David Montgomery – Page 13

Lions Dan Campbell hasn’t closed door on Aidan Hutchinson return this season

Brad Holmes on lookout for trade but it’s not a certainty

ALLEN PARK — While Aidan Hutchinson faces significant recovery time from his broken left leg, Lions coach Dan Campbell will not count him out for the season.

“Let me say this, it’s 4-6 months. I would never count Hutch out. Ever. So long road, but I would never count him out, I would say if anybody can make it back it would be him,’’ Campbell said on Monday.

Hutchinson underwent successful surgery to repair a fractured tibia and fractured fibula at Baylor White Medical Center in Texas on Sunday night. He will return to Detroit this week and is expected to make a full recovery. Officially there is no timeline for his return to play at this time.

Still, returning this season — maybe in the playoffs — remains a possibility and Campbell thinks it is huge for Hutchinson just to know that is out there.

“Just knowing Hutch, he’s got one of those rare, if he believes in it, he can will himself to find a way to get it back,’’ Campbell said. “One of those guys, the mind can heal the body, he’ll find the next best thing and do whatever it takes to get back.

“So who knows? But yeah, I think it’s huge, you know it’s sitting right out there. ‘I can do this, I can get back. We’ll be in a position where I’ll be able to come back to help.’ I think it’s huge,’’ the coach added.

On Sunday, Hutchinson played 32 snaps against the Cowboys before he broke his leg early in the third quarter. The Lions were up 34-6 when he was carted off the field. He had notched one sack, three quarterback hits, and three tackles in the game which the Lions won 47-9.

Campbell remains confident in his team and certainly is not giving up on the Super Bowl goal. He’s not closing the door on a possible trade either. The NFL trade deadline is Nov. 5.

“Everything’s on the table but Brad (Holmes) and I are not panicked. This team is not panicked,’’ Campbell said. “It’s next man up and if we have an area where we need some help, we have to help each other out and we may have to play a little different and that’s OK. ‘’

Holmes will not jump on a trade unless it’s a perfect match for the team.

“This comes up every year and it’s not like he doesn’t look. He’s doing what he’s been doing – he’s looking. Is there somebody out there who could potentially help us? What is it going to cost? Just because it’s there doesn’t mean we’re going to do it. It’s got to be right if it is,’’ Campbell said.

“We’re not in a hurry, I believe in the guys who are here, I believe in the D-line. It doesn’t mean we’re not looking, we’re not evaluating. Brad is, that’s his job and he’s good at it. We’ll take it as it comes. Our eyes are open and we’ll make sure we have what we need here,’’ Campbell added.

Hutchinson’s injury is the second big hit for the defensive line that lost Marcus Davenport due to a season-ending injury three weeks ago.

Undrafted rookie Isaac Ukwu stepped in on Sunday to fill in for Hutchinson. It was his first NFL game action and while Campbell said it did appear that way, he’s seen Ukwu in practice and has faith he can improve.

Levi Onwuzurike, Josh Paschal and James Houston will be leaned on.

While Alim McNeill is an inside D-lineman, he can take some of the pressure off the ends. He had two sacks and seven pressures on Sunday.

“He’s one of those guys we’re going to lean on, he doesn’t have to be Superman but we’ve got to get that out of him every week and he’s got that ability,’’ Campbell said.

Hutchinson’s injury is a blow to the Lions, but doesn’t appear to be a death blow.

Overall in the first five games this season — Hutchinson’s third NFL season — he had been on fire with 7.5 sacks (he had 11.5 all of last year), 17 quarterback hits, 19 tackles, and one forced fumble.

He was a heavy favorite with 5/2 odds of winning the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year, per BetOnline.ag. Now he’s off the board and Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt has moved from 3/1 to the favorite at 3/2.

“Everybody feels for Hutch .. because they can put themselves in his shoes, it brings it back to reality. It’s part of this game and it’s hard,’’ Campbell said. “I think they also understand that man, we are a team and everybody is here for a reason and it takes every one of us.’’

NOTES:

— QB Jared Goff turned 30 on Monday. Among all quarterbacks in NFL history before turning 30 he ranked third in completions (2,763); tied for third in 300-yard games (38); fourth in yards (31,759); fourth in attempts (4,256); tied for fourth in starts (122); and sixth in passing TDs (193).

— The Lions have produced at least three passing TDs and two rushing TDs in back-to-back games. The only other times they’ve done so were in 1962 and 1950.

— RB David Montgomery is the 10th player in NFL history to produce at least 70 scrimmage yards and a rushing TD in each of the first five games of a season.

UP NEXT: Lions (4-1) at Vikings (5-0), 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Five things to watch as Lions face Cowboys; injury update, prediction

At Dallas on Dec. 30, Jared Goff engineered a 75-yard touchdown drive late to give Detroit a chance and offensive lineman Dan Skipper became a cult hero. However, the Lions dropped the game, 20-19. It has not been forgotten.

The Lions (3-1) and the Cowboys (3-2) meet again at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday in Dallas. The Lions are coming off a bye week after beating the Seahawks in a Monday night game. The Cowboys (3-2) have won two straight after starting the season 1-2. They have yet to win at home.

“I’m excited for this one. And really, look, it’s the next one in front of us and it’s a conference opponent and they’ve had our number for a while and I grew up down there, so I have a lot of people there,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “I think it’ll be a special game. National television, four o’clock, which, that’s awesome.’’

