Detroit Lions Week 1 Recap and Review

The Detroit Lions had one of the most deflating season openers in recent memory. The Green Bay Packers looked dominant and Super Bowl-bound in Week 1. Is it time to overreact? According to Dan Campbell, the Lions' 27-13 loss shouldn't be concerning: "It's not what it appears to be. Let's clean up the tape." He did, however, take responsibility: "We didn't play good enough, we don't coach good enough, including me." The Lions' performance in Week 1 poked at many fans' and pundits' concerns about the team this offseason: lack of pass rush, changes on the offensive line, and replacing the coordinators.

Before addressing the issues, it's important to acknowledge the biggest problem the Lions faced: the Green Bay Packers. They looked really good. The Lions helped with that, but the Packers addressed their lack of pass rush and Jordan Love's struggles against the Lions this offseason with the addition of Micah Parsons and some more weapons on offense.

Photo by Sunil GC on Unsplash

The Pass Rush

The Detroit Lions had Aiden Hutchinson return from his injury after nearly a year. He didn't look great. Hutch had only three pressures with no sacks or legal hits. He did hit Jordan Love after an interception that was overturned by a defensive holding on Rock Ya-Sin. Hutchinson will likely take some time to get back into shape, and it shouldn't have been surprising that he isn't back to being the same player yet.

The bigger issue here is that everyone who evaluated the Lions this offseason believed that they needed another pass rusher. They chose not to resign Za'Darius Smith and brought back Marcus Davenport. Davenport was not a game-changer on Sunday, and his injury history raised questions about the Lions' reliance on him as a secondary pass rusher. The Lions finished with only eight pressures per TruMedia.

NFL quarterbacks are too good to have that much time. The Lions' secondary may not have been great (on one play, two DBs followed the same receiver), but it starts with the defensive line.

The Offensive Line

The Lions organization dismissed concerns about the offensive line by emphasizing their internal excitement about rookie guard Tate Ratledge and second-year guard Christian Mahogany. Graham Glasgow will draw the most attention with a disappointing first start at center, replacing recently retired 2x All-Pro and 4x Pro Bowler Frank Ragnow. The interior struggled, but Penei Sewell did not have his best game either. Parsons dominated every matchup he had in this game.

The offensive line helped the Lions rush for 46 yards on 22 carries for roughly two yards per carry. Jared Goff completed 31/39 passes, threw one interception, and was sacked four times. Goff isn't the type of quarterback who can succeed without a strong offensive line. He doesn't move well and isn't the best improviser. He needs time and space. When he has that, he is elite. Without it, he can't win games with mobility or pure arm talent.

The New Coordinators

The Lions lost coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn to the Chicago Bears and New York Jets. The media will likely focus on these losses following the Lions' Week 1 loss, but the Lions have many of the same schematic and playcalling choices this season. The larger problem comes from the personnel changes on the offensive and defensive lines. The loss of Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler showed up in this game. The determination that Davenport is the answer and that Hutchinson would be 100% to start the season is an ongoing issue.

The Verdict

The Lions have issues to clean up. If the offensive and defensive lines don't improve dramatically in short order, the Lions will not make the playoffs. That's a big if. The Lions' confidence is rarely misplaced in the Brad Holmes era. Ratledge and Mahogany may have benefited from more preseason reps, but they will likely improve as the season progresses. The league's best offense from a year ago will not have this steep a fall off. Things will not be the same as they were a year ago, but the Lions' offensive line will improve.

The defensive line is a different story. Alim McNeill will return at some point to help with the interior alongside D.J. Reader, but the pass rush is the big question. Can Hutch return to form? Is Davenport capable of getting to double-digit sacks? The answers to these two questions will determine the Lions' success this season.

Ultimately, it's one week, but the Lions can't deny how ugly it looked. To know if the coaching changes are the biggest issue will take some time. For now, the Lions will need to get back to the basics. Campbell promised that this team will always get back up, "And when you knock us down, we're going to get up and on the way up, we're going to bite a kneecap off." Start with biting the kneecaps off of the Chicago Bears next Sunday.