Lions-Commanders NFCD snap counts: Defense, again, needed to adjust for injury

A look at how the Detroit Lions deployed their snaps against the Washington Commanders in the NFC Divisional round of the playoffs.

Taking a closer look at the snap counts from the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders NFC Divisional round battle in the 2024-25 NFL Playoffs.

Offense

Quarterbacks

Jared Goff: 66 (96%)
Teddy Bridgewater: 3 (4%)
Hendon Hooker: Emergency third quarterback

An unflagged hit to the head following an interception forced Goff to be evaluated for a concussion, and while he missed the next series (a three-play drive that ended with a Jameson Williams 61-yard touchdown run), he returned the following drive.

Running backs

Jahmyr Gibbs: 52 (75%)
David Montgomery: 17 (25%)
Craig Reynolds: 1 (1%) — 15 special teams snaps (52%)
Sione Vaki: 0 (0%) — 24 (83%)

Montgomery got the start but it was clear from the jump that he needed to get his legs back under him and Gibbs got a significant amount of work. It ended up being another monster day for Gibbs (105 rushing yards, six receptions, 70 receiving yards, and two touchdowns) which capped off an unbelievable season.

Tight ends

Sam LaPorta: 67 (97%)
Brock Wright: 17 (25%) — 5 (17%)
Shane Zylstra: 3 (4%) — 21 (72%)

LaPorta finished the season strong, playing nearly every snap and registering six receptions for 51 yards and an insane touchdown. Wright and Zylstra saw their snaps scaled back from recent weeks but this outing lines up with the majority of the season.

Wide receivers

Amon-Ra St. Brown: 66 (96%)
Jameson Williams: 61 (88%)
Tim Patrick: 30 (43%)
Kalif Raymond: 29 (42%) — 10 (34%)
Allen Robinson: 0 (0%)

With the tight ends getting scaled back a bit, the receivers saw a correlating increase in their snaps, most notably Amon-Ra St. Brown and Kalif Raymond. Together, they combined for over half the Lions’ production through the air.

We saw the best and worst of Jameson Williams in this game. He saw four targets (about half what he has seen per game over the last two months) and only secured one catch for 19 yards, but his 61-yard touchdown run illustrated his explosive upside and why he is so dangerous. Unfortunately, his decision to throw a pass on a trick play that led to an interception was arguably the play that ended the Lions’ season. By no means is he totally to blame for the result of this play, but he certainly shares responsibly.

Offensive line

Christian Mahogany: 69 (100%) — 5 (17%)
Graham Glasgow: 69 (100%) — 5 (17%)
Penei Sewell: 69 (100%) — 3 (10%)
Taylor Decker: 69 (100%) — 2 (7%)
Frank Ragnow: 69 (100%)
Dan Skipper: 2 (3%) — 5 (17%)
Michael Niese: 0 (0%) — 5 (17%)
Kayode Awosika: 0 (0%) — 5 (17%)
Kevin Zeitler: INACTIVE — INJURED
Colby Sorsdal: INACTIVE
Giovanni Manu: INACTIVE

Christian Mahogany got his second start of the season and was a force from the Lions’ right guard position. It certainly helps to be playing in between two All-Pros, but Mahogany led the Lions’ PFF grades on offense (92.2 overall) and firmly put his name in the conversation for a starting role in 2025. His ability to on both the left and right side at a high level further helps his case.

With the Lions focused on spreading things out vs. Washington’s defense, Dan Skipper only saw the field as a sixth offensive lineman twice in this game.

Defense

EDGE

Josh Paschal: 66 (88%) — 8 (28%)
Za’Darius Smith: 40 (53%)
Al-Quadin Muhammad: 40 (53%)
Jonah Williams: 9 (12%) — 8 (28%)
Mitchell Agude: INACTIVE

Paschal and Smith saw the majority of starting reps on the edge in this game, with a healthy dose of Muhammad, and filler work from Williams. Paschal and Smith also saw the majority of their reps on the edge but they did show some versatility by taking a handful of snaps inside (Paschal has six, Smith had two).

DT

Levi Onwuzurike: 63 (84%) — 8 (28%)
DJ Reader: 60 (80%)
Myles Adams: 9 (12%)
Chris Smith: 9 (12%)
Pat O’Connor: INACTIVE — INJURED
Brodric Martin: INACTIVE

After splitting reps inside and out for the majority of the season, Levi Onwuzurike played almost exclusively inside in this game (59 inside, four on the edge) helping fill in for an injury-depleted defensive tackle group. Reader once again increased his snaps to also help mitigate the Lions’ losses inside, seeing nearly double the snaps he saw earlier in the season.

Linebackers

Jack Campbell: 75 (100%)
Alex Anzalone: 74 (99%)
Trevor Nowaske: 17 (23%) — 24 (83%)
Jalen Reeves-Maybin: 6 (8%) — 24 (83%)
Anthony Pittman: 0 (0%) — 24 (83%)
Ben Niemann: 0 (0%) — 22 (76%)
Ezekiel Turner: 0 (0%) — 14 (48%)

For the second week in a row, the Lions moved away from deploying their base defense on over 50% of snaps, instead reducing it down to around 30%. That shift meant more subpackage play (most notably from their safeties) with only Campbell and Anzalone on the field.

Cornerbacks

Terrion Arnold: 75 (100%)
Kindle Vildor: 73 (97%) — 11 (38%)
Amik Robertson: 2 (3%)
Stantley Thomas-Oliver: 2 (3%) — 16 (55%)

Robertson broke his arm on the second defensive play of the game, putting an exclamation point on a season full of brutal injuries. Vildor stepped into the starting role opposite Arnold, and while he did decently in coverage, he was changed with missing two tackles. Thomas-Oliver only saw two snaps but was notably one of the 12 players on the field on the Lions’ critical “too many men” on the field play.

Safety

Kerby Joseph: 75 (100%) — 8 (28%)
Brian Branch: 67 (89%)
Ifeatu Melifonwu: 42 (56%) — 1 (3%)
Morice Norris: 22 (29%) — 23 (79%)

In addition to losing Robertson at corner, the Lions also saw Melifonwu and Branch unable to participate at different points of the game due to injuries. While Branch only ended up missing eight snaps, Norris—a UDFA who was just signed to the active roster a few weeks ago—was needed to fill in for Melifonwu. When Melifonwu was on the sidelines and the Lions shifted to nickel sets, Joseph shifted into Melifonwu’s coverage role and Norris took over Joseph’s single-high safety spot.

As an illustration of how bad injuries had impacted the Lions secondary, Arnold was the only one of the five starters in the secondary to finish the season in the role he started. With Carlton Davis out Robertson moved to the outside to fill in until he was injured. Branch (who was a Pro Bowl safety) was forced into the slot to fill in for Robertson. And against the Commanders, Joseph (who was an All-Pro at single-high safety) was moved from his role to fill in for Melifonwu.

Special teams

Jake Bates: 11 (38%)
Jack Fox: 6 (21%)
Hogan Hatten: 6 (21%)

A very standard day of work for the specialists.