Tag: Isaac TeSlaa

Bears at Lions: Five things to watch as both seek first win; plus prediction

The NFL schedule makers have already made the Lions’ season interesting and it’s only Week 2. Teams from the NFC North, widely considered the best division, have been pitted against each other early.

The Lions (0-1), coming off a loss to the Packers, hope to get back on track Sunday when they face the Chicago Bears (0-1) in the home opener. Last week the Bears (0-1) lost to the Vikings (1-0) and on Thursday night the Packers jumped out to a 2-0 start, defeating the Commanders.

Lions coach Dan Campbell doesn’t think the early results put extra pressure on his team.

“Anything to where we’re forced to compete is a good thing,’’ Campbell said. “And I love that, man. And we already knew what we were coming into this year with this division. It’s a tough division, man.’’

The Lions’ offense struggled against the Packers while the defense had its moments.

Still, Campbell is concerned about his bunch, not the other three division rivals.

“At some point, every team’s going to hit adversity whether it’s early, it’s in the middle of the season, it’s late. And it’s just about playing your best football by the end of the year,’’ Campbell said. “And so, we can’t worry about the Packers. We can’t worry about Minnesota. We worry about ourselves first, and then Chicago because they’re the next opponent.”

Five things to watch against the Bears:

ONE: Left tackle Taylor Decker did not practice all week with a shoulder injury. On Friday, Campbell couldn’t say whether he will play on Sunday but clarified that Decker wants to play

“He’s got a little bit something here, so we’re just trying to buy him some time here to where he feels better. A lot of it, too, is the luxury of – Decker’s played a lot of football. And so, he’ll be ready as long as it feels right,’’ Campbell said. “But yeah, we feel good right now. And there again, we still have another day here and we’ll see. So, I can’t give you a definitive yes, but that’s where it’s at.”

TWO: Decker’s absence would be especially tough because the offensive line had communication issues last week which was part of the reason the run game averaged a lousy 2.1 yards per carry. When the Lions can’t run the ball, the offense struggles to move the ball. If he’s out, Giovanni Manu would get the call at tackle. Manu has not started an NFL game. 

THREE: Look for rookie WR Isaac TeSlaa get more involved. He made a beauty of a catch late in the Packers’ loss. He took just 3 offensive snaps because he had missed a day of practice leading up to the game. He has practiced each day this week. “I think his catching ability is big time, I’ve said that before, but he’s smart and he’s tough,’’ offensive coordinator John Morton said. “He didn’t have a lot of plays in the game but he came in, that was an unbelievable catch. So, his role will be expanded. He will help us.”

FOUR: While much is made of Ben Johnson’s move to Chicago as head coach, defensive coordinator Dennis Allen is a powerhouse. “Somebody asked me this the other day. They play hard, they’re smart, they’re disciplined, they’re aggressive, they’re tough. I mean, I think I stated it all,’’ Campbell said. “He’s an outstanding coach, man. He does it right, he knows how to teach, he knows how to communicate, and he knows how to put those players in position to have success, man. He finds one-on-ones.”

FIVE: The Lions’ pass rush needs to improve. They did not sack Jordan Love at all. “They were nudging, chipping all day and getting the ball out. They weren’t going to allow it. Go back with your stopwatch and turn on the pass plays, they weren’t going to allow it. But more importantly I thought – I want to give credit to our guys for not letting this guy out of the pocket,’’ defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said. “That’s things that we’ve struggled with in years past. Jordan Love has burned us in years past with his legs. He had one run, I think, for four yards. So, I want to look at the positives in that. Yeah, we could’ve done things and things like that, but we had a specific gameplan and for the most part, the guys went out and executed the gameplan. And I just gave you the stats. That should’ve been a dominant outing on Sunday, and it will be moving forward.” Bears’ QB Caleb Johnson’s mobility will provide a different type of challenge.

PREDICTION: Lions 27, Bears 24

UP NEXT: Lions at Ravens, 8:15 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 22.

