NFL – Page 12 – Lions Lowdown

Lions Jared Goff wants to win for Detroit fans; doesn’t get caught up in facing his former team

Dan Campbell says Goff is ‘wired the right way’

ALLEN PARK — While much will likely be made about quarterbacks Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford leading up to Sunday’s wildcard matchup between the Lions and Rams, it’s just one scene in the big picture.

After the 2020 season the teams swapped quarterbacks and it paid immediate dividends for the Rams who won the Super Bowl with Stafford in his first season there.

It’s been a slower process with Goff, but it has worked. The Lions came within a whisker of making the playoffs last season and they take a 12-5 record into Sunday night’s game at Ford Field.

Goff has led the NFL’s second-best offense with an even-keel approach.

He’s really not into the whole Stafford-Goff storyline for the game. He’s moved on.

“I so badly want to win a playoff game for this city, which hasn’t had one for so long. That’s my biggest motivation this week,’’ Goff said on Wednesday.

Also Goff said he hasn’t really shared his playoff experience with his teammates. Some of them have postseason experience and others have played in five primetime games this season, finishing with a 4-1 record in those nighttime affairs. He just wants every one to play their best game.

“He’s wired the right way, he’s been through this, he’s been to the Big One. He’s dealt with this a number of times, not just in playoff wins,’’ coach Dan Campbell said.

Campbell recalled once again that in 2018 when he was an assistant with the Saints, Goff brought the Rams to New Orleans and won the NFC Championship in overtime. Subsequently the Rams lost in the Super Bowl.

“He’s been in the big ones and he understands what it is, he understands that you can’t get too high or too low, you focus on your job,’’ Campbell said.

In Goff’s six playoff games in 2017, 2018 and 2020 the Rams were 3-3 overall. In those postseason games Goff threw four touchdown passes, two interceptions and was sacked 14 times. His completion percentage was 57.4 percent. (In comparison, this season he has completed 67.3 percent of his passes.)

If he has a chip on his shoulder from being traded to Detroit, don’t expect it to show.

“Look, I don’t think you’re going to see anything different than what he’s been, I don’t think he’s going to say anything different. It’s human nature to feel a certain way … I think he’s handled it all well,’’ Campbell said. “I don’t think this is going to be something that he loses sleep over, that he loses focus on. He understands this – if you really feel that way the best way to do it is play the very best football you can play.’’

Injury update

Tight end Sam LaPorta, who injured his knee on Sunday, did not practice on Wednesday. Campbell said they likely won’t know if he can play until Friday afternoon. WR Kalif Raymond (knee) did not practice. Others who didn’t practice include offensive linemen Taylor Decker, Graham Glasgow and Frank Ragnow who are listed as getting rest. CB Jerry Jacobs (thigh) had limited practice.

WR Jameson Williams (ankle) practiced Wednesday and is expected to play Sunday after missing Sunday’s win over the Vikings.

UP NEXT: Wildcard playoff game: Rams (10-7) at Lions (12-5), 8 p.m. on Sunday at Ford Field. It’s NBC’s Sunday night game.

Five reasons the Lions bounced back with a 42-17 win over the Broncos

DETROIT — After losing two of three, and coming off a loss at the Chicago Bears, the Detroit Lions were able to get back in gear with a 42-17 win over the Denver Broncos on Saturday night at Ford Field.

“We just needed a win and we did that today. Look, we just cleaned up a couple things, focused on our job at hand, the details of it,’’ Lions coach Dan Campbell said “Honestly we didn’t start real hot early, we didn’t. We can’t do that, we can’t accept that – not with where we’re going. But we got out of it, the defense played well and found a rhythm. I thought (Jared) Goff played a really good game, a number of guys did.’’

With the win the Lions climb to 10-4 and can clinch a playoff spot with some help on Sunday. Two of their remaining three games are against the Vikings who lost on Saturday in overtime to the Bengals.

The Broncos had won six of seven entering Saturday’s game but were no match for the Lions who played one of their best games in several weeks.

Five reasons the Lions won:

1. Jared Goff set a career-high with five touchdown passes. He started the game passing on the first five snaps which seemed odd but in the long run it worked. The ice was broken with a 19-yard touchdown pass to tight end Sam LaPorta early in the second quarter. Goff was poised and never threw an interception. In fact, the Lions never turned the ball over which had been an issue. Goff was 24 of 34 for 278 yards and five TDs.

2. While the offense took a bit to get heated up, the defense ran out of the tunnel on fire. They held the Broncos to just 75 total net yards in the first half and just 1 of 6 on third-down attempts. “I just thought we were well prepared, we had a real good feel on what we were going to get, we knew what we had to take care of, we couldn’t let (Courtland) Sutton get going, we couldn’t let him launch,’’ Campbell said. Sutton was held to five catches for 71 yards.

