7 winners, 3 losers from the Lions’ first month of 2024

Heading into the bye week, it’s a good time to take a look at who and what has been working for the Lions and what hasn’t so far this season. Here are 7 winners, 3 losers.

One month into the 2024 campaign and the Detroit Lions are 3-1, with wins over the Los Angeles Rams, Arizona Cardinals and the Seattle Seahawks. The Lions have a tough schedule ahead, but it’s nice to take a break and look back to see how the team has been doing a month into the season so far.

We have seen some players step up and surprise fans with their impact on the field. Others are continuing their success from the previous season, and unfortunately things aren’t always positive as there are some struggles on the team. Overall, though, you can’t be upset with a 3-1 start, and with some much needed rest, the Lions can take the weekend off and get ready for the Dallas Cowboys next week.

For now, check out my winners and losers through the first four weeks of the season.

Winners

Jared Goff

While he hasn’t had a perfect start to the season, Lions quarterback Jared Goff has started playing better as the season has progressed. Coming off a perfect 18-for-18 for 292 yards and two touchdowns, along with a 7-yard receiving touchdown game against the Seahawks, Goff is getting into his groove. He has thrown for 1,015 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions this season, and in the first four games last year, Goff threw 1,029 yards with six touchdowns and three interceptions. So while it’s not as good as last season, it’s pretty close and his completion percentage is up from 69.5 percent to 71.0.

One thing that has helped Goff is his chemistry with wide receiver Jameson Williams has grown. The two didn’t get much time together in 2022 with Williams injury, and in 2023 Williams lost time with his suspension. Now with a full offseason and preseason together, Goff is starting to trust Williams more and take more shots towards him. With Goff already trusting wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and tight end Sam LaPorta, adding Williams to his arsenal is he needs.

Goff hasn’t just been slinging the rock on deep passes, he has been making comfortable and safe throws over the middle and towards the sideline. Against Seattle, Goff did well in avoiding the pressure that came in from the defense, something he normally struggles with.

Goff hasn’t had an earth-shattering start to the season, but the team doesn’t need him to be playing like an MVP. They have a strong run game and offensive line that can take pressure off Goff and the passing game.

Ground attack

Speaking of the ground game, there is no better running back duo in the NFL than Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. While having two starting-level running backs is starting to become a common theme around the NFL, the Lions duo is just a step above the rest. So far, Gibbs has 285 yards, three rushing touchdowns, 76 receiving yards and a touchdown. Montgomery has 271 yards, four rushing touchdowns, and 94 receiving yards.

In the NFL right now, Gibbs is 13th in rushing yards and Montgomery is 15th. If one of them took over as the main starter, they’d be in the top-five, but there isn’t a need for that. They each have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it keeps both of them fresh, which helps the Lions ground game effective with a running back who ain’t tired.

The Lions are currently sixth in rushing yards in the NFL with 605, eighth in yards per carry with 4.7, and tied for fourth in rushing touchdowns with seven. Overall, the ground game has been the most dangerous part about this Lions offense. The offensive line upgraded with Kevin Zeitler at right guard, which makes the jobs for the running backs even easier. Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson can craft up different runs and styles to always leave defenses guessing.

Aidan Hutchinson

Flipping to the defensive side of the football, you have to start with defensive end Aidan Hutchinson. He is the leading candidate for NFL Defensive Player of the Year, according to Fanduel with +250 odds. He is having a fantastic season so far, with an NFL-leading 6.5 sacks, and according to NextGen Stats, leads the NFL in pressures with 25.

Since arriving in the NFL, Hutchinson has been a problem for opposing offensive lines, but the biggest issue he has had is the lack of help alongside him. The Lions have given him some help on the interior with the signing of defensive tackle DJ Reader to go alongside defensive tackle Alim McNeill. With that help, and contributions from other defensive ends, Hutchinson is starting to show up and show out.

Jameson Williams

Who had Williams leading the Lions in receiving yards heading into the bye week? Yep, that’s right, Williams is the leading receiver in Detroit with 289 yards and is tied with St. Brown for receiving touchdowns with two. Williams is finally breaking out after having a rough start to his career.

