As the Detroit Lions 2011 season and first play-off game since 1999 comes to an end, I want to say I am proud to be a Lions fan. Sure the score says the Lions lost by more than two touchdowns, but this score does not tell the whole story.
Despite the refs making two calls that hurt the Lions, one taking a sure touchdown away from them, the Lions still went into half-time with a 14 to 10 lead. In the first half, the Lions out played the New Orleans Saints. Then something happened. The Saints seemed to make adjustments and the Lions did not.
In the second half, the Saints started moving the ball with ease and Drew Brees had very little pressure on him. As the second half continued, the pressure never appeared and Gunther Cunningham never adjusted to create some. The Lions front four failed to get in Brees' face at all and you simply cannot allow an elite quarterback to sit comfortably in the pocket. He will eat you alive. Drew Brees did just that. The Saints had 6 drives in the second half of the game. The first five ended with touchdowns and the sixth ended with Brees taking a knee in the redzone.
I stated in the pregame article that if the front four failed to get pressure on Brees and Gunther doesn't start blitzing to get to him, it would be game over. Well, game over!
In Gunther's defense, the Lions defensive players did not play a good second half. It was as if they had forgotten how to tackle. At least twice in the game a defensive player had an interception put into his hands only to see the ball fall harmlessly to the ground. But however bad the tackling was, and however bad their hands were, it does not excuse Gunther from not being aggressive to get in Brees face. There were few stunts and very limited blitzing and for that scheme, Drew Brees had a field day in the second half.
Yet the game was not all bad and as I mentioned before, the Lions still made me proud of them tonight....
They did not let their youthful pride get loose and pick up a lot of stupid penalties.
They showed they could stick with a team that many experts are picking to win the Superbowl and even out played them in the first half.
In a game the entire football world was watching, the Detroit Lions kept their heads, played professionally, and looked like they belonged in the Playoffs.
I can only get excited for the next season to begin. I cannot wait to see what moves are made in the off-season and I look forward to the 2012 April draft more than ever before. I say to the world, watch us next year! Watch us next year. For now, I am more proud of being a Lions fan than any time since the turn of the century.
1/6/12
Lions vs Saints - Playoffs Wildcard Game
The Saints have not lost at home. The Saints are dominating at home. The Saints are one of the favorites to win the Superbowl. The Saints have Drew Brees who broke the NFL record for passing yards in a season. The Detroit Lions don't have a chance to beat the Saints.
Yeah, I get sick of hearing that too!
Try taking these facts out for a test drive....
1) Drew Brees is the top ranked quarterback in passing yards and the Lions pass defense is the 22nd ranked defense in passing yards. A difference of 21 spots. On the other hand, Matthew Stafford is the #3 QB in passing yards while the Saints defense ranks at #30 in passing yards allowed. A difference of 27 spots. Advantage: LIONS
2) The Detroit Lions are 4th in the NFL in Turn Over Ratio at +11, while the Saints are 20th at a ratio of -3. Advantage: LIONS
3) As great as Brees has been, he has thrown 14 picks this year and he has been healthy all year. On the other side of the ball, 9 of Stafford's 16 picks came while he was playing with gloves on dealing with a broken index finger on his throwing hand. Take those three games away and Stafford has been far better at protecting the ball than Brees has. Advantage: LIONS
4) The last time these teams met, the Lions were without Louis Delmas, Chris Houston and Ndamukong Suh. All three will be back this week.
The Saints are favored as they should be, but make no mistakes, the Lions will not be walked over. The Lions offense is nearly as good as the Saints offense and lately maybe as good or better. If they come out clicking as they have in games late in the season, they will score plenty of points on the Saints defense. The real question will be on which Detroit Lions defense shows up.
The way to beat ANY quarterback in the NFL is to get in his face with pressure. The Lions front four needs to have a good day. If they cannot get pressure on Brees, the pressure will be on Cunningham to start taking chances and blitzing. Even if he gets burnt! The very last thing the Lions want to do is allow Drew Brees time to sit back comfortably and pick open receivers. The Lions must get to him and get to him fast and often! If the defensive line does not create a lot of pressure and Cunningham refuses to blitz to help them? Game over!
