Tag: Sam LaPorta

Five things to watch as Lions face the Giants; plus injury update, prediction

While the Giants have lost five straight, Lions coach Dan Campbell will not overlook them when they play at Ford Field on Sunday.

Again, the Lions (6-4) are coming off a loss and again they look to bounce back. They haven’t lost back-to-back games since October 2022 and they intend to keep that streak alive. Campbell said the urgency is always there.

“We’ve had urgency. We’re an urgent team. Things haven’t gone our way that we would like. I mean we would love to be sitting here undefeated right now and that’s not the reality, we’re not undefeated,’’ Campbell said. “But there’s an urgency that’s there. And I know this, if you say, ‘Well let’s ramp up more urgency,’ that’s when you start making mistakes, that’s when you start panicking, that’s when guys start doing things they shouldn’t do. They’re trying to make plays and then they cost us all. That’s where bad stuff really happens because that means you don’t really believe in what you’re doing. You’re grasping for straws.

“I know what we’re doing, I know what we need to do. We go back to work, we clean up the little things, we adjust, we adapt, we move on and let’s find a way to get a W,’’ Campbell added.

Five things to watch:

ONE: The Lions defense played its best game of the season at Philadelphia. Coordinator Kelvin Sheppard saw a never-blink mentality and said they never wavered at any point in the game.  Still, he would like to see more takeaways. “The way that game was structured on that night our offense needed one more possession, that was the nature of that game,’’ Sheppard said. “That was the one thing if I could, kind of a little teeny thing that we would have improved upon it would’ve been to steal a possession for our offense.’’

TWO: Can the Lions offense rebound? Jaredd Goff said he isn’t worried about the offensive inconsistency, he’s concerned about winning games. “I don’t care if we have 100 yards. If we win the game, that’s all that matters. The output of the offense, of course, yeah you’d love to score 40 every week and 500 yards like we did 10 days ago or two weeks ago, whenever that was,’’ Goff said. “But yeah no, you have a bad game, you learn from it. The output is not nearly as important as just finding a way to get a W, and we didn’t do that last week.”

THREE:  If the offense is to bounce back after their worst showing of the season in loss at Eagles Goff and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown will have to connect like they have been until the Eagles debacle. “We’re good. Again, I consider that an outlier for what we’ve done in our career together,’’ Goff said. “You learn from it, you look at it, we talk about different ways we can get better. Yeah, no grand conversation about it, no.” Goff targeted St. Brown a dozen times but only connected on two at Philadelphia.

FOUR: Rookie Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart is out because he hasn’t passed concussion protocol which means veteran Jameis Winston will start. Campbell said they have been preparing for both, but thought they would face Winston. “I think the run game itself stays intact, I think the pass game – there is some vertical pass game to it. I don’t think it changes a ton,’’’ Campbell said. “And look, I know Winston very well, man. This guy, he can put it on a dime. He’s not afraid to freaking rip it in there, he’s a competitive, smart guy. And so look, he’s going to give him a chance. He’s played a lot of games, man, won a lot of games.’’ Campbell knows Winston well since both were with the New Orleans Saints in 2020. 

“Well, I think there are a lot of things that – I think the core of what they do, and the pro-style offense itself is not going to change. And I think even if Dart had played, there wasn’t going to be a ton of quarterback run, things of that nature. So, I think the run game itself stays intact, I think the pass game – there is some vertical pass game to it. I don’t think it changes a ton. And look, I know Winston very well, man. This guy, he can put it on a dime. He’s not afraid to freaking rip it in there, he’s competitive, smart guy. And so look, he’s going to give him a chance. He’s played a lot of games, man, won a lot of games. But we’ve been prepared for both, we’ve made sure that we prepared just in case if you got a little different flavor with Dart. But we kind of felt like Winston was probably going to be the guy.”

FIVE: The offensive line needs to step up. Goff was twice but pressured all game long. He had a difficult time connecting with pass-catchers because he had no time. The run game averages 30 rushing yards per game but was held to 74 in part – not totally – due to the offensive line getting beat in the trenches.

