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Detroit Lions prove to be road warriors; Dan Campbell says it’s a mindset

Franchise record for road wins is 6 set in 1961

No one has called the Detroit Lions “road warriors” for years, actually decades.

That appears to be changing this season. Already the Lions are 3-0 on the road — at Kansas City, Green Bay and Tampa. They stand at 5-1 overall as they prepare to head to Baltimore on Sunday.

“I think every team that I’ve been a part of as a player and a coach, when – that has had success, that’s a winning team – first of all, you’ve got to be able to win on the road. I do think there’s a confidence about it, there’s a – and you have anticipation,’’ coach Dan Campbell said on Monday following the 20-6 win at Tampa Bay.

“You look forward to it and I think that’s what – kind of where we’re at. I think that going on the road and it’s just you against them, their crowd, the – I think we kind of thrive off of that and I think that’s a mindset and I think that’s where it starts,’’ the coach added.

The most road wins for the franchise is six, which happpened in 1961, when they were 6-0-1 on the road and 2-5 at home. They did not make the playoffs that season.

The Lions have only won five road games in five seasons, going back to 1930 when they were the Portsmouth Spartans. They had five wins in 2017, in 2011 (made the playoffs with a 10-6 record), in 2000, in 1993 (made the playoffs with a 10-2 record) and in 1953 when they won the NFL Championship.

When Campbell was questioned about the road success on Monday, he said: “Well, first of all, they’re not really road games. That’s what it feels like anyway. We’ve got significant fan support on the road right now.’’

At Tampa Bay, estimates were that 20,000-25,000 Lions fans occupied the stands. They were loud and appreciative and stayed around after it was over.

Campbell spent three seasons playing for the Dallas Cowboys who have a fan base that travels well, but he said it was never like what he’s seeing from Lions fans.

“There’s kind of a takeover here. It feels that way. … You walk out and it’s a sea of blue. And then by the time the third quarter hits, you can hear them because we get up, we’re making plays and, I said this last night, their offense is out there and I swear they’re about to go to silent cadence at their own home because it’s loud,’’ Campbell said. “I’m like, I think I would tell our guys to go silent cadence if it was this loud. And man, that’s something else. I mean, seriously, this is pretty awesome.”

Of course, it isn’t just showing up that earns the Lions the road wins. They beat the Chiefs, the defending Super Bowl champs, and the division foe Packers before facing a tough Bucs bunch.

The defense is playing outstanding in the four straight wins and quarterback Jared Goff has led the banged-up offense to score at least 20 points in all six games so far.

“I just think there’s a mentality about it. I think our guys believe on the road you go out there that we should win, but they know they’ve got to earn it. … We’ve got to play a clean game. Usually what happens, you go out there and momentum shifts and you allow it to affect you and then you can’t ever get momentum back and then one thing leads to another, you turn the ball over, you’re getting stopped, you’re getting hit on explosives and we’re just not doing that,’’ Campbell said. “We’re not making these mistakes and the other teams are right now.”

The players love having such a Honolulu Blue presence on the road. They can hear them and certainly appreciate it. It’s reciprocal. Lions fans have been waiting for years to support a team with a vision, a team that has a bright future and, most importantly, wins games.

“I get texts all the time from friends, family and they refer to things – ‘Man, our receivers did a hell of a job today.’ It’s ‘our.’ And I feel like that’s where our fans are, ‘This is ours and our guys are doing this and our guys are –’ And that’s what it’s about,’’ Campbell said “That’s what it’s about.”

UP NEXT: Lions (5-1) at Baltimore Ravens (4-2) at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The Ravens are coming off a 24-16 win at the Titans on Sunday.

Detroit Lions take care of business against Panthers; 5 reasons for 42-24 win

DETROIT — Each week it’s a different challenge and for the fourth time in five weeks, the Detroit Lions stepped up and finished with a win. The Carolina Panthers were no match for the Lions in Detroit’s 42-24 win at Ford Field on Sunday.

The Lions (4-1), and in first place in the NFC North, were coming off a big win at the Green Bay Packers while the struggling Panthers (0-5) were looking for their first win.

“I’m not worried about the opponents you can see eye to eye, cause I believe we can compete with anybody and beat anybody in this league,’’ coach Dan Campbell said afterward. “It’s the ones you don’t see coming.’’

These Lions seem to be up for the challenge. And while Campbell deflected a question about whether they have taken on his personality, it is clear that they have.