Let us make another thing clear right here and now. The Lions defense is not as bad as the unit we saw in Green Bay! That was their worst outing of the season and it simply should not be expected to happen a second week in a row. The front four will usually put more pressure on the quarterbacks, the secondary will usually make more plays and all in all, they are much better than we saw in that game. Having Delmas and Berry back on the field should make a big difference all on its own.
If the Lions defense plays like I know they can, and the offense plays well, this could very well be a Lions play-off win. In fact, I think that is what will happen!
Yeah, I get sick of hearing that too!
Try taking these facts out for a test drive....
1) Drew Brees is the top ranked quarterback in passing yards and the Lions pass defense is the 22nd ranked defense in passing yards. A difference of 21 spots. On the other hand, Matthew Stafford is the #3 QB in passing yards while the Saints defense ranks at #30 in passing yards allowed. A difference of 27 spots. Advantage: LIONS
2) The Detroit Lions are 4th in the NFL in Turn Over Ratio at +11, while the Saints are 20th at a ratio of -3. Advantage: LIONS
3) As great as Brees has been, he has thrown 14 picks this year and he has been healthy all year. On the other side of the ball, 9 of Stafford's 16 picks came while he was playing with gloves on dealing with a broken index finger on his throwing hand. Take those three games away and Stafford has been far better at protecting the ball than Brees has. Advantage: LIONS
4) The last time these teams met, the Lions were without Louis Delmas, Chris Houston and Ndamukong Suh. All three will be back this week.
The Saints are favored as they should be, but make no mistakes, the Lions will not be walked over. The Lions offense is nearly as good as the Saints offense and lately maybe as good or better. If they come out clicking as they have in games late in the season, they will score plenty of points on the Saints defense. The real question will be on which Detroit Lions defense shows up.
The way to beat ANY quarterback in the NFL is to get in his face with pressure. The Lions front four needs to have a good day. If they cannot get pressure on Brees, the pressure will be on Cunningham to start taking chances and blitzing. Even if he gets burnt! The very last thing the Lions want to do is allow Drew Brees time to sit back comfortably and pick open receivers. The Lions must get to him and get to him fast and often! If the defensive line does not create a lot of pressure and Cunningham refuses to blitz to help them? Game over!
Let us make another thing clear right here and now. The Lions defense is not as bad as the unit we saw in Green Bay! That was their worst outing of the season and it simply should not be expected to happen a second week in a row. The front four will usually put more pressure on the quarterbacks, the secondary will usually make more plays and all in all, they are much better than we saw in that game. Having Delmas and Berry back on the field should make a big difference all on its own.
If the Lions defense plays like I know they can, and the offense plays well, this could very well be a Lions play-off win. In fact, I think that is what will happen!
1/1/12
Lions Lose to Packers 41-45
There are a lot of upset Lions fans tonight as the Detroit Lions lost to the Green Bay Packers 41 to 45. I for one am not so upset over it.
The Lions offense came to play as Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson had career days. Stafford threw for over 500 yards and connected for 5 touchdowns before all was said and done. Calvin Johnson caught 11 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown. Unfortunately the Packers backup quarterback, Matt Flynn, had a better day as he threw for 480 yards and 6 TDs.
It was a high offensive game for both teams but it looked as if both teams also left their defenses behind. Both teams had seven drives that ended with a score. Unfortunately, the Packers had one more that ended with a touchdown rather than a field goal.
Don't take the disappointment to heart though. Sure it would have been nice to face the Giants in the first round rather than the Saints, but but there are some positives.
1) The Lions are still in the play-offs and nobody got hurt in this game.
2) The Lions defensive showing was their worst of the season. They are sure to be better than that in the play-offs.
3)(And this one is my personal favorite)... Consider the dream scenario being staged for the Lions. To win the Superbowl now, they will likely have to go through the big three (Saints, Packers, & 49ers) to get to the Superbowl. We do that and there will be no asterisk next to our Superbowl. There will be nobody who can say the Lions didn't not belong or did not deserve it. I don't think a better stage could be written for a Lions Superbowl appearance.