While the Lions can’t let too much emotion carry them, Campbell understands they have not forgotten the December debacle.

“You’ve got to keep your head about you no matter what it is, and I think each game – look, you can always find something. To me, you always find a nugget, it doesn’t matter who you’re playing. There are reasons behind why you want to win them, and you find what those are and they’re different every week,’’ Campbell said. “But you’ve got to play a clean game, you’ve got to keep your head about you, we’ve got to be disciplined, we’ve got to play fundamental football, we’ve got to have a good gameplan, we’ve got to execute it, take care of the football, we need to get some takeaways, it’s the same song and dance it always is.”

After that loss, the Lions wrapped up the regular season with a win over the Vikings, then beat the Rams in a wild card game and downed the Bucs in divisional playoffs.

Quarterback Jared Goff said they all know what happened at the end in the confusion of whether Dan Skipper or Taylor Decker reported eligible for the 2-point conversion.

“It was unfortunate the way it worked, but yeah, we’ll be ready this week,’’ Goff said. ”… I think it was just a mistake that the officials made, and it happens. That type of stuff happens, and you move on but no, I don’t think we take it personally.’’

Campbell was asked if Skipper will report eligible on the first play on Sunday. He said the game plan was incomplete at that point.

Five things to watch:

ONE: The Cowboys with Dak Prescott have the second best NFL passing offense while the Lions are ranked 27th in pass defense. Something’s got to give. Prescott, who has completed 65.4 percent of his passes, has a favorite target in CeeDee Lamb who has 378 receiving yards and a pair of touchdown catches. Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said his corners are ready for it.

“This quarterback is pretty good now. He’s pretty good, (Lamb’s) pretty good. Listen, I think they’ve done a good job with the personnel that they’ve had, and they’ve lost some guys too,’’ Glenn said. “So, again – and I’m sure they feel the same way I do – no excuses, just go out there and execute. But we know that we have to pay close attention to the tight end, also, (Jake) Ferguson, I think he’s doing a really good job and people don’t really talk about that player. I think he’s physical, I think he’s tough. You watch him on these seam balls, he does a good job of contorting his body and going up and catching the ball. So, this is not going to be an easy out, we know that. Every time we play Dallas it’s going to be a dogfight, and we’re ready for it.”

TWO: Jared Goff, aka Mr. Perfect, definitely found his rhythm in the win over Seattle. He now has 19 straight completions (over last two games) with the NFL record at 25.”He downloads the gameplan and looks to go out there and execute it. I mean, shoot, you can look at that Seattle game and there’s some not-so-great play-calls and we’ve got some guys making things right,’’ offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said. “That was my big point to the until last week before we went on break was, we had a couple explosive plays where I wish I had sent the protection a different direction and cleaned the picture up for them, but he was able to buy some time – I think it was the first catch there to (WR) Tim Patrick was not ideal, but they both made it work and it ended up being a 20-something-yard gain. So, when he’s – he knows exactly what we’re looking for, he knows what the bad looks are too.’’

THREE: The Cowboys’ secondary has improved each week and Campbell said that’s what makes them dangerous. “What you’ve seen in the last two weeks – this is a stingy defense and they play hard, they’re gap sound, everybody plays their responsibilities, it’s a run-and-hit defense …’’ Campbell said. “Then this D-line, I know they’ve been hurt but man, these guys over the last two weeks, just watch them play. And they play hard. So, they’re out working people is what they’re doing. That’s what they’ve been doing the last two weeks.”

FOUR: The Lions must run the ball early and often against the Cowboys’ 24th ranked rushing defense which should not be an issue with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs off to an explosive start to the season. Campbell said Gibbs is primed for a breakaway run and Ben Johnson agrees. “I think we’ve got him up on a safety a couple of times and I know he always is – if he can’t break that tackle. But our guys are doing a great job up front, O-line, tight ends, of covering guys up and I think what you see with our skill group, I’m talking about our receivers, I don’t know if there’s another group in the NFL that blocks like they do down the field,’’ Johnson said. “And so, it’s probably coach’s confidence not in Gibbs and what he can do, but it’s also what our unit’s been putting on tape so far that, yeah, it’s just a matter of time before he breaks some big ones out.”

FIVE: In the win over the Seahawks two weeks ago, the Lions were whistled for a dozen penalties costing them 101 yards. That’s a lot. Over the first four games they amassed 31 penalties for 307 yards while their opponents had 22 for 185. It hasn’t been a big issue for wins and losses but it’s an issue. The defense has been working on avoiding penalties. “I don’t know how other teams practice, but we still do one-on-ones in practice, receivers and DBs, D-line and O-line, linebackers, tight ends and running backs. And when you’re in those situations, and you’re in a tussle match, where are your hands at?’’ defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “There’s a lot of things that we have to – and a lot of that comes from guys in college, because you’re able to do that when you’re in college, so that’s one of the things that TA (Terrion Arnold) is doing a really good job of, of trying to work on those things.”

LIONS INJURY UPDATE: G Christian Mahogany (illness) is out.

COWBOYS INJURY UPDATE: LB Erick Kendricks (calf/shoulder) and DE Micah Parsons (ankle) are out; CB Daron Bland (foot), CB Caelen Carson (shoulder) and LB Nick Vigil (foot) are questionable.

PREDICTION: Lions 27, Cowboys 24.

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.