“You tell your team (your) just concerns and you talk about it and your team tells you, ‘Coach ,freaking relax’ and they did that today,’’ Campbell said. “They came out and set the tone for the game and really never let off the gas.’’

They jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, were up 28-10 at the half and added a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to seal the win.

These Lions are 12-3 since last Halloween. The 42 points was the most they had scored since a 48-45 loss to Seattle on Oct 2, 2022.

Five reasons the Lions won:

1. Turns out the turnover battle was no battle at all. The Lions’ defense forced a fumble which resulted in a touchdown pass to WR Josh Reynolds 10 plays later. Also DE Aidan Hutchinson reached in and made a one-handed interception of Bryce Young which led to a touchdown pass to Sam LaPorta four plays later. And CB Jerry Jacobs picked off Young on a first-and-10 at Carolina’s own 23. Next play Goff threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to LaPorta. Seems like a trend. “To come away with three takeaways and turn that into 21 points offensively, that’s complementary football. Just an outstanding job by those players,’’ Campbell said. “They don’t care who we play, it’s competition and they show up.’’ The Lions’ offense did not turn the ball over.

2. Quarterback Jared Goff continues his stellar play. He completed 20 of 28 passes (a few were dropped) for 236 yards, three passing touchdowns, one rushing score and zero interceptions. “There’s always more Goff can give and that’s a great thing because he is playing at a high level right now. I love where his confidence is at,’’ Campbell said. “We came out saying we wanted to throw the ball early in this game and he was on fire. We have a tremendous amount of confidence in him.’’

3. DE Aidan Hutchinson grabbed his first interception of the season and it was a one-handed beauty. He also had a sack, two TFLs, a quarterback hit, a pass defense and three tackles. Just another Sunday.

4. Running back David Montgomery fits the Lions like a glove – Campbell’s words not mine. While Jahmyr Gibbs (hamstring) was inactive, Montgomery took most of the rushing load and averaged 5.7 yards per carry for 109 yards and a touchdown. His kookiest play was a direct snap from Frank Ragnow that went between the legs of Goff to Montgomery on a third-and-6. Goff said they practiced it all week to get the timing down. It worked. Montgomery ran up the gut for 10 yards and a first down and two plays later Goff scored on a one-yard quarterback keeper. RB Craig Reynolds got work in the fourth quarter and scored his first career touchdown on a five-yard run.

5. The Lions were missing two key starters in WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (abdomen) and DB Brian Branch (ankle). No problem. Others stepped up. “We’ve been doing it for three years. I guess at some point you get better at it,’’ Campbell said. “This is something we talked about after ‘21. We have to assume we’re going to lose a significant amount of our starters in the year. That’s the assumption, now what do we do with the guys we have on this roster, how do we utilize them and have enough to produce against the opponent.’’ It’s a puzzle they seemed to have solved at least for the first five games.

BY THE NUMBERS: Sunday was LT Taylor Decker’s 100th start. He got emotional talking about the support he’s had from his family and how much he appreciates the fans. … Rookie TE Sam LaPorta scored on a pair of touchdowns. He finished with four catches for 47 yards. … WR Josh Reynolds stepped up in absence of St. Brown with four catches for 79 yards and one TD. … WR Jameson Williams saw his first action this season after a four-game gambling suspension. He dropped the first ball that Goff sent his way. He had two catches for 2 yards. Campbell said he just wanted to get Williams on the field and acclimated. He said he was not disappointed. … The Lions finished with 377 net yards. It is the first time since 1954 that the Lions have had more than 350 net yards in each of the first five games. … LB Alex Anzalone finished with a team-high 11 tackles. He also had two quarterback hits and was a force throughout. … CB Jerry Jacobs intercepted Young, his third interception in five games.

UP NEXT: Lions (4-1) at Tampa Bay Bucs (3-1). The Bucs had a bye on Sunday.

Five things to watch as Lions face winless Panthers; also my prediction

Injury list is long; Branch is out, St. Brown doubtful

Riding a two-game win streak, coach Dan Campbell wants his Lions to stay humble and hungry as they face the Carolina Panthers, a team still looking for its first win.

Detroit (3-1) is coming off another big road win at Green Bay while the Panthers lost their fourth straight, 21-13, against the Vikings.

For the Lions, it’s all about focus and not riding the roller-coaster.

