Jahmyr Gibbs – Page 28 – Lions Lowdown

Are the Detroit Lions America’s team? Five reasons why they’ve earned the title

The Cowboys, once America’s team, are so yesterday.

How exactly does an NFL team turn itself into America’s team? Is there a caucus? A primary? Winning is key. Add in hard work, physicality, perseverance, humility and a super-sized dose of charisma.

As the playoff wins pile up it’s becoming more apparent, the Detroit Lions have claimed the once-elusive title of America’s team. Even the New York Post proclaimed “The Real America’s Team: Lovable Lions just one win away from Supe after beating Bucs.”

It’s been a journey which may have started when coach Dan Campbell attracted fans through the up-close examination of all that is Honolulu Blue via HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”

It ramped up when they won eight of their final 10 games in 2022 after an 1-6 start.

It hit new heights when an electrified Ford Field, during wins over the Rams and Bucs, caught the eye of NFL fans who love to cheer for the underdog.

And now, here the Lions are one win away from the Super Bowl. It’ll be a tough matchup at the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday but coach Dan Campbell said they will be ready.

None of this was an accident.

“We were intentional about being about grit and earning it. … We went through darkness and it shaped us for this moment,’’ GM Brad Holmes said in the locker room immediately after the wildcard win over the Rams.

Before that game – the franchise’s first playoff win in 32 years – Campbell said his bunch was “scarred to perfection.”

Not convinced? Five reasons why the Lions are America’s Team:

1. The quarterback. Jared Goff may be a California guy at heart, but he’s got ice in his veins – the perfect temp for a quarterback. He lived through a 3-13 season in 2021 and came out better for it. He’s loved by his teammates, the coaches and the fans. A fan video appeared on Facebook after the Rams win of Goff in an SUV passenger seat leaving Ford Field, the windows down and a fan yelling “You’re the King of Detroit.” Actually Goff said that happened after the win over Denver, but it indeed happened. The sentiment remains the same.

2. The coach. Dan Campbell was the perfect man for this monumental turn-around. He’s got the respect of the team because he respects them. When he screws up – and he has at points – he’s the first to admit it. He’s famous for his “biting kneecaps” comment when hired, but perhaps that is just what needed to be said. He and Holmes have a profile for players they seek and it’s not all about football. It’s about the type of people and if they’ll fit in. “This will be an outstanding test for us but it’s one we’re ready for, we’re built to handle this,’’ Campbell said on Wednesday in preparation for facing the 49ers.

3. The bad boy. Aidan Hutchinson, in just his second season, is all about pressure. His spin move has become his trademark. In the two playoff games he was good for three sacks, eight quarterback hits and 10 tackles. He’s about attitude too. Campbell said his defense is a salty group and that description definitely fits Hutchinson. Before he played an NFL snap he came to the forefront with his rendition of “Billie Jean” on “Hard Knocks.” Many fans have a special place in their heart for him because of his Maize and Blue roots. Honorable mention to Kerby Joseph, one tough football-playing dude, and linebacker Alex Anzalone who leads the defense in tackles.

4. The rookies. Tight end Sam LaPorta, running back Jahmyr Gibbs, linebacker Jack Campbell and safety Brian Branch were expected to contribute right away. They have and they’ve just gotten better as the season and playoffs have worn on. LaPorta, who had a touchdown catch against the Rams, finished with nine catches against the Bucs in the divisional round setting a single-game NFL postseason record among rookie tight ends. The speedy Gibbs has rushed for a TD in each of the first two playoff games. DB Brian Branch opened the season with an interception returned for a touchdown and has kept up the intensity. In the two playoff games he has combined for 16 tackles, one sack and two tackles for loss. LB Jack Campbell has grown into his role with Dan Campbell saying that his best game to date was in the win over the Vikings to end the season.

5. The fans. Go ahead, name a better fan base. I’m waiting. They’ve lived and died with their team since the last playoff win on Jan. 5, 1992. New coaches, new GMs, Hall of Famers retiring early – they’ve lived through it all. Then there was the promise of a new season at every training camp. A 3-13-1 inaugural season for Campbell who was a tight end for the Lions in 2008 during their 0-16 season. This season the fans at Ford Field (and on the road) have been amazingly loud and electric and they took it up a notch during the two home playoff games. Perhaps ESPN’s Steve Levy, who was at Sunday’s game said it best on ‘X’: Ford Field yesterday was the loudest stadium I’ve ever been in. And yet the silence, when the Lions were on ‘Goffense’ was remarkable. Fewest visiting fans I’ve ever seen at a major sporting event. Might just be the best gameday experience in the NFL. Well done Detroit.”

