NFL – Lions Lowdown

After disappointing season, GM Brad Holmes says ‘Lions aren’t that far off’

Despite a disappointing 9-8 season, Lions GM Brad Holmes still believes the Lions are close to being an NFL contender.

“I don’t think that we’re that far off. I personally don’t,’’ Holmes said at a season-ending press conference on Thursday. “We have a lot of good players, we have a lot of good young ascending players, we have a really good quarterback, we have the right coach. I do think we’re very close.’’

Holmes has already started an introspection top to bottom of why the Lions came up short and failed to make the playoffs.

“We’ll be looking at everything, but I do not think that this is a deep surgery overhaul,’’ Holmes said. “I don’t think that but obviously there needs to be some adjustments.’’

Holmes answered questions for about 40 minutes. He was short on specifics which is his tendency but seems determined to right the ship which finished 2024 with a 15-2 record.

“Bottom line, for our standards, this was a disappointment,’’ Holmes said. “When we set out for this journey for this season it wasn’t to match last year’s record or exceed last year’s record — it doesn’t really matter what the record is — bottom line is if we’re not in the dance and we’re not competing for a championship then it’s a failure.’’

Plain and simple.

Offensive coordinator John Morton has been fired, but no other coaching changes have been announced at this point. The offense came up short of its goals but this disappointing season obviously wasn’t all on Morton. Injuries, again, played a big role in getting them to play consistently good football.

“It’s a lot of things. We’re going to have to take a long, hard look,’’ Holmes said. “Before I look at anything I’ll look at myself.’’

Five things to watch as Lions face Vikings in Christmas Day matchup; plus injury updates

Dan Campbell’s most memorable Christmas kids when he was younger was underwear – tidy whities – from his dad.

A win over the Vikings on Christmas Day is at the top of his wish list this year.

The LIons (8-7) are coming off two straight losses and still have a very slim chance of making the playoffs while the Vikings (7-8) have won three straight and are out of the postseason discussion.

His message to the team on this shortened week is to move forward.

Wide receiver Jameson Williams paints a picture of the locker room,

“Nobody is disappointed I don’t know – everybody’s head is high, we’ve still got a chance. Nobody is in there with a sad face, everybody is happy we get a chance to go to work and do something that we love doing,’’ Williams said.

“It’s not all about the bigger picture that everybody else makes it about. Some people play this game because they love the game. It’s not about the money or pleasing fans or pleasing anybody. As I’ve been looking around and analyzing everybody’s head has been high. We still feel like we got a shot at this,’’ he added.

Five things to watch:

ONE: Run the damn ball. In the first meeting the Lions managed just 65 rushing yards (3.3 yards per carry). It’s one reason they lost. They have lost all six games when they have rushed for less than 100 yards. It happened again on Sunday in the loss to the Steelers. It’s not on Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery – all 11 players on offense are responsible. “Everybody’s got to be on par. One time it’s one player here, whether it’s in the O-line or at another spot, it’s not just there. The backs are involved, receivers, tight ends. So, we just kind of took turns with – whether it was some of the combinations or we’re not honoring the ID, or maybe it’s not the right read,’’ Campbell said referring to the loss to the Steelers.

TWO: Stop the run. The Lions defense has had a miserable time stopping the run. In five of the last six games they’ve allowed more than 100 rushing yards and they lost four of those five. “As you guys know, the rush and coverage always go together. And we have not worked in unison for a number of plays. We’ve gotten hit on a number of plays,’’ Campbell said. “Some of that is – we play a certain style, right? And then if you feel like you’re not executing there, then you try to give some help in areas. Well, I kind of mentioned this last week, when you do that, then you expose yourself and others. And that happened a little bit (Sunday), we tried to play with a lighter box, and then we got hit in the run game. Some of them we missed some tackles that showed up. Where we fit, who the support player is, that showed. It’s obviously – it’s too much, man, it’s not sustainable.’’

THREE: Quarterback J.J. McCarthy has been ruled out with a hairline fracture in his hand. Max Brosmer, who has played in five games with one start this season, will get the nod. He’s completed 66 percent of his passes with 0 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. “If you give him time to see it he can throw it, he’s got receivers to throw to. I know that,’’ Campbell said. “The guy is accurate and so I think it really falls in line with anybody we play at this point. We have to disrupt him and we can’t let the run game get going. They’re going to lean on him, they’re going to use the run game because it will alleviate a ton of pressure and if we let them open the flood gates it’s going to be a long day for us.

