David Montgomery – Page 22

Five things to watch as Lions host Falcons; plus prediction

ALLEN PARK — No excuses for the Lions coming off a loss. They’ve watched the tape, learned their lessons, now it’s time to put them to work.

The Atlanta Falcons (2-0) visit Ford Field at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

“We know the opponent coming in, this is a physical, violent team coming off two wins, playing pretty good football right now,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “Certainly we’ve got our hands full, we have to be on top of our game to try to get a win here at home.’’

The loss to the Seahawks took a toll on the Lions physically. A handful of starters could be sidelined. Time for the next man up.

Five things to watch:

1. Stopping the Falcons’ dual-pronged run attack — Campbell expects them to run at least 30 times — will be key. In the first two games Detroit has allowed 85 rushing yards per game which ties them for eighth in the NFL. But they haven’t faced Falcons’ running backs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier. Robinson has 180 rushing yards and 75 receiving yards in the first two games. It’s not a one-man show. “Now that guy (Allegeier), he’s about running through your face,’’ Campbell said. And so, it’s a one-two punch, totally two different styles and we’ve got to be ready to adapt quickly with the way they do it.’’

2. On the opposite end, the Lions offense must generate more of a rushing offense than in the first two weeks when they’ve averaged 110 rushing yards per game which is in the middle of the pack. Of the Lions five offensive touchdowns, two have come on the ground by back David Montgomery who is doubtful with a thigh bruise. Look for rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who has 14 carries in the first two games, to pick up many more reps. “He’s not a fragile back. … He’s a rookie, he’s learning, he’s gotten better every week, he’s gotten better every game and he’ll continue to get better the more reps he gets,’’ Campbell said. Look for more touches for running back Craig Reynolds and, perhaps, fullback Jason Cabinda.

3. Turnovers were the story in the overtime loss to Seattle. The Lions offense had two critical errors — an interception thrown by Jared Goff and a fumble by Montgomery. Another fumble as the clock ran out at the half made no difference. At the same time, the defense has just one takeaway — an interception by Brian Branch — in the first two games. It’s a situation that must change if the Lions want to give themselves a chance.

4. The pass rush has been an issue, While there was some pressure put on Seattle’s Geno Smith, he was sacked just once. In Week 1, Patrick Mahomes was not sacked. “We’ve got to do a better job with our pass rush and that’s us as coaches trying to scheme guys into doing things,’’ defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “That’s players also, just executing their job, so that’s one thing that we have to get better at and also, when you look at the pass defense, man you’ve just got to win and we’ve got to make sure we put guys in positions to win.”

5. Take advantage of the home crowd. Ford Field was electric on Sunday and would expect the same this week. Players and coaches noticed, and they were appreciative. Cornerback Cam Sutton said they need that same noise factor in every game at Ford Field this season. Got that?

INJURIES

OUT: LT Taylor Decker (ankle), S Kerby Joseph (hip), CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee/hamstring), RG Halapoulivaati Vaitai (knee).

DOUBTFUL: RB David Montgomery (thigh).

QUESTIONABLE: WR Josh Reynolds (groin) and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe).

PREDICTION: Lions 24, Falcons 21. Detroit plays well with its back against the wall. Even with injuries expect to see resilience and a home win.

Detroit Lions make a statement, knocking off Chiefs, 21-20, in opener

After the Kansas City Chiefs raised their Super Bowl banner, they met the new version of the Detroit Lions which strongly resembles the team that won 8 of 10 games to end last season.

On Thursday, the Lions got key plays all-around as they edged the Chiefs, 21-20, at roaring Arrowhead Stadium.

“We expected to win this game. We came in here, we knew what we needed to do,’’ Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. We did that. Really, what it means is, that’s one.’’

Running back David Montgomery’s 8-yard touchdown run with 7:06 left tied the game and Riley Patterson’s extra point put the Lions up 21-20. Then Detroit’s defense took over and shut down Patrick Mahomes and the offense, not allowing a Chiefs’ third down in the second half (0-7).

