Taylor Decker – Lions Lowdown

Lions fill need, draft OT Blake Miller in first round

ALLEN PARK — Offensive tackle Blake Miller (Clemson) was selected by the Detroit Lions with the 17th overall pick in the NFL Draft on Thursday night.

Miller, 22, fills a need on the offensive line with the departure of veteran left tackle Taylor Decker. Right tackle Penei Sewell could shift to the left side with Miller possibly starting at right tackle.

“When you think about Blake Miller, you sleep easy,” Lions GM Brad Holmes said in a statement that says it all.

Miller, who is 6-foot-7 and 317 pounds, was a Week 1 starter as a true freshman for the Tigers in 2022 and has played 3,762 career snaps since. All but 125 of those have come at right tackle. He holds the Clemson record for snaps from scrimmage — 3,778 in 54 games, all starts.

Miller said he never missed a game in college, high school or even middle school.

“He just checks a lot of boxes,” Holmes said. “He’s big, he’s tough, he’s smart, he’s a finisher, he has unbelievable football character, work ethic. Everything from a culture standpoint, he fits that. That’s the easy part. His ability is the stuff — he’s athletic, he’s a good athlete. It’s hard to find guys who can move like that and are finishers.”

Holmes said that Miller might not be aware but they’ve been watching him play for about four years. “He literally has gotten better every single year, that’s what makes you real excited about a player like that who actually has a high floor and has gotten better every single year,” Holmes said.

Miller met with the Lions through the pre-draft process. “I just loved the culture, the organization, I love the grit, I love the toughness that’s emphasized outside looking in and I really want to uphold that standard,” he said in a Zoom call.

He spoke just the right words when asked if he expects to contribute immediately. “My goal is to come in and work as hard as I humanly can, to be the best player I can humanly be,” Miller said. “At the end of the day how the cards fall fom there I can live with.”

Miller will benefit from being in the same offensive line group with Sewell, a first-round pick in 2021 who is considered one of the NFL’s top tackles. Miller said he’s watched plenty of tape on Sewell while in college and looks forward to working with him.

Lions coach Dan Campbell spoke to FOX 2 sports following the selection: “We had a lot of love for the guy. There were a lot of top-tier tackles in here, and when you start watching, man, the closer we got to the draft, his consistency, the steadiness that he provided, it was just good production, week in, week out, for multiple years.”

At Clemson Miller was a first-team All-ACC selection, becoming the 25th player in school history to earn at least three career All-ACC selections. Miller, who earned a degree in financial management in May 2025, wrestled and played football at Strongsville (Ohio) High School which is about 160 miles from Detroit. He was at home in Strongsville Thursday night with family and friends when he got the call from Detroit.

The Lions have eight more picks in the draft which will wrap up on Saturday. They have one second-round pick (50th overall), two fourth-round picks (118 and 128), two fifth-round picks (157 and 181), two sixth-rounders (205 and 213) and one seventh-round pick (222).

Second- and third-round picks will be drafted on Friday starting at 7 p.m. The fourth-seventh round picks begin at noon on Saturday.

Five things to watch as Lions look to improve playoff chances with win over the Rams

With playoff chances on the line again, the Lions hope to tap into the success they found in the win against the Dallas Cowboys last week when they face Matthew Stafford and the Rams in Los Angeles on Sunday.

A win would give the Lions (8-6) a 72-percent chance of making the playoffs while a loss would drop that percentage down around 30 percent. Huge difference.

The Rams (10-3) are seeking to win the NFC West over Seattle (10-3) and San Francisco (9-4).

Against the Cowboys, the Lions played some of their best complementary football this season.

“Man, we were all just clicking at the right time. It was like if something went against us, we lost a little bit of momentum, man, the other unit picked it up,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “They shut it down. So, they score over there, we score. They score, we score. We fizzle out, defense gets a takeaway or gets the stop. They make a play, special teams, we get it to the 45. There’s a return to the minus-45, those are huge. That’s when – all the other stuff doesn’t matter. When you can do that in a game, that’s how you win games in this League.”

The last time Detroit and the Rams met was to open the 2024 season. The Lions pulled out a 26-20 overtime win. In January 2024, the Lions squeaked out a 24-23 playoff win in Detroit.

It’s an interesting recent history. Another chapter will be added on Sunday.

Five things to watch:

ONE: The Lions defense had three takeaways in the win over Dallas, they need to work some of that magic again. “We were able to disrupt what they were doing, and it paid huge dividends. It got us three takeaways, or really two. Had a lateral that was huge. So, we’ve got to do that again,’’ Campbell said. “The front is just as important as the backend. These guys will understand what they’re getting ready to face. We know this is an outstanding quarterback, he’s got weapons, and they’re versatile. And like I said, very good coaching. We’ve got to find a way to get takeaways, you’ve got to do it. We’ve got to do it again.”

TWO: Prevent Matthew Stafford, the odds-on favorite for the League’s MVP, from throwing explosive passes downfield. Easier said than done as he will try to manipulate the Lions defense. “But at some point, if you just sit there and he’s baiting you, if you don’t move, he’s going to throw it. So, you’ve still got to move, it’s just understanding, you could be – he could be trying to move you here a little bit, he could be trying to manipulate you,’’ Campbell said. “You’ve got to play your keys, and look, we’ve got to get to him upfront. We’ve got to cause some disruption.’’