LIONS INJURIES: OUT — CB Terrion Arnold, S Kerby Joseph, EDGE Marcus Davenport, OL Miles Frazier, EDGE Josh Paschal; TE Sam LaPorta likely out for rest of the season. QUESTIONABLE — LT Taylor Decker, CB Khalil Dorsey, C Graham Glasgow, G Tate Ratledge, CB D.J. Reed, RT Penei Sewell, WR Isaac TeSlaa and RB Sione Vaki.

GIANTS INJURIES: OUT — QB Jaxson Dart, DB Paulson Adebo, TE Thomas Fidone, LB Kayvon Thibodeaux; QUESTIONABLE — DB Tae Banks, RB Eric Gray, DB Tyler Nubin.

PREDICTION: Lions 38, Giants 17

Five things to watch as Lions face Eagles in a ‘must-win’ game; plus injury update, prediction

Aidan Hutchinson said it simply: This is a must-win game. The Lions (6-3) travel to Philadelphia to play the Eagles (7-2) on Sunday night. Coach Dan Campbell likes Hutchinson’s viewpoint.

“I think we need to apply some pressure on ourselves, in a good way, because I know we’ve got the right guys too,’’ the coach said. “That’s what helps. We’re not – the reality is we’ve still got a lot of games left. How much is a must-win a must-win? But yet, I think when you view it that way, we’ve got to find a way to come away with this one.’’

The crazy atmosphere in Philadelphia has been dialed up since at least 1968 when the fans pelted Santa Claus with snowballs. Since then fans have thrown batteries and spit on opponents. Campbell witnessed it as a player.

“When you’re a competitor, you just love it. Man, you go on the road and everybody – it’s you against everybody else. And it’s very clear that it’s you against everybody else there,’’ Campbell said. “…. You go some places, man, they wave at you, ‘We’re so happy you’re here to play against us.’ This is not one of those places, that’s it. It’s as far from that as you can possibly get. I loved playing atmospheres like that, and I just know the type of guys we have. I think they’re going to eat it up, I really do.”

Five things to watch:

ONE: If the Lions hope to win, they must stop Saquon Barkley. Easier said than done. The running back accumulated 60 yards in the win at Green Bay on Monday. So far this season he has six touchdowns – two of them were receptions. He’s tough. “It’s because he’s big. He’s big, but he’s got the agility and the speed of a scat back,’’ Campbell said. “He’s powerful, he’s strong, explosive. He can hit the hole. And if he’s got a step and there’s a hole, he can take it the distance. And so you can’t just stick an arm out and pull this guy down. That’s what it is. You’re talking about a power back that’s got very good feet, lateral quicks, and explosive and speed to go the distance. That’s what it is.”

TWO: Expect aggressive play-calling from Campbell just like last week. It worked and seemed to spark the offense. Can it do the same against an Eagles’ defense? That’s the big question.

 “It’s great. He did a good job,’’ Goff said. “Yeah, he’s a steady-Eddie and I thought he was great.”

THREE: Dealing with the tush-push is no easy task. While some coaches want the play banned, Campbell has been consistent that it should remain in the game. That is not changing just because the Lions are playing the Eagles. “We have a plan, we have an idea, but we have to execute,’’ Campbell said. Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson said they just need to find a way. “I don’t think anybody has quite cracked it yet. I trust big D.J. Reader in the middle to get the job done – he’s stopped a few QB sneaks in his day,’’ Hutchinson said. “It’s going to be a great battle. You can’t real;y practice a QB sneak, it’s a battle of wills.’’

FOUR:  While the Lions’ offense was on fire last week and has been solid, they haven’t faced a defense created by Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. “He knows himself very well. He knows the opponent, but he knows himself very well and he’s always been great about that. He checks himself, he makes sure that you can’t get a beat on him,’’ Campbell said. “Now, there’s nothing super complex but yet the fact that he asks them to do things they do well and he just kind of keeps moving around, that makes it difficult.’’

FIVE: The Eagles, the defending Super Bowl champs, have at least one characteristic that makes them extremely tough to beat. “When they need a critical play, they come up with a critical play,’’ Campbell said. The Lions have a bit of that same DNA which should create a good battle.