Detroit Lions headed to NFC Championship after 31-23 win over Tampa Bay Bucs

DETROIT — It is not a dream.

The Detroit Lions, who have dwelled in the NFL basement for far too long, came through with a 31-23 win over the Tampa Bay Bucs in an NFL divisional round game on Sunday to advance to the NFC Championship game next Sunday at San Francisco.

The Lions, your Lions, are one win away from playing in the Super Bowl.

“Here we are, sitting one of the last four teams. That was – that’s the type of game that I envisioned against Tampa,” coach Dan Campbell said. “I mean, that’s an outstanding team. That’s a hot team. We knew it was going to come down to the end.”

It had not completely sunk in with the players after the last bit of confetti had fallen from the Ford Field rafters.

“Frank (Ragnow) said it to me when we got in the locker room, ‘We’re playing in the NFC Championship.’ Of course we always work for this and towards this, but it’s here and it’s real. It’s kind of surreal in a sense,’’ said left tackle Taylor Decker, who was drafted by the Lions in 2016 and has experienced plenty of heartache.

Coach Dan Campbell has believed in this bunch all along. He repeatedly has said throughout the season that they “were built for this.”

“Dan talks about it all the time. This team was built a certain way for a reason,’’ Decker said. “And everybody in this locker room was hand-selected to be here. It’s a special group.”

They are not done. It’s back to work on Monday to prepare for the 49ers who defeated the Packers in a divisional game on Saturday night.

Five reasons the Lions won:

1.Let’s start with the very end. Linebacker Derrick Barnes intercepted Baker Mayfield on a second-and-5 from Tampa’s 15-yard line with 1:33 remaining and the Bucs down by 8 points. It sealed the win, allowing Jared Goff to go on the field for the victory formation – just like last week against the Rams. Aidan Hutchinson said it wasn’t the call played. Barnes said he wanted to see if Mayfield was going to throw the dagger behind him. “I turned around and I see the ball coming and I was like, ‘There’s no way I’m going to drop this.’’ He was so emotional he doesn’t even remember getting to the sideline. He said when the ball hit his hands and he dropped to the turf, his first thoughts were: “What the hell just happened? First career interception, my son’s first game, a lot of emotions out there.”

2. Lions quarterback Jared Goff stayed patient. The Lions managed just 10 points in the first half, but came away with three second-half touchdowns. “It was huge, especially because we know that defense is very stingy. They have a great group especially against the run. We knew we might have to soften a little with the pass to open up the run game,’’ Decker said. “It’s one of those things, you keep chopping, keep hammering. Those 2-, 3-yard gains in the run game are going to go to 10-yard gains.’’ And that’s exactly what happened. Goff completed 30 of 43 passes for 287 yards and a pair of touchdowns. “Goff made – I mean, fourth quarter, he really showed up there and made some big throws. And we knew we needed to throw the ball to move it today,” Campbell said. “That was – we went out there to Tampa and I’ve said this before, it was like swinging a sledgehammer against a steel door. I mean, we were just over and over and over. And so, we knew we needed to loosen them up before we started to run it and we did that.”

3. When it mattered the most, the defense came up big. Mayfield was sacked four times — Aidan Hutchingon (1), Brian Branch (1), Ifeatu Melifonwu (1.5) and Jalen Reeves-Maybin (.5). While Tampa won the battle in total yards – 408 to 391, the Bucs were just 4-12 on third downs and were held to just 89 rushing yards. They also had eight quarterback hits and two interceptions (Barnes and C.J. Gardner-Johnson).

4. In big games it’s key for the best players to be at their best. It happened for the Lions with wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown (8 receptions, 77 yards, 1 touchdown), tight end Sam LaPorta (9 catches, 65 yards) and running back Jahmyr Gibbs (9 carries, 74 yards, 1 touchdown and four catches for 40 yards). They had help which is what makes this Lions team special. WR Josh Reynolds and running back Craig Reynolds each scored a touchdown..

5. The game was not too big for the Lions, a young NFL team. Give Dan Campbell credit for his belief in this team. Look at the rookies – Gibbs, LaPorta and Brian Branch – they play like veterans. They got their first taste of the postseason a week ago in another close game, they digested it all, and came out firing on all cylinders on Sunday with a performance that will be remembered for a long time.

UP NEXT: NFC Championship Game with Lions at 49ers, Sunday, Jan. 28 at 6:30 p.m.