With 2 minutes left, the Lions offense got the ball back, and with 3 rushing plays got a first down. Then all quarterback Jared Goff had to do was take a knee to run out the clock.

“It’s something we talk about is closing games out. With our offensive line and what we have offensively we need to be able to do that. It’s something we worked a lot on – situational football,’’ Campbell said. “Everybody knows the strength of our offense and it’s the O-line.

“Defensively before that, they showed up in a big way. We talked at halftime about cleaning up some of our communication errors,’’ Campbell said. “We needed a takeaway and we needed to be much better on third downs. We did that and we got a takeaway to the house and we were 0-7 on third downs in the second half. Then to close it down on that last drive.’’

This is Year 3 for Campbell and GM Brad Holmes and on Thursday they saw their vision for the team come to life and, perhaps better yet, it was nationally televised. That hype train that’s been running for months? Turns out, it was not just hype.

“This is a total team win,’’ Holmes said during a TV interview afterward.

Five keys to the win:

1. One of the best offensive lines in the NFL did not disappoint. The five starters are healthy and what a difference it makes. They opened up lanes for running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs, along with giving Jared Goff time to find his receivers. The line is the strength of the offense and it came up huge.

2. Goff handled the pressure and kept his streak of no interceptions intact. “All week I thought he looked confident, calm and steady … I thought he played very steady today,’’ Campbell said. “He did what we needed to do to win this thing.’’ Goff was 22 of 35 for 253 yards including a 9-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown.

3. Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was everywhere. He’s credited with three quarterback hits and four tackles, but he pressured Patrick Mahomes early and often. It wasn’t all about Hutchinson, but that up-front pressure helped the secondary. Overall the defense was impressive. Mahomes is no slouch. He had never thrown an interception in an opening game. They were in his face and knocked him a bit off his game.

4. Rookies were a standout including nickel Brian Branch who intercepted Mahomes and then ran the ball back 50 yards a touchdown. On David Montgomer’s 8-yard touchdown run, rookie TE Sam Laporta made a key block; linebacker Jack Campbell made a diving pass breakup in the first half. And running back Jahmyr Gibbs carried seven times for 42 yards, including an 18-yard scamper, and caught 2 passes for 18 yards. It’s early but so far the draft class looks like a winner.

5. On the Lions’ second possession, Campbell called a fake punt on a fourth and 2 at Detroit’s 17-yard line. No one was expecting that, but Jalen Reeves-Maybin ran 3 yards up the gut to make it work. Gutsy call. This is not a stretch for Campbell who has fake punts in the team’s repertoire. This isn’t likely to be the only one this season. It’s another sign of how this team reflects Campbell’s aggressiveness, passion and grit. He said it’s just one win, but it looks like they’re just getting started.

NEXT UP: Ford Field will be rocking when the Seattle Seahawks visit at 1 p.m. on Sept. 17.

Five things to watch as the Detroit Lions open at the K.C. Chiefs

ALLEN PARK — Nothing like a huge test at one of the NFL’s loudest, most hostile stadiums — home to the Super Bowl champs — in a nationally televised game to get the season started for the Detroit Lions.

Much is expected this year including a division crown. It all starts against the Chiefs.

Since the schedule was announced months ago, the Lions have been geeked. Patrick Mahomes? Bring him on.

“This is why you play the game of football right here, these high-pressure situations where you’re opening the season with the Super Bowl champs at their place, I wouldn’t want anything else,’’ second-year defensive end Aidan Hutchinson said.

Nothing seems too big for the Lions and that’s, in large part, due to coach Dan Campbell.

While Arrowhead Stadium will be a new experience for most of the players, Campbell has played and coached there.

“It’s an unbelievable environment, it really is. It’s – man, to go on the road at a place like that – I told my guys, ‘Man embrace it, enjoy this. This is not stressful – this shouldn’t be stressful,’’ Campbell said. “This should be just – man, take it all in. Enjoy the sunlight,’ if you will. I know it’s at night, but, it’s just – when you’re a true competitor, to go on the road in an environment like this, I think it really brings out the best in you.