LIONS INJURIES: OUT — TE Sam LaPorta, CB Terrion Arnold, S Kerby Joseph, EDGE Josh Pashal, EDGE Marcus Davenport, G Miles Frazier, CB D.J. Reed and LB Malcolm Rodriguez;  QUESTIONABLE — LT Taylor Decker, CB Amik Robertson, RB Jack Saylors, T Penei Sewell, RB Sione Vaki and TE Brock Wright.

EAGLES INJURIES: QUESTIONABLE — G/C Willie Lampkin.

PREDICTION: Lions 28, Eagles 27.

Five reasons the Lions lost to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs

Unlike 2023, the Lions could not find a way to win in Kansas City on Sunday night. Playing with a depleted secondary, Detroit lost to the Chiefs, 30-17.
The Lions 4-game win streak was snapped, dropping them to 4-2. The Chiefs, who were coming off a loss to the Jaguars, entered the game with a 2-3 record. So while it wasn’t a must-win situation for Kansas City, it was close to it.

“We just didn’t make the plays we needed to make, we were able to do some things good in phases at times but not enough for a team like that with the pedigree they have, the way they play back at their house,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “We couldn’t complement each other and we weren’t able to really make it a game, we really weren’t.’’

While the Lions did not turn the ball over, their unforced errors on offense were costly. Credit the Chiefs defense for finding a way to stop Detroit’s offense which was ranked tops in the NFL. The offense and defense didn’t play up to the team’s standards.

“I’m disappointed. It’s been a long time since you’re watching somebody kneel it three times in front of you and it’s not even close, you’re down two scores,’’ Campbell said. “We got worked pretty good so yeah, it’s disappointing it’s really disappointing.’’

He said they’ll get back to work and clean up the mistakes. They have no choice. The Tampa Bay Bucs (5-1) are next on the schedule for a Monday night game at Ford Field on Oct. 20.

“It’s not going to get any easier, things get harder and harder as you go. And they’re more meaningful every game we go,’’ Campbell said. “I go back to this, maybe we needed this, maybe we needed to get kicked around a little bit because that’s what happened.’’

Five main reasons the Lions lost:

ONE: The defense could not stop Patrick Mahomes. It’s a tough assignment with a beat-up secondary, but the Lions were just not good enough. Detroit is missing most of its top cornerbacks and safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch are not 100 percent. Still, no excuses. LB Alex Anzalone led the defense with a dozen tackles and a quarterback hit. Jack Campbell had 8 tackles, a sack and a quarterback hit.

TWO:  WR Amon-Ra St. Brown dropped a fourth-down catch in the second quarter which eventually led to a Chiefs touchdown right before halftime. Usually, he’s got great mitts so it was uncharacteristic and could not have come at a worse time. St. Brown had nine receptions for 45 yards. Jameson Williams  (6 for 66 yards) and Sam LaPorta (4 for 46 yards) each scored a receiving touchdown

THREE: Aidan Hutchinson sacked Mahomes one time, but was whistled for roughing the passer early in the fourth quarter – which gave the Chiefs 15 yards that led to the second Mahomes-to-Hollywood Brown touchdown. It was not close, it was definitely roughing the passer. Hutchinson also finished with a quarterback hit, a forced fumble and 2 tackles. Mahomes was also sacked by Jack Campbell and Al-Quadin Muhammad.

FOUR: Goff had solid numbers and ran more than 9 minutes off the clock on the opening touchdown drive, but Campbell said before the game they would need 30 points to win and obviously they didn’t get close. Goff completed 8 straight passes late in the third, ending with an amazing one-handed touchdown catch by Sam LaPorta. Goff finished 23-29, 203 yards, 2 TDs and was sacked once.

FIVE: The Lions run game worked early, but once they were down by 10 they had to go away from it more. Jahmyr Gibbs had 17 carries for 65 yards with David Montgomery with 4 carries for 24 yards. 

EXTRA: Brian Branch initiated a scuffle immediately after the game. Campbell addressed it at the start of his post-game press conference: “I love Brian Branch, but what he did was inexcusable and it’s not going to be accepted here. It’s not what we do, it’s not what we’re about. I apologize to Coach Reid and the Chiefs. That’s not OK.’’

UP NEXT: Tampa Bay Bucs (5-1) at Lions (4-2) at 7 p.m. on Monday Night Football on Oct. 20.