Divisional round: Five things to watch as Lions host Bucs; plus prediction

For the Detroit Lions, the next game is the biggest game even if a Super Bowl berth is only two wins away. The Lions face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional Round at 3 p.m. on Sunday at Ford Field. The winner moves on to play the winner between the 49ers and Packers in the NFC Championship game on Jan. 28.

For Lions coach Dan Campbell focus is the key. The Lions, who are 6-point favorites, cannot overlook the Bucs who they beat 20-6 in Week 6.

The coach seems to have gotten that message across this week.

“They know we only have three left here and then you get a bye— after two— and then you get the third one (the Super Bowl). So there’s only three left here, but it all starts with one,’’ Campbell said on Friday. “That’s really the process all year no matter where you’re at — if you lost one, won five in a row, now you’re in the playoffs. Man it’s all about the one in front of you. You have to stay focused on that. Everything we’ve got – full focus on this game.’’

He needs them to do their job one more time for their 14th win this season.

“For any of the butterflies of the first playoff game ever for a lot of guys, got the monkey off your back. Well now you’re in your second playoff game, you ‘ve got experience in that, you understand the environment, you understand what our house is going to be like, which is electric which should give you a surge of energy,’’ Campbell said. “I think this is good, but it’s all focus on one.’’

Five things to watch:

1. A huge difference last week was preventing the Rams from scoring on three trips to the red zone. And, the Lions offense scored on all three trips inside the 20. Numbers like that will go a long way in winning most games during the postseason and really any time. While the Lions excel in the red zone, the Bucs are third best in the NFL in red zone defense. Something’s got to give. “They pressure, pressure but once you get in third down they calm things down and they do what they do and they’re really good at it especially when you get in there really tight,’’ Campbell said. “They’ll play a couple coverages and they don’t care if you know what it is, they’re better at it than you are and they’ve done a great job of it.’’

2. Quarterback Baker Mayfield and his two wide receivers, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, can be a handful. It’s tough to judge his performance in the wildcard win over the Eagles, because Philadelphia’s defense was awful. He was 22 of 36 for 337 yards and three touchdowns. “We’ve got a find to squeeze this in on Baker,’’ Campbell said. “If you let him sit back there and play with rhythm and a hitch, it’s dangerous because he will get it up to his guys and he’s going to give them a chance to make a play. (Mike) Evans is an issue, we can’t let him go off.’’ In their first meeting the LIons held the Bucs to just two field goals.

3. In the first meeting on Oct. 15, Jahmyr Gibbs was out with an injury and David Montgomery left the game early with a rib injury. The Lions managed just 40 rushing yards. It won’t be easy to run the ball since the Bucs have the NFL’s fifth best rushing defense allowing 95.3 yards per game. “They load the box up. They really condense you in there and so it’s hard. It’s tough sledding and we did not rise to the challenge well enough as a whole unit. So, whoever we had up last time, we fell short of our standard and the good news about where we are as an offense is we can shift and we can flow, and that doesn’t shut us down entirely,’’ Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said. “If we can’t run the ball, then we have other ways to attack the defense as well. So, fortunately that was the case the first time we played them. We are still built on the run though. I think our guys upfront, they relish the opportunity to do that, and we’ve got really good backs that we need to get the ball, so hopefully we can have a little more success than the first go around.”

4. Jared Goff has been playing his best football to end the season and was a huge reason the Lions won their first playoff game in 32 years. The fans made it known they loved him with their Jar-ed Goff chants and he returned the love completing 22 of 27 (81 percent) for 277 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions. “He’s at his best when his back is against the wall. Now, it hasn’t been against the wall but he’s doing well. That’s something that has always impressed me,’’ Campbell said. “When things don’t look good or we’re not moving the ball or you have a couple turnovers and you feel like the world is coming in on you. He’s at this best coming out of that.’’

5. The Lions have outscored opponents 111-78 in the first quarters, including jumping out to a 14-3 lead in the first quarter against the Rams last Sunday. Detroit scored on its first two drives. The defense would like the fans to do their part like they did against the Rams. “It is a joy to be able to play at home in front of these guys. And they did a hell of a job assisting us. I don’t know if you noticed, but the two timeouts, I think that had to do something with the crowd noise and him not being able to hear,’’ defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “And the quarterback (Matthew Stafford), he knows how Ford Field is, so I’m sure he was expecting that, but man, it was outstanding. It was outstanding. And look forward to it this week.”

INJURY UPDATE: WR Kalif Raymond (knee) is out; TE Sam LaPorta (knee) and LB James Houston (ankle) are questionable.

PREDICTION: Lions 31, Bucs 17. The Lions are the better team since they first met.