers. And that’s exactly the game it was.’’

The goal was to establish the run early, along with bottling up Cardinals’ Kyler Murray who was coming off a win with a perfect quarterback rating.

Mission accomplished.

It was a different game than the previous week and that’s OK with Campbell because along with grit and resilience, this team can match up with any type of opponent.

“That’s what makes you feel pretty good. I feel we can play different types of games. We can do whatever we need to with special teams, defense and offense. We just have to find a way to win every week and they could be different every time,’’ Campbell said.

Five of the reasons the Lions won:

ONE: Detroit’s defense allowed the Cardinals to convert six first downs in the first drive which resulted in a touchdown pass from Kyler Murray to Marvin Harrison Jr. After that it was tough sledding for QB Kyler Murray and his gang, grabbing just 11 first downs the rest of the game. They were just 1-of-9 on third-down attempts while the Lions were 6-of-12. While Murray was sacked just once (by Aidan Hutchinson) he was pressured throughout including three straight incompletions midway through the fourth quarter.

“Our coverage, I thought, for the most part, played pretty dang good. It was tight coverage and he had to make tight throws with tight coverage,’’ Campbell said. “… We knew they were going to get some, but we were able to do that and then I think a lot of it was offensively, we were able to possess the ball and put pressure on them. We were able to stay up two scores most of the game.’’

TWO: With two minutes left in the first half, the Lions appeared to catch a huge break when Goff had threw an apparent interception that was returned for a touchdown. However, the officials said the two-minute clock had gone off before the play. Campbell said he had heard the two-minute whistle at least a full second before the play. Four plays later from the Cardinals’ 21-yard line they scored on a hook-and-ladder play from Goff to Amon-Ra St. Brown who passed it to Gibbs who ran into the endzone. That gave them a 20-7 lead just before the half. It was a huge turn-around.

THREE: Safe to say the Cardinals may be working on their run defense this week. David Montgomery (106 rushing) and Jahmyr Gibbs (83 rushing) gashed the Arizona defense early and often. Montgomery carried six times for 39 yards on the opening drive, finishing it off with a 1-yard touchdown run.

“I think our backs, they kind of feed off each other – Montgomery and Gibbs and that O-line. They were able to establish the ground game and the physical side of it,’’ Campbell said. “It doesn’t mean you’re going to have 10-yard runs every time but you know what kind of game you’re about to walk into if youre the opponent – this is the type of day it’s going to be. That’s really what you want to establish.’’ Montgomery and Gibbs have each logged 70-plus scrimmage yards in each of the first three games which is a first in the NFL for a running back duo since 2006.

FOUR: Jared Goff was his usual steady self. Heck, he sealed the win on a keeper, sliding for the first down with 1:13 left. Goff got off to a good start with a 70-yard touchdown drive on the first possession. He didn’t throw an incompletion in the first half (12 of 12). It almost looked easy, but throughout the game yards were tough to come by. He did throw one interception, but overall his numbers were good completing 18 of 23 attempts for 198 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

FIVE: Dan Campbell had the team ready for its first road game of the season. Following a loss where they were 1 of 7 in the red zone, he had said they could fix the problem and they did with two trips to the red zone and two touchdowns, both in the first half. “It was just a great team performance and I’m proud of the guys,’’ Campbell said.

UP NEXT: Seattle Seahawks (3-0) at Lions (2-1) at 8:15 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30 at Ford Field.

Five key reasons for the Detroit Lions 20-16 loss to Tampa Bay Bucs

DETROIT — On the stats page, the Detroit Lions dominated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But on the field Detroit couldn’t take advantage of its chances and lost 20-16 at Ford Field on Sunday.

The Lions had the edge in first downs, 26-14; third-down efficiency, 7/17 to 2/10; total yards 463 to 216; and total plays 83 to 47. Sounds impressive but the scoreboard is what matters. Also, Detroit was just 1 of 7 in the Red Zone.

“We fought, we got down there, certainly on offense we doubled up on yardage, we get down to the red zone and can’t get TDs, that was the story of the game,’’ Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “Defensively I thought we played lights out, gave us two shots there at the end of the game and we couldn’t finish it out.’’

The Lions beat the Bucs twice last season — 20-6 in October and then a big divisional round win, 31-23, in January. With the win, the Bucs moved to 2-0 while the Lions fell to 1-1.

“It’s early in the year but it’s a good learning experience and chance for us to dive into what went wrong and how can we fix it,’’ quarterback Jared Goff said. “If I remember correctly we started 1-1 last year and we were able to respond from that pretty well.’’