And so, we know what we have to do communication-wise, that’s the big piece of this and honestly, it’s no different than any other game, once you get through this early portion, even the openers on both sides of the ball, now you’re into the flow of the game,’’ the coach added. “So, we’ve just got to stay steady, consistent, don’t get too high, don’t get too low. And they know that, I mean we could be down 14, we could be up 14 and you’ve got to play every play and just relax, put the last one behind you and just keep playing football.”

Five things to watch:

1. Games early in the season can be won by making fewer mistakes, not necessarily more plays. That’s Dan Campbell’s theory. Also he can boil down a two-pronged gameplan — defense needs takeaways, offense needs to convert on third downs.Campbell is confident in his secondary. “I do believe that we’ve got some playmakers back there on the backend and so I think we’re much better suited than we’ve been here to come up with some – man, you get some tipped balls, overthrows, get a hand on a ball that we’re going to come down with those, and not only there on the backend, but I think we’ll have the ability to squeeze the pocket on these guys and just really all year I believe we’ll be able to do that with our front,’’ Campbell said. “And so, that bodes well to getting some takeaways, those two things.”

2. The Lions offensive line, which is intact and ready to go, will be key to the offense’s success. The Chiefs will be without DT Chris Jones due to a contract dispute. He had 15.5 sacks last season. Frank Clark (5 sacks) and Carlos Dunlap (4 sacks) are no longer with the team although it doesn’t mean they haven’t found talented replacements. The starting offensive line gives offensive coordinator Ben Johnson comfort. “It’s my blankey. It’s Jared’s blankey. I mean, those guys, they’re good, they’re special, they really are,’’ Johnson said. “They’re one of the top units in the League and I think we’ve always felt that way inside the building, this year we really need to come out and prove that to the rest of the League. And I think they understand that and they’re looking forward to it.”

3. Rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs has done nothing but impress since he was drafted in the first round. Certainly he can catch the ball and he will be targeted. Together with veteran David Montgomery, they could be a dynamic duo. “I think we’ve seen a lot of them and we know what we’re going to expect out of both those guys. I think they are very – yes, they are complementary backs. What (No.) 5 does well, Gibbs might not do as well and vice versa, but I think they both are very versatile, so we might use Gibbs in some ways that people don’t quite think we might or Montgomery the same way,’’ Johnson said. “I’m really excited to see what they can do out on the field here this week, but we’re going to use them all over the place.”’

4. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes is all of that and paired with tight end Travis Kelce they will be a handful for any team’s defense. Kelce is officially questionable with a knee injury sustained on Tuesday, but he hasn’t missed a game since 2013 so it seems like if he can get on the field he will. Mahomes, among his many attributes, has the ability to make a 2-second play into a 4- or 5-second play. “So, our guys just have to be ready for that and it is what it is, but it also goes into our defensive line to make sure we corral this quarterback and keep him in the pocket and don’t let him get out,’’ Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “Now is he going to get out and do it? Yes, I mean he’s a special player. He’s going to wear a gold jacket at some point. I think we all know that, so. But we’ve just got to do the best that we can to make sure we corral him and don’t allow those two-second plays to end up being four- or five-second plays.”

5. While much of the matchup chatter is about Mahomes, Jared Goff will have something to say. He’s on a ridiculous string of 324 passes thrown without an interception. He was a big reason the Lions were able to turn their season around in the second half last year. Goff has had a good camp and he’s surrounded by talent. Goff said the offensive, ranked fifth in the NFL in 2022, has several areas where they have the potential to be better this year. “I think mostly, it’s just the details of things that we’ve been able to clean up over, even through OTAs and training camp. Being able to ask questions on things that we made mistakes on last year and make sure everyone is dialed in on the same page on how we want to do certain things, so the details of each play, which should lead to better execution, less penalties, that type of stuff of just getting lined up and being able to execute our offense at a higher level,’’ Goff said.

PREDICTION: Chiefs 28, Lions 27. (Expect Detroit to be in the game throughout, but the difference could be the environment. Still, it wouldn’t be a shocker if the Lions win.)