3. In the loss at Chicago, LaPorta and Amon-Ra St Brown never were much of a factor. That all changed. When you’ve got offensive weapons like those two, you get them the ball. LaPorta had 5 catches for 56 yards and an amazing 3 touchdowns. St. Brown had seven catches for 112 yards and a touchdown.

4. Campbell gave credit to defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn for calling a good game. It was the same with offensive guru Ben Johnson. Nothing risky was needed since the Lions held a 21-0 lead at the half. They got key guys involved and made a few effective changes on defense.

5. Much of the game was about attitude. You didn’t expect this bunch to shrug their collective shoulders after losing two of the previous three games and they certainly did not. Campbell keeps them on track. “The ability for our team to win against somebody of (Sean Payton’s) stature, a Super Bowl winning coach who does it right. It’s good, it’s a good win because I know what he’s about,’’ Campbell said. “I’m happy for our guys, that we got the win here, we needed it. We got to 10, now we’ve got 3 to go.’’

UP NEXT: The Lions play at the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Dec. 24, then at Dallas on Dec. 30 and finish the regular season at home on Jan. 6 or 7.

Five things to watch as the Lions attempt to bounce back against the Broncos

The playoffs in sight for both teams, the Denver Broncos visit the Detroit Lions on Saturday night at Ford Field.

The Lions (9-4) are coming off a loss at Chicago, while the Broncos (7-6) have won six of seven, including Sunday’s 24-7 win over the Chargers.

This game was moved to primetime for what’s on the line and it should be intense especially with the two coaches going head to head. Lions coach Dan Campbell played for Denver’s Sean Payton and was an assistant to him while with the New Orleans Saints. To say more is on the line is an understatement between the two coaches who know each other so well.

Campbell doesn’t think it’s an advantage for either one. He said it evens out.

“I think he has a pretty good idea about what we want to do and our process, just like I do his being in there. And so, look, he’s not going to shy away from being who they are and what has gotten him to this point,’’ Campbell said. “They’re going to lean on those. However, he’s going to have the wrinkles, he always does. And I just – I bring it back, man he is – in this profession, in games, he’s a stone-cold killer. So, that’s why I say – he’s going to be looking for it. And we’re going to be prepared for it. But we think very much the same way, so we’re looking forward to this.

“This is going to be an outstanding matchup. This is a good team. They’re playing really good football. They’re playing smart, clean football. And that’s why they’re winning,’’ Campbell added.

Five things to watch:

1. While not all of the offensive woes are the fault of quarterback Jared Goff, he needs to play a clean, error-free game to get the offense rolling like it was early in the season. With losses in two of the last three games, the offense has sputtered. “I wish there was one thing you can put your finger on, but there’s not. It’s just plain execution and doing what we’re supposed to do, and it starts with me leading that charge and getting us back on track,’’ Goff said.

2. The Broncos excel at takeaways which has been an issue for the Lions who are not good at it. “We emphasize it, we drill it. Unfortunately, over the last four weeks we haven’t done a good enough job with our ball security, and we know this team is feast or famine,’’ offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said. “When they get the takeaways, they capitalize on it and they’re winning ball games because of it. And so, we’re highly aware of it. We’ve got to do a better job protecting the ball this week than we have the last four games. They aren’t just good in their takeaways, I think the other thing that stands out to me the last eight weeks, they’re the No. 1 third-down defense in the NFL. So, they’re doing a great job stopping offenses when they get them into that situation, so we’ve got to be on point here on third down this week.”

3. Lions offense and defense need to play a solid third quarter. The Lions have outscored opponents in every quarter except the third where it’s not even close. Opposing teams have 84 third-quarter points against the Lions, while Detroit has scored just 46 points in that stretch. “It’s frustrating as much as it is for everyone else, it’s very frustrating for us,’’ Goff said. “And we’re very aware of it and we know we have to continue to be aware of it and continue to try to find ways to be more productive in the third quarter and that’s everybody and I wish there was one thing that, again, that you could point to as the reason why, or one thing that fixes it, but there isn’t. It’s just plain execution, it’s plain focus, it’s plain doing our jobs a little bit more consistently in that quarter.”

4. The defense could have its hands full with quarterback Russell Wilson who can run the ball when needed. “I know he picks his chances when he does want to run and you really see it on third down and in the red zone, which most quarterbacks do anyway. But he has that ability to escape. I mean they have some read-zone plays in there for him which I would utilize his legs too,’’ Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said. “He’s not just a statue back there. He’s able to make some plays with his legs and you see that happen in the games.” Wilson has thrown 23 touchdowns against just eight interceptions, but four of the eight picks have come in the last two games.

5. The offensive line, which looks to be healthy once again, has to protect Goff. The Broncos sacked Chargers quarterbacks six times last week. Ragnow has missed the last two games which has affected the line’s performance. He’s expected to return.

INJURIES: LT Taylor Decker (back), DT Benito Jones (neck), FC Frank Ragnow (knee, back, toe) and WR Josh Reynolds (back) are all questionable.

PREDICTION: Lions 27, Broncos 24.