Here are five of the main reasons the Lions lost:

ONE: At the end of the first half, the Lions had second-and-10 at Tampa’s 17-yard line with 18 seconds left. Amon-Ra St. Brown caught an 8-yard pass up the middle, Goff spiked the ball leaving 4 seconds but the Lions were penalized for 12 men on the field and the half was over. If they had made a field goal, they wouldn’t have needed a touchdown in the fourth quarter, they could have won with just another 3 points. “It’s a massive error on my part no one else’s,’’ Campbell said. “It was between hurry-up field goal and clocking it, it was 100 percent my fault.’’

TWO: Going 1 for 7 in the red zone was a killer. “We just never felt real comfortable and once you get out far enough and you end up in these third-and-longs in the red zone that’s where it gets pretty hard, when getting close to 10-yd line it’s hard to throw it from there from what they could do coverage-wise,’’ Campbell said. “We couldn’t quite get the rhythm, we couldn’t get in sync and ultimately it hurt us.’’ Detroit was at Tampa’s 11-yard line on a fourth-and-8 with 1:01 remaining. A 5-yard pass to Jahmyr Gibbs, turned the ball over to the Bucs. Goff said the Bucs’ defense got “really stingy” in the red zone.

THREE: Goff threw a pair of interceptions, including his first pass of the game. On that one it looked to him like Jameson Williams was man-handled but no pass interference call was made. He finished the game 34 of 55 for 307 yards, zero touchdowns and those 2 interceptions. Campbell is not worried about Goff. “He’ll rebound. Has he played better? Yeah, he’s played better. I know him, he never stays down,’’ Campbell said. “… He’s going to take ownership and he’s going to be better. That’s the way he’s wired and that’s what makes him who he is.’’

FOUR: Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield completed just a dozen passes (185 yards) and was sacked five times. He threw one touchdown pass and one interception. He also carried the ball five times for 34 yards. Even though his numbers weren’t spectacular he was in control. That was not a surprise.

FIVE: Aidan Hutchinson was an edge rusher on a mission, finishing with 4.5 sacks. “His motor is unbelievable. To be able to play at the rate he plays at, at that intensity for that many snaps in a game, it’s rare,’’ Campbell said. “On top of that he’s got talent and he’s continued to develop his different moves.’’ Detroit’s defense held the Bucs numbers down but also allowed too many chunk plays including a 41-yard touchdown play by Chris Godwin.

UP NEXT: Lions at Arizona Cardinals, 4:25 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 22.

Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown just getting started on NFL journey

After signing 4-year extension, he’s most thankful

ALLEN PARK — Amon-Ra St. Brown’s Cinderella NFL journey started three years ago when the Detroit Lions drafted him in the fourth round.

“When I got drafted this is the one team I didn’t want to go to. If you told me I was going to Detroit I was like, ‘Damn,’’’ St. Brown said on Friday.

Now looking back on it, he realizes it was the best possible NFL landing spot for him.

“The people, the organization, the coaches, the players, the fans. I didn’t know what kind of fans there were here. I knew it was, for the most part, a losing franchise. … I remember my rookie year the fans were out almost every game and we weren’t winning games and they were supportive,’’ St. Brown said during a Friday press conference after signing a four-year extension worth $120 million.

When he first heard the deal was done, he said he was emotional after briefly talking to his Dad and getting a text from a close friend.

“I was close to crying, but I didn’t. I was super excited. I felt like a lot of weight was lifted off my shoulders. When I didn’t cry I was OK, it’s time to go now, it’s real,’’ St. Brown said.

It’s not the end of the story for St. Brown, it’s just a new chapter that is starting. And what better way to kick if off than at the start of the NFL Draft in Detroit on Thursday night to welcome fans from around the world.

St. Brown took the stage with teammates Jared Goff and Aidan Hutchinson. They were joined by Hall of Famers Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson. Also Eminem, a Detroit favorite, was with them whipping up the crowd. St. Brown mentioned he got a selfie with Eminem.

Detroit broke the NFL record with 275,000 fans for the first night. It looked like a sea of mostly Honolulu blue. It was amazing.

“I knew there were a lot of people there, but I didn’t know how many (without) looking at it in person. I’m walking out, I’m like, ‘Damn ‘ve never seen this many people in my life.’ I’ve played football games, I’ve been in front of 100,000 people, 90,000 people, whatever … it was like I was Travis Scott in concert,’’ St. Brown said. “… There were so many people it was awesome to see the fans, the city all come together. i just feel like everything’s happening all at once, at the right time for the city and the fans.’’

And for the Cinderella man.

“If you would’ve told me three years ago I’d be here today, I don’t know if I’d believe you. This is — everything that’s gone on these past three years, the whole journey, it’s been amazing,’’ St. Brown said. “I wouldn’t trade it for the world.’’

(The Lions have one second-round pick on Friday at 61st overall. Rounds 2-3 start at 7 p.m. on Friday. The draft wraps on Saturday with rounds 4-7 starting at noon.)