We saw some glimpses of what Williams could be in 2023 with some explosive plays in the regular season and the playoffs. The biggest question this year for him was if he could take over as the number two receiver, and that answer appears to be yes. Williams isn’t just running go routes and asked to catch only deep passes, he is getting used on the ground with jet sweeps, and on short-to-medium yardage throws. He is on pace for my 1,000-yard prediction as he needed to average 59 yards a game and right now he is averaging 72.

Kerby Joseph

After having a strong rookie season, safety Kerby Joseph took a step back in 2023. With the team moving on from Tracy Walker, Joseph would be taking over as the veteran safety in 2024. With fellow defensive back Brian Branch moving to safety, Joseph had an even bigger responsibility, and so far he seems to be having his best season ever. He has 22 tackles, four pass deflections, three interceptions, and one tackle for loss so far this season. According to PFF, Joseph is the fifth-best safety, with a defensive grade of 83.8, and fifth-best coverage grade for safeties with an 80.7 grade.

In his previous two seasons, Joseph had four interceptions each year and he’s already one shy of that mark for 2024. He is the playmaker of the defense, leading the team in turnovers and coming up big when the team needs a play on defense. Whether it’s to end the game, or give the offense a much needed boost, Joseph is there for this team and helps the secondary out big time.

Run defense

Once again, the Lions defense is great at stopping the running game. Last season, the Lions had the second-fewest amount of rushing yards. So far this year, they are fourth-best in the NFL.

McNeill and Reader have been clogging up the interior. McNeill is the 10th ranked defensive tackle according to PFF with a defensive grade of 75.4, and Reader is at 14th with a grade of 73.8. Those two have helped lead the charge, but it’s not just them who have helped in the run defense. Hutchinson, defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike, and the linebacker room have all contributed to the success of stopping the rushing attack.

Levi Onwuzurike

Speaking of Onwuzurike, he is having a breakout season and finally showing what he is capable of. After overcoming a back injury that slowed him down in the first two to three seasons, Onwuzurike is having a big impact on the defensive line and showing why he was drafted in the second round back in 2021.

He has 10 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble. According to NextGen Stats, he also has nine pressures, which is second only to Hutchinson on the team. With him in the final year of his contract, general manager Brad Holmes will have an interesting decision on his hands.

Losers

Sloppy play

The Lions have had some sloppy play this year that has shown up often in various ways. First is penalties the team has committed. Detroit has been called for 31 penalties this season, and are on pace to be called for 132, which would be 25 more than last year. Detroit must play cleaner football.

Another issue is the poor tackling. Against the Seahawks, running back Kenneth Walker III broke away from defenders and kept some plays alive due to poor tackling. Detroit similarly struggled to bring down skill position players in Week 1 against the Rams. While the Lions won both of those games, Detroit’s poor tackling allowed both teams to stay in it longer than they should have.

Injuries

This isn’t something the team can control and it’s something every team is dealing with, but it’s why the early bye week was a positive, not a negative. Center Frank Ragnow suffered a partially torn pec and that injury is the biggest one the team is dealing with right now.

The defense has been dealing with more injuries overall. Linebacker Derrick Barnes on IR with a knee injury, but is expected to return this season. Defensive end Marcus Davenport was also put on IR, but isn’t expected to return this season as he tore his tricep. Those are two starters Detroit will be missing for a long time.

Before the season started, the Lions already put defensive lineman John Cominsky, defensive tackle Brodric Martin, and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley on IR with injuries. While Martin is expected back sooner than Moseley and Cominsky, it still hurts losing those depth pieces.

James Houston

When it comes to a certain player, the one who has stood out for the wrong reasons was defensive end James Houston. With Davenport going on IR, that opened the door for Houston to step up and prove his worth. Unfortunately, Houston has failed at that. He has only seen 17 snaps on the season and has had one tackle, one hurry, and two penalties. When you have more penalties than tackles, you aren’t playing good football.

Houston hasn’t had the impact people expected him to have. I am not sure if it’s due to him still recovering from his injury last season, overall rust, or if he hasn’t been developing like the team expected him too. The team already stripped him of SAM linebacker duties, so he is strictly a pass rusher for the team. If you are only on the roster to do one thing and you’re struggling to do that one thing, you’re going to be in for a bad time.