Lions’ critical, untimely errors costly in opening loss to Green Bay Packers

A breakdown of 5 main reasons for the disappointing opener

Carrying big expectations and back-to-back NFC North titles, the Detroit Lions opened the season with a thud, a big one.

Detroit snapped a 3-game win streak at Lambeau Field with a 27-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.

“We didn’t play good enough, we didn’t coach good enough, including me, and we didn’t play good enough,’’ coach Dan Campbell said.

The coach told the team it’s tough to go in and certainly not play close to your best game.

“You hate starting the season out with a loss and as bad as that is, it’s not what it appears to be,’’ Campbell said. “So like I told them, let’s clean up the tape. We made some critical errors at the worst times possible. You don’t do those, you take those out of the equation; it looks different . you feel like it’s going to be a totally different scenario but we did make those critical errors at the worst time.’’

The offense, which didn’t score a touchdown until the waning minutes, could not get in gear.

“We never really got in a rhythm. We did for a couple of drives where we got it down there, then we didn’t finish. We weren’t able to finish with 7. We had to settle for 3, then we had an interception,’’ Campbell said. “Other than that we never got into a rhythm.”

The coach said he thought they would play cleaner but the mistakes are all correctable.

“Our players are accountable, they’re ready. Nobody takes it worse than they do,’’ Campbell said. “That’s the good news, we’ve got the right dudes.’’

FIVE REASONS FOR THE LOSS:

ONE: The new-look offensive line did not get the job done. Not only is the standard high for this unit, but they faced newest Packer Micah Parsons who moved along the line when he was in the game. As expected, he was a huge presence. It was a lot to handle for rookie right guard Tate Ratledge and left guard Christian Mahogany. Center Graham Glasgow was adjusting to taking over at center too. The line’s play was a big reason the run game could not get in a rhythm, averaging just 2.1 yards per rush. “When your run game is not quite clicking the way you want it to, that affects your play pass and then your’re down two scores then those guys are going to pin their ears back and that’s hard on any offensive line,’’ Campbell said.

TWO: On the other side, the Lions defensive pass rush was not effective and the secondary gave up too many big plays. Aidan Hutchinson was in the mix at times but did not record a sack or tackle. In his defense, he is always double-teamed but last season he had 7.5 sacks in five games. Linebacker Derrick Barnes’ pick-six was negated by a holding penalty.

THREE: Jared Goff has had better games, but he’s used to having better protection and more time to throw. He was sacked four times — including a late one by Parsons — and pressured early and often. Goff actually passed for more yards (31-38 for 225 yards) than Jordan Love (16-22 for 188) but Love threw a pair of TD passes. Goff had a late TD pass, but also a critical interception. 

FOUR: The offense did move the ball at times and ate up the clock, but couldn’t finish when they got to the Red Zone. New coordinator John Morton can certainly take part of the blame but the players need to look in the mirror.. They were just 1-of-4 in the Red Zone which is not good enough and, worse yet, they were 5-of-15 on third downs. “I thought they had a good plan but that doesn’t take away from us doing what we needed to do,’’ Campbell said.

FIVE: Before the game, Campbell said mistakes were key to the outcome. Six penalties were costly. Mistakes made on both sides of the ball. More was expected. He mentioned “critical errors” several times in his post-game presser but was confident they are correctable.

BONUS: Lions rookie  WR Isaac TeSlaa made an amazing touchdown catch late in the game. It was the offensive highlight and a sign of things to come from the Pride of Hudsonville. If you haven’t seen the video, check it out. 

UP NEXT: Chicago Bears at Lions, 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 14 at Ford Field. The Bears face the Vikings on Monday Night Football in their season opener.

Lions at Packers: Five things to watch in the season opener; plus prediction

For so long the Lions could not find a way to beat the Packers at Lambeau Field.

In fact, that streak stretched for 23 seasons from 1992 to 2014. However, coach Dan Campbell is 3-1 at Green Bay’s shrine to football, winning there for three straight seasons. 

The two teams kick off the season there at 4:25 p.m. today. Campbell can’t wait.

