Last Updated: November 01, 2023, 03:30 IST
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Coach Dan Campbell could not have picked a greater week for his Detroit Lions to get a bye.
DETROIT: Coach Dan Campbell couldn’t have picked a greater week for his Detroit Lions to get a bye.
Coming off Monday’s 26-14 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, the 6-2 Lions have a full week to relaxation earlier than on the point of play the Los Angeles Chargers on Nov. 12.
“This is perfect timing — this is exactly what you want from a bye week,” Campbell mentioned Monday. “We’ve been at it for eight weeks — 13 if you count training camp — so it couldn’t have come at a better time. We’ll have some reinforcements back by the time we play the Chargers, but everyone is going to get some energy back.”
The Lions beat the Raiders with out No. 1 working again David Montgomery and two starters on the offensive line, middle Frank Ragnow and guard Jonah Jackson.
Another addition to the lineup shall be large receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones, who was acquired from the Cleveland Browns for a 2025 draft decide. A Detroit native who attended Michigan, Peoples-Jones has caught 117 passes for 1,837 yards and eight touchdowns in 4 seasons, and can add some depth to the group of large receivers.
The Lions, although, weren’t in a position so as to add a move rusher, one thing they freely coveted.
“We have a plan in place and we were looking for the right player at the right time and right price,” Campbell mentioned. “That’s not easy, but that’s how we looked at it.”
WHAT’S WORKING
Detroit’s protection held the Raiders to 157 complete internet yards, together with a season-greatest 77 internet passing yards. The Lions sacked Jimmy Garoppolo six instances and held working again Josh Jacobs in test, making it troublesome for Las Vegas to maintain drives.
WHAT NEEDS HELP
The Lions turned the ball over 3 times, together with a fumble on the Raiders 4, and needed to accept 5 area-aim makes an attempt on what seemed to be stable drives. Those are the largest causes they have been solely in a position to flip 486 yards into two touchdowns.
STOCK UP
Running again Jahmyr Gibbs had gotten off to a gradual begin, however confirmed some indicators with 68 yards speeding, 58 yards receiving and a landing in Detroit’s 38-6 blowout loss to the Ravens final week.
It wasn’t a fluke — Gibbs rushed for 152 yards in opposition to the Raiders and added 5 catches for 37 yards extra. He and Montgomery ought to give Detroit a flexible speeding assault after the bye.
STOCK DOWN
QB Jared Goff didn’t throw an interception within the second half of final season, and it was all the time going to be robust to match that tempo.
However, he’s throwing at his highest interception share since becoming a member of the Lions, and two of his 5 picks have been returned for touchdowns.
The Lions have sufficient expertise to beat errors, however they nonetheless don’t have a lot margin of error.
INJURIES
The Lions didn’t maintain many vital accidents in opposition to the Raiders, however one may be pricey. Long snapper Scott Daly would require knee surgical procedure, forcing the Lions to discover a new participant at a troublesome place to fill in midseason.
KEY NUMBER
22. This is the twenty second season at Ford Field, and the one quarterback with a postseason win within the stadium is Ben Roethlisberger in Super Bowl 40. The Lions have a two-sport lead within the NFC North and the Vikings simply misplaced their beginning quarterback, so a house playoff sport is unquestionably inside attain.
NEXT STEPS
While the coaches are going to be watching quite a lot of sport movie from the primary eight weeks, the gamers will time to get well earlier than dealing with the Chargers.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
(This story has not been edited by News18 employees and is revealed from a syndicated information company feed – Associated Press)
