The Detroit Lions are back on the road in Chicago this afternoon after a three-game home stint where they beat the Bears and Packers and lost to the Bills. The Lions went 91 days between losses, and Lions head coach Dan Campbell said last week’s loss to Buffalo left a bad taste in their mouth.
Can Detroit hit the road and get back on track as they look to keep pace with Philadelphia (12-2) and Minnesota (12-2) atop the NFC?
1. Run game
This isn’t the first time running back Jahmyr Gibbs will be tasked with handling a bigger portion of the run duties without David Montgomery, who will miss time rehabbing a knee injury. Gibbs did it three times last year when Montgomery missed games due to injury and recorded 54 carries for 300 yards with two touchdowns and also caught 15 passes in those three contests. He had 26 carries for 154 yards and a touchdown in a win over Las Vegas last season as the No. 1 back.
Craig Reynolds is a very capable backup, and Sione Vaki and Jermar Jefferson (practice squad) could get some carries too. Detroit has to be better today than the 48 yards they produced on the ground last week vs. Buffalo. In the first matchup with Chicago, Detroit ran for 194 yards and averaged 5.9 yards per carry.
2. Who needs to step up on defense?
Detroit lost three more defenders last week with defensive lineman Alim McNeill (knee), cornerback Carlton Davis III (jaw) and cornerback Khalil Dorsey (ankle) all being placed on IR. It’s an undermanned group, no doubt, but it’s a unit that still has playmakers.
Detroit’s generated just one takeaway over the last four games. Safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch have been Detroit’s leaders in that department all year and have to get back to being those guys for this defense moving forward.
3. Red-zone offense
The Lions jumped out to a 16-0 halftime lead against the Bears in the first matchup on Thanksgiving at Ford Field, but that lead could have been much bigger had Detroit converted field goals into touchdowns in the red zone. Detroit was just 2-for-5 in the red zone and could have led 24-0 at the half in what ended up being a close 23-20 Lions’ victory.
The Bears are one of the better red-zone defenses in the NFL. They rank third in that department allowing a touchdown less than half the time (48.2 percent). Lions quarterback Jared Goff told the Twentyman in the Huddle podcast this week the red zone has been a point of emphasis for the offense.
4. Can Goff and the passing attack keep on rolling?
The Lions are No. 1 in the NFL in points (32.8) and second in total offense (403.9). Goff has the most games this season (7) with a 75-percent-or-higher completion percentage. His 110.4 passer rating is second best in the NFL as he’s thrown 30 touchdowns vs. 10 interceptions. He’s coming off a performance last week in which he threw for 494 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions.
The Lions’ offense can score points and if they need to win some shootouts down the stretch as they wait for some injured defenders to return, they’ve shown they can do it. Since Week 7 Chicago’s defense is 32nd in total QBR allowed (68), 31st in drives that result in points (49 percent) and 30th in pass rush win-rate (27 percent).
5. Road warriors
There’s something about going on the road and having a Detroit-vs-Everybody mentality that seems to suit this team. The Lions are the only team in the NFL that are unbeaten on the road this season
“We come together on the road,” Goff said after Detroit’s last win on the road in Indianapolis. “We are road warriors. It’s an us-against-them mentality.”
Detroit is averaging 28.6 points per game away from Ford Field while allowing 15.6 per game. Can the Lions hand Chicago their ninth straight loss and stay perfect on the road this season?