“There’ll be teams that will rise, there’ll be teams that’ll fall, but as long as we just handle our business each week, no different than what we did. We went out to Green Bay and we looked like a hungry team, we looked focused on the details, we played together, we played violent and we made the plays that were there,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “We played complementary football and I think as long as we keep that as the focus and not about who you’re playing, who do they have up, what are the injuries, what is the weather, what – forget that, man. This is another opponent who’s dying for a win.’’

The Lions still have bad memories of last season when the Panthers beat them, 37-23, on Dec. 24 to snap a three-game win streak and put a dent in their playoff chances.

Five things to watch:

1. The Lions’ defense ranks first in the NFL at stopping the run, allowing just 243 rushing yards in four games. That must continue against the Panthers’ running backs Miles Sanders and Chuba Hubbard. “It goes back to last year where we had a huge emphasis on stopping the run. We truly believe that you stop the run, you make a team one-dimensional, you’ve kind of got a stop on them,’’ linebacker Derrick Barnes said. “… That’s been the main focus and we’re doing a better job this year than last year.’’

2. While Jared Goff’s streak of 383 throws without an interception was exceptional, it was not going to last. Now he’s thrown one interception in each of the last three games. There is no panic. Following each pick, he’s come back with a touchdown drive on the next play. “Nobody wants those (interceptions), we don’t but I don’t feel like he’s pressing. He’ll tell you, he made an error, made a mistake. He’s falling away in the pocket and makes an ill-advised throw, his eyes are on the receiver and best part about it was he didn’t get frazzled,’’ Campbell said. “… But what I want more than anything is I don’t want him to go into a shell or start panicking. And he’s not …” Goff has completed 69.5 percent of his passes with six touchdowns.

3. Continue to press the quarterback. The Lions defense has 13 sacks in four games – 12 of them in the last two games. Campbell said it’s another lesson of what happens when everyone does his job and stays unselfish. “And it’s really everybody’s in on it. And we’re getting a lot of production and the more we get inside like out of (Alim McNeill) Mac for example, the more you really see Hutch (Aidan Hutchinson) shine. It’s taking stress off of some of these other guys and vice versa,’’ the coach said. “You see Charles (Harris), you see Barnes, you see Alex (Anzalone), you see (Jack) Campbell, so they’re all playing off of each other, but they’re all doing their job and it’s important.”

4. Don’t expect miracles from wide receiver Jameson Williams. Fans are hungry to see what the speedster adds to this offense. First of all, there’s a chance he might be inactive depending on how he practiced this week. Also, he will be eased into the offense.He played just six games last season and one preseason game this year before he pulled a hamstring and was sidelined until his suspension kicked in. “We know our offense and putting him back in the mix, how much further we can go,’’ said Lions wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle El. “I always make sure everyone understands the humbleness part of it. It’s not that he’s the fix-all, be-all. But he brings a different element that us and many other teams don’t have in terms of speed and the way he runs down the field.’’

5. Even though the Panthers (0-4) are winless, the Lions can not go on cruise control and expect to win the game. Detroit is a 9-point favorite but that doesn’t mean much either. “Look, we talk about it all the time and we’ve lived it. We’ve been there, we know what that’s like. There’s enough of us who’ve been here and know what it’s like when you’re trying to find that win. You’ve lost a few and you’re doing everything you can as players and as coaches to find a way to get that first one. So, we expect their best shot,’’ Campbell said. “Those guys are over there preparing. … And we’re in a race to improve with everybody in this League, and the ones who can improve the fastest are the ones that begin to make a rise in October. So, it goes without saying if you don’t show up and you play sloppy football, you turn the ball over, you don’t get takeaways, you’re not where you’re supposed to be, your odds of losing go way up.”

INJURY UPDATE

The Lions will be missing CB Brian Branch (ankle) and FB Jason Cabinda (knee). WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, who injured his abdomen in the Packers’ win, is ranked as doubtful along with TE James Mitchell (hamstring).

RB Jahmyr Gibbs (hamstring) appeared on the injury report for the first time this week on Friday. He’s listed as questionable along with Taylor Decker, WR Josh Reynolds, S Kerby Joseph, LB Julian Okwara and G Halapoultivaati Vaitai. CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee/hamstring) is expected to make his LIons’ debut in some capacity.

PREDICTION: Lions 31, Panthers 13. The Lions’ defense is playing too well for the Panthers to pull another upset.