As bad as the Lions defense looked, they were not the worst group on the field this game. No it was not the Packers defense either. I would give the worst gameball to the officials. I in no way put this loss on the backs of the officials, but they were still bad enough that I have no choice but to talk about them.
After Schwartz had already won one challenge, Stefan Logan lost the ball when he was tackle. In my opinion it was obvious the ball came out after he was already down on the ground but the refs called it a fumble and the Packers recovered it. Schwartz used his second and final challenge on the play and in the replays, contrary to what the announcers said, I believed it was clear he still had possession of the ball. Still the officials came back and said the play stands and it was the Packers ball. Two plays later, Alfonso Smith intercepted a pass from Flynn and the Lions got the ball back. On 2nd & 6, at the Packers 11 yard line, Stafford threw a pass to Titus Young and the rookie receiver caught and dragged his toes in the end-zone for a touchdown. The refs called it out of bounds. Unfortunately Schwartz had already used both of his challenges and was not allowed to force a replay. Detroit was robbed of a touchdown and then had to settle for a field goal.
I have seen some bad officiating this year and last. This game was one of the worst. A series of bad calls like that does not only rob a team of points, but it can also kill any momentum they have going. Calls like that can take players out of their game no matter how good or professional they are. It is sad it has happened so often in the last two year. Again, the Lions lost because they did not play defense. Mainly because they did not aggressively go after the quarterback, but this kind of sad officiating has too much effect on a team and cannot continue to happen.
The Lions offense came to play as Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson had career days. Stafford threw for over 500 yards and connected for 5 touchdowns before all was said and done. Calvin Johnson caught 11 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown. Unfortunately the Packers backup quarterback, Matt Flynn, had a better day as he threw for 480 yards and 6 TDs.
It was a high offensive game for both teams but it looked as if both teams also left their defenses behind. Both teams had seven drives that ended with a score. Unfortunately, the Packers had one more that ended with a touchdown rather than a field goal.
Don't take the disappointment to heart though. Sure it would have been nice to face the Giants in the first round rather than the Saints, but but there are some positives.
1) The Lions are still in the play-offs and nobody got hurt in this game.
2) The Lions defensive showing was their worst of the season. They are sure to be better than that in the play-offs.
3)(And this one is my personal favorite)... Consider the dream scenario being staged for the Lions. To win the Superbowl now, they will likely have to go through the big three (Saints, Packers, & 49ers) to get to the Superbowl. We do that and there will be no asterisk next to our Superbowl. There will be nobody who can say the Lions didn't not belong or did not deserve it. I don't think a better stage could be written for a Lions Superbowl appearance.
As bad as the Lions defense looked, they were not the worst group on the field this game. No it was not the Packers defense either. I would give the worst gameball to the officials. I in no way put this loss on the backs of the officials, but they were still bad enough that I have no choice but to talk about them.
After Schwartz had already won one challenge, Stefan Logan lost the ball when he was tackle. In my opinion it was obvious the ball came out after he was already down on the ground but the refs called it a fumble and the Packers recovered it. Schwartz used his second and final challenge on the play and in the replays, contrary to what the announcers said, I believed it was clear he still had possession of the ball. Still the officials came back and said the play stands and it was the Packers ball. Two plays later, Alfonso Smith intercepted a pass from Flynn and the Lions got the ball back. On 2nd & 6, at the Packers 11 yard line, Stafford threw a pass to Titus Young and the rookie receiver caught and dragged his toes in the end-zone for a touchdown. The refs called it out of bounds. Unfortunately Schwartz had already used both of his challenges and was not allowed to force a replay. Detroit was robbed of a touchdown and then had to settle for a field goal.
I have seen some bad officiating this year and last. This game was one of the worst. A series of bad calls like that does not only rob a team of points, but it can also kill any momentum they have going. Calls like that can take players out of their game no matter how good or professional they are. It is sad it has happened so often in the last two year. Again, the Lions lost because they did not play defense. Mainly because they did not aggressively go after the quarterback, but this kind of sad officiating has too much effect on a team and cannot continue to happen.
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