THREE: The linebackers once again must help out the beat-up secondary. Brian Branch is out for the season and Kerby Joseph won’t play following a setback in his recovery. That makes linebacker Jack Campbell, Alex Anzalone and Derrick Barnes keys to the defensive success. “They’re big, and they’re one of the reasons – all of those guys were a factor, but man, we put a lot on our backers the other day. Some of those coverages we were playing a lot of, and that puts an enormous amount of stress on your linebackers,’’ Campbell said. “… So, the guys are going after the football and it shows, it pays dividends. You go after the football, you see what you hit, you make a concerted effort. One of your teammates gets him wrapped up, the other one comes in there and takes the ball away. Bite the football. And we’ve got to do it again, we have to.”

FOUR: A big deal has been made this week about the rematch between Stafford and Jared Goff. Both are in the upper echelon of NFL QBs this season — Stafford leads the NFL with 35 touchdown passes while Goff is second with 26. . Goff has made the best of the situation with a rebuilt offensive line. “He doesn’t blink. He doesn’t blink. I mean there’s times where he’s getting his butt kicked, he just gets right back up. That’s one of his strengths, he’s mentally tough,’’ offensive coordinator John Morton said. “And his preparation is the key to our success, just like everybody. I mean our guys, they do a great job, our coaches do a great job preparing everybody. But when you’ve got a guy like that, it’s pretty special. And when things don’t go right and through his preparation, he sees certain things and gets to it just like he did a couple weeks ago. And it’s helped us. It’s helped us a few times. But run and pass, he always gets us in the right play.’’

FIVE: Dan Campbell has improved at calling the offense and getting the ball to RB Jahmyr Gibbs to run or his increasing role as a pass catcher. “He’s certainly filled some of those targets and catches for us, and he can just do so much. And it’s kind of like he’s just scratching the surface on his route running ability and what he can do out in the backfield,’’ Goff said. Campbell said Gibbs gives them a lot of flexibility. ”I’ve said this before, the more that we ask him to do, the better he gets and the more he can do. But he allows us to do a lot, so he’s a good player. He’s a good player and he’s only getting better,’’ the coach said.

LIONS INJURIES: OUT — S Kerby Joseph, DB Brian Branch, G Christian Mahogany and S Thomas Harper. QUESTIONABLE — LT Taylor Decker, WR Kalif Raymond, G Kayode Awosika, RB Sione Vaki and TE Shane Zylstra.

RAMS INJURIES: WR Davante Adams is questionable.

PREDICTION: Lions 28, Rams 27

Five reasons the Lions rolled in 44-22 win over Commanders

Campbell’s play-calling sparked the offense

That was more like it for the Detroit Lions who lived up to their standards in all three phases while defeating the Washington Commanders, 44-22, on Sunday.

With coach Dan Campbell taking over the play-calling on offense, the Lions scored on eight straight possessions before taking a knee late.

“I thought he did a great job, he was dialed in and had us really rolling there,’’ quarterback Jared Goff told FOX.

Campbell said he made the decision last week to handle the offensive play-calling instead of offensive coordinator John Morton.

“I know what I want to do, I know how I want to do it. This is a collaborative effort. I was taking input from John Morton that whole time and the other coaches,’’ Campbell said. “… This is all-encompassing, we all work together. The coaches did a helluva job. I just wanted to change it up a little bit. Let’s see if maybe a different play-caller can maybe get us more rhythm.’’

That is exactly what happened with the offense rolling up 546 yards.

Five reasons Lions won:

ONE: The Lions run game is back. While credit to the offensive line is due, running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery got blocks all around. Campbell emphasizes a good run game requires all 11 on the field to be precise. That’s exactly what he saw. Gibbs had a monster game with 15 carries for 142 yards with two rushing TDs and three catches for 30 yards and a receiving TD. Montgomery chipped in with 14 carries for 62 yards.Overall the Lions rushed for 226 yards.

TWO: The offensive line, even without left guard Christian Mahogany, played solidly – Goff was not sacked and threw for 320 yards and three touchdowns. “From the first time we ran the ball you could see the surge,’’ Campbell said. Right tackle Penei Sewell sat out a few plays early after an injury but got back in. Dan Skipper saw action as the sixth offensive lineman and then filled in for Taylor Decker in the final seven minutes when the game was firmly in Detroit’s control.

THREE: Wide receiver Jameson Williams got more involved. Remember him? Sometimes it seems that he’s not much of a factor in the offensive plans. Making sure he gets touches is key and that happened Sunday. Jamo had six catches for 119 yards and a touchdown. His speed is lethal but it does not matter unless they find a way to get him the ball like they did on Sunday. He’s been doing a great job, he’s been busting his rear every day he comes to work. “He’s been unbelievable, we just hadn’t connected,’’ Campbell said. “Today we got him going, Goff got him going, made some throws, he made some big-time plays. It was good to see, his confidence was up, he’s ripping and roaring, he’s very much a part of our guys.’’

FOUR: Detroit’s defense limited explosive plays and held the Commanders to 288 yards and 2-of-10 on third downs. The Commanders average 139.9 rushing yards per game and were held to 93. “Defensively to handle the tempo they had and played with over there that’s not easy if you don’t see that all the time,’’ Campbell said. “They do a lot of different things.’’

FIVE: It was a solid Lions effort across the board – in all three phases. Campbell preaches the need for this and usually gets it, but he didn’t in the loss to the Vikings a week ago. The Lions extend the streak of not having lost back-to-back games in more than three years. “Good to see our guys respond, I’m not surprised I knew they’d be ready to go, it’s just what they do,’’ Campbell said. “We’ve got the right guys, you could feel it all week — the intensity, the focus — they wanted to get back in the win column.

UP NEXT: Lions (6-3) at Philadelphia Eagles, 8:20 p.m., Sunday, Nov 16.The Eagles face the Packers on Monday Night Football.