FOUR: In the previous game the Vikings sacked Goff five times. Obviously adjustments have to be made. “We know in totality we have to be better, that’s us as coaches, we have to execute better. I go back to the game where we made so many mistakes all over the map, we’ve got to eliminate the errors,’’ Campbell said “Our backs are going to have to protect, they know that so is the O-line and so are the tight ends at times, chip and nudge. Sometimes you have to beat the rush with your receivers. And Goff has to roll. It takes everybody.’’

FIVE: Goff rarely has a bad outing. He needs another strong showing. “There’s going to be a ton put on Goff. He’s going to have a lot on his plate. He always has a lot on his plate. Nothing’s new there,’’ Campbell said. “But these guys present a lot of problems, a lot of challenges, it starts there. We have to play fast, we’ve got to play fast, we have to make sure we communicate – everybody is doing the same things.’’

LIONS INJURIES: OUT – Avonte Maddox and Giovanni Manu; QUESTIONABLE — Amon-Ra St. Brown, Taylor Decker, David Montgomery, Trystan Colon, Marcus Davenport, Khalil Dorsey, Tom Kennedy, Christian Mahogany, Alim McNeill, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Amik Robertson

VIKINGS INJURIES: OUT — J.J. McCarthy, T.J. Hockenson, Ryan Kelly and Jordan Mason.

PREDICTION: Lions 27, Vikings 24.

Five reasons the Lions pulled off a 44-30 win over the Cowboys

DETROIT — After a disappointing loss to the Packers on Thanksgiving, the Lions bounced back in a huge way with a 44-30 win over the Cowboys on Thursday night at Ford Field.

With the victory, the Lions (8-5) kept their playoff chances alive. The Cowboys (6-6-1) had their three-game win streak snapped and saw their playoff hopes dwindle.

In the last three years Detroit is now 15-0 following a loss.

“The intensity, the urgency. The guys don’t ever get frazzled, they don’t get panicked, they just go to work,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “They did it again.’’

The Lions never fell behind, leading 20-9 at the half and keeping their foot on the gas.

They played complementary football with the offense scoring 44 points, the defense coming up with big plays when it mattered most including forcing three turnovers and special teams pitched in too. Jake Bates kicked three field goals (another was blocked) and kick returners gave the offense good field position throughout and the opposite for Dallas.

“Everything was big and the guys really stepped up. We did, we played complementary football that above all is what really makes a difference,’’ Campbell said. “That’s what good teams do. It doesn’t matter how good your offense or defense is if you’re not able to help each other out when you need it with one of the phases it makes it tough and we were able to do that.’’

Five reasons the Lions won:

ONE: The offensive line helped give Goff more protection than he had a week ago. They weren’t perfect – Trystan Colon and rookie MIles Frazier alternated at left guard in place of the injured Kayode Awosika. Dan Skipper provided much help as the sixth lineman. Having Amon-Ra St. Brown back was huge (6 catches 92 yards). “St. Brown is what we are, where he goes, we go,’’ Campbell said. He wasn’t sure St. Brown’s ankle would be well enough to play until Wednesday. Goff was 25 of 34 for 309 yards and a touchdown. He was sacked just once.

TWO: Running back Jahmyr Gibbs ran for three touchdowns while David Montgomery added another. The Dallas defense just didn’t have an answer for them. Gibbs converted a third-and-8 in the third when he caught the ball near the sideline, stopped and deked DaRon Bland out of his cleats to get extra yards for first down. It was a thing of beauty. Gibbs had 7 catches for 77 yards and a dozen runs for 43 yards, while Montgomery ran 6 times for 60 yards and had one 13-yard catch.

THREE: The defense came up with big plays when needed. First snap of third quarter Derrick Barnes intercepted Dak Prescott and two plays later Goff connected with rookie Isaac TeSlaa for a 12-yard touchdown. Prescott passed for 376 yards and a touchdown, threw a pair of interceptions and was sacked five times. Al-Quadin Muhammad sacked Prescott three times.

FOUR: The Lions were 3 of 8 on third downs, but often they were moving the ball so well they didn’t get to third down. Campbell opted for field goals on a few drives instead of going for the TD on fourth down. No fourth-down attempts.

FIVE: Play calling on both sides was more effective. Jameson Williams finished with 7 catches for 96 yards. It was an all-around better effort. The Lions looked more like the team from weeks ago when they were ranked as one of the best in the NFL. “We challenged a number of our guys and they really showed up for us. That team (Dallas) is hot – it was a hot team coming in here. That’s a potent offense,’’ Campbell said. “Was it perfect? No. We still have some stuff that wasn’t good.’’

NEXT UP: Lions at Los Angeles Rams, 4:25 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 14.