“We love Lambeau, it’s awesome. It’s one of those places on the eighth day the good Lord made Lambeau,’’ Campbell said.. “… If you love football you love going to play there so our guys look forward to it.”

The Lions’ last loss there, 35-17, was on Sept. 20, 2021. They finished 3-13-1 that season. Since then the Lions have won 24-14 (2024), 34-20 (2023) and 20-16 (2022).

As NFC North champs for the past two years, facing a key division opponent to open the season is crucial. 

“Man, you want to win the first one, right. It just – you feel like you get off on the right foot and you get that first win under your belt. I just think that’s big for anybody. For us – you love it,’’ Campbell said. “I mean this is, I bring it up, the problem is not getting too excited too early right now. Division opponent at Lambeau, nationally televised game. I mean this is – we love this stuff, we live for this, so this is good, this is exciting. Listen, any win sets you up for the season, helps you. And that’s really what it’s about.”

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH:

ONE: Changes on Detroit’s offensive line could be a factor but the talent-rich position is expected to remain a strength. Graham Glasgow takes over at center (Frank Ragnow retired) while rookie Tate Ratledge has earned the start at right guard and Christian Mahogany will start at left guard. “Obviously Frank is such a great player and it’s hard to replace him in any capacity. But Graham is a great player in his own right as well and has done a hell of a job stepping into that role, and even last year at times when he needed to step in there,’’quarterback Jared Goff said. “ He’s been great. I mean he really has. He’s taken a lot of the responsibility on his shoulders and I thought today was great by him, and he’s been a lot of fun to work with.”

TWO: Expect the best from the defensive line with the return of Aidan Hutchinson and the addition of rookie Tyliek Williams. Campbell said veteran D.J. Reader had a “kick-ass” camp and that edge rusher Marcus Davenport doesn’t have to show him anything any more. “I tell them, ‘We’re not friends here, we’re family.’ You’re going to go through things together, and we’re still going to be family after. Friends, you kind of separate and it is what it is. We are family here, and that’s what you’re going to see displayed on the field is a family out there fighting together down in and down out,’’ defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said.

THREE: Jared Goff was kept safe and sound on the sidelines during the preseason games, but he excelled during training camp. The passing game, always a strength, gets a boost with a stronger Jameson Williams and rookie Isacc TeSlaa, a third-round pick, who won a roster spot during camp. Amon St. Brown is well, Amon-Ra St. Brown. “I’ve been looking forward to it. Certainly in a division game on the road, I’ve always said these ones feel like they count for two wins and whenever you’re able to go out and get to somebody else’s place and get a W, it’s important and that’s what we want to try to do,’’ Goff said. “These guys are a good team and I think we’re a good team and it’ll be fun.”

FOUR: Don’t expect big changes in the offense with new coordinator John Morton. He’ll add a few new wrinkles but it won’t be a major overhaul. Getting running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery on the field together could be a new twist. Perhaps it will be the biggest adjustment for Goff. “I feel great with him though right now. … He sees the game very similar to the way I do, and really very similarly to the way that I was taught in L.A.,’’ Goff said.

FIVE: Don’t overlook special teams ace Grant Stuard who is in his first season with the Lions. Voted a captain, the veteran linebacker has been a standout through camp and the preseason games. He’s a bulldozer on kick returns, actually on every play he’s on the field. Also expect to see plenty of TeSlaa on special teams.  “(TeSlass is) a good body type, he’s got some size and some length, he’s got some speed, so that’s huge. I mean for us on special teams, sometimes there’s just nothing you can do if a guy can just flat run and a guy just can’t run, it’s hard for the guy who can’t run to match the guy who can run,’’ special teams coordinator Dave Fipp said. “And he can run, so that gives him a chance to play some of these positions on the outside, gunner, hold-up guy and some of that stuff.’’

PICK: Lions 27, Packers 23. 

UP NEXT: Chicago Bears at Lions, 1 p.m. on Sept. 14. Former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson returns to Ford Field as the Bears head coach.