As a Toronto Blue Jays fan, I did not expect to feel further disappointment after losing Game 7 of the World Series in extra innings. Leave it to the Detroit Lions to make a bad weekend even worse for me.
Coming off a bye week, the Lions were heavily favored against the Minnesota Vikings—they were rested, they were healthier, and frankly, they looked better. Instead, it was Minnesota playing complementary football and Detroit struggling with execution. The Lions looked outclassed and now have to address some serious issues with the Washington Commanders coming up next week.
Winner: Sam LaPorta, TE
LaPorta has been quietly fantastic this season. His performance goes underappreciated, however, as his role has been more that of a safety blanket than the offense’s engine. That changed on Sunday, as LaPorta was arguably the Lions’ best player against Minnesota. Though Amon-Ra St. Brown had him beat in receptions (nine to LaPorta’s six), LaPorta tied the All-Pro receiver in yardage with 97. In particular, LaPorta thrived in the clutch. He had a 40-yard touchdown grab on fourth down on the opening drive. Late in the fourth quarter, LaPorta again converted a fourth down, this time rumbling for 17 yards.
On a day when the offense was not at its best, LaPorta was an unsung hero in a losing effort.
Loser: John Morton, OC
It’s time to admit that the Lions have a problem with their offense.
Outside of a dominant first drive (largely due to Sam LaPorta), the offense was inept. A summary of the Lions’ and Morton’s failure came at the two-minute warning. On second-and-2 down 10 points with 2:22 left in the game, the Lions ran a no-huddle shotgun run up the middle for a gain of a measly 1 yard. The Lions did not get another play off before the two-minute warning. The Lions scored on a deep shot to Jameson Williams, but by wasting the clock stoppage, it gave Minnesota an extra opportunity to run out the clock—something they quickly capitalized on.
Moments like these are a symptom of the problem: the Lions under Morton are stubbornly dedicated to running the ball up the middle and executing short passes. Jahmyr Gibbs had three catches for three yards—they refuse to utilize him as anything other than a dump off option. Outside of the first and last drives, the Lions could hardly muster a successful drive. They had four three-and-outs, plus a fifth three-play drive that ended due to a fumble. The Lions offense is better than this.
Winner: Jameson Williams, WR
For all the bad from the offense today, at least Williams had a much-needed bounce back. Williams finished the day with four catches for 66 yards and a touchdown. He provided the Lions with one of their few sparks on the day, carefully navigating the sideline en route to a 37-yard touchdown dive. This was a much-needed performance to get Williams clicking again. Ideally, I would like to see some of his production earlier in the game, but I think that is a fault with the offense.
Loser: David Montgomery, RB
Montgomery may have had a rushing touchdown, but it was otherwise a game to forget for the veteran—a concerning trend of late. Coming off a paltry 13-carry, 21-yard outing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Montgomery was once again ineffective on the ground, turning 11 carries into 40 yards—on paper, an average of 3.6 yards per attempt, but it is buoyed by a long of 11 yards. The burst that we saw against the Baltimore Ravens has been largely absent, the yards after contact are down, and the broken tackles are too few and far between. Worse yet, when the Lions finally converted a third-and-long thanks to Montgomery’s best run of the day, his 11-yard rumble, he fumbled and gave the Vikings the football.
Loser: Interior offensive line
Part of the reason why Detroit has failed to muster an explosive run game is due to their interior. The Vikings boasted a pass rush-orientated defensive line, a matchup that should have been exploitable for the Lions. Instead, the Lions were struggling to pave the way for either Gibbs or Montgomery. The Lions finished with just 65 yards on 20 carries, a subpar average of 3.3 yards per attempt. Their longest of the day was just 11 yards, which happened to be a costly play for the offense.
Things were even worse in the passing game. Jared Goff was under fire all game long, and the interior in particular was at fault. Goff, normally stellar under pressure, looked befuddled from the interior pass rush of the Vikings. The Lions passing attack rarely had time to throw downfield due to the collapsing pocket. Goff can manage pressure from the outside by stepping up. When the pressure it coming from the middle, it forces him to get mobile—far from his strength.
With Christian Mahogany suffering what looks like a significant leg injury, the offseason losses of Frank Ragnow and Kevin Zeitler loom even larger for Detroit. What was once a strength for the Lions looks like a glaring weakness heading into a pivotal tilt against the Washington Commanders, a team boasting some stellar interior pass rushers.
Winner: Jack Campbell, LB
Campbell has continued his accension towards an All-Pro level of play. The star linebacker finished the game with nine tackles, adding to his team-leading tally. Tackles can some times be a misleading stat—a case of being in the right place at the right time—but Campbell has certainly earned his tackle total. He pursues and tackles like the league’s best. Not to be forgotten is his ability to blitz, translating his coverage speed into immediate pass rush speed. Campbell recorded one sack and came a split second away from a second—though the officials penalized him for a laughable roughing the passer.
Loser: Special teams
It was an outright failure from the special teams unit. On kickoffs, Vikings returner Myles Price had a staggering 164 yards on just five returns, setting up the Vikings with great field position throughout the day. Price even had a touchdown called back on a holding penalty—sure, the hold likely contributed to the touchdown, but Price was still motoring well before that point. The coverage unit looked bewildered. The NFL changed the kickoff rules because they wanted it to change from a “nothing” play to a positive one. For Detroit, it has been nothing but negative.
Sprinkle in a blocked Jake Bates field goal—and a return that set up the Vikings’ game-winning field goal—and it was a forgetful outing for Dave Fipp’s crew.
Loser: Dan Campbell, HC
I will keep this short but not sweet: a performance like this out of the bye week is unacceptable. The Lions did not look like a 5-2 team on a week’s rest. They were sloppy across multiple facets, committing far too many careless penalties—at one point they had a CFL-esque penalty where LaPorta and St. Brown were in motion at the same time.
Under Campbell, the Lions had been known for players buying in to the culture and mentality. None of that was present on Sunday. This team simply looked flat and lifeless, and that falls on the head coach for failing to rally the troops. Campbell will get credit for a successful challenge, but aside from that, the team looked ill-prepared for what should have been a favorable matchup against a division rival.
Loser: NFL rulebook
I firmly believe that of the major North American sports, the NFL has the worst rulebook. There are too many rules mired in controversy and uncertainty—we have spent more than enough time debating what is or is not a catch. In the NFL’s defense, football is a difficult sport to officiate because of the fast-paced nature of the game and the fact that so many decisions are not black and white. That being said, there are some rules that outright ruin the game.
Linebacker Jack Campbell was flagged for a textbook hit on quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Per the NFL rulebook, defenders are discouraged from tackling quarterbacks with their full body weight. By the letter of the law, they called this a penalty:
This is my biggest gripe with the NFL. If this type of play is enough to warrant a penalty, then their rule is flat-out wrong. I fully understand trying to protect quarterbacks, but how can you look at this play and come to the conclusion that the NFL needs to remove it? Why are we penalizing players for making fundamentally sound and safe plays? It feels insulting to have a broadcast rules expert chime with “That’s the rule” as if that will make the penalty any more forgiving. This is not a hip drop tackle. This is not a hit to the head. This is not a late hit. This is not a dangerous hit. These are professional football players. If getting tackled is illegal, then this is not a sport I want to watch. Save it for flag football for the 2028 Olympics.
And guess what? They got the rule wrong ANYWAY:
Not only do they have an awful rule, they are not even officiating it properly.
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