Post by D6 on Oct 10, 2021 23:20:08 GMT -5
Instant observations: Detroit Lions become first team ever to lose on two buzzer-beaters from beyond 50 yards
Thoughts in ****
Instant observations: Detroit Lions become first team ever to lose on two buzzer-beaters from beyond 50 yards
Updated: 6:09 p.m. | Published: 4:10 p.m.
By Kyle Meinke | kmeinke@mlive.com
MINNEAPOLIS -- When the Detroit Lions cornered Baltimore into a fourth-and-19 with 68 seconds left, their win probability was 99%. Then the improbable happened, from a blown coverage to a blown call and then a banked field goal off the crossbeam at the buzzer.
Nobody, it seems, loses quite like the Detroit Lions.
Then just two weeks later, they did it again.
The Lions roared back in Minnesota with a late field goal and D’Andre Swift touchdown, then added a daring 2-point conversion that gave them a 17-16 lead with 41 seconds left -- and then watched in horror as their prevent defense was ripped apart, setting up a stunning field goal that sent them to a 19-17 loss at the buzzer.
Yes, for the second time in three weeks.
Yes, by the same exact score.
Only the Detroit Lions, right?
Right. No other team in NFL history has ever lost on two field goals from beyond 50 yards at the buzzer. Only the Detroit Lions.
**** Tremendous effort and resiliency by the Lions in this game. Disappointing ending. The aggressive strategy ( for the most part ) on Defense, when the team trailed late in the 4th QTR. and the aggressive strategy of going for the 2 point conversion ( I wouldn't have taken the risk but the Lions converted the play ), should have been followed up with much more aggressiveness on the Vikings final drive.... than was the case on 2 of the 3 plays on the drive before the Game Winning FG occurred. The Vikings having two timeouts was likely just enough for them to complete their comeback with the strategy the Lions used.
Aaron Glenn is going to need to re-evaluate his strategy in these situations. Aaron Glenn bailed out Mike Zimmer, who never should have opened the door for a Lions comeback by having Greg Joseph attempt a 49 yard FG up by 10 points. It reminded me of Matt Patricia's decision having Matt Prater attempt an even longer FG vs. the Bears in the 2020 season opener, when the Lions were up by 10 with around 4 minutes remaining. Zimmer was more fortunate than Patricia. ****
They started slow for the third straight week, but never went away thanks to a defense that bent but hadn’t broken. They forced the Vikings into a long field attempt in the final minutes, which they missed, then drove back the other way for a a 40-yard field goal from Austin Seibert that made it a one-score game, at 16-9 with 2:34 left.
**** I agreed with the decision by Dan Campbell to kickoff when the Lions cut the deficit to 16-9. It was the Lions best chance of eventually getting a TD. The Lions struggled to move the ball, especially in the 2nd half. The shoulder injury to WR Quintez Cephus was very likely a contributing factor. It's not likely the Lions would have been able to drive most of the field for a TD if the Onside Kick failed and the Vikings ended up punting. Depending on Zimmer to try another FG if the Vikings were in a 4tb Down situation would have been a mistake. The Lions Special Teams had a very strong performance and rewarded Campbell for his decision for the Lions to Kick pretty deep. ****
It was tight spot to be in, with just one timeout left and still requiring one more stop. Then Dan Campbell’s decision to move on from Jamie Collins paid serious dividends, as replacement linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin -- in just his second game in the starting lineup -- stripped running back Alexander Mattison at Minnesota’s 20-yard line.
**** It was a great effort play. Amani Oruwariye contributed to the fumble occurring. ****
Just like that, the Lions had only 20 yards separating them from a tie ballgame and nearly 2 minutes to get it. Three plays later, Swift danced through the Minnesota defense for a 7-yard touchdown that drew the Lions within a PAT of overtime.
****Terrific job by the Offense, though T.J. Hockenson might have committed Offensive Pass Interference that wasn't called on Amon-Ra St. Brown's reception to the 7 yard line on 2nd and 7. ****
Then Dan Campbell pulled the most daring move of his tenure in Detroit, and opted to go for the 2-point conversion instead.
Campbell has shown an aptitude for aggressiveness since arriving in Detroit, and headed into the weekend on pace to set the NFL record for fourth-down attempts in a season. But it backfired in Chicago last week, when two fourth downs failed inside Chicago’s 10-yard line, including a fourth-and-1 in the final minutes where Jared Goff didn’t see one open receiver and missed the other.
Campbell took heat for it all week. But he remained undeterred. He had the team practice got-to-have-it situations during every period of practice this week. And when Swift ran into the end zone with 41 seconds left, Campbell didn’t flinch in going for the throat.
He put the football right back in Goff’s hands too, despite a pair of red-zone misfires from Goff on fourth down last week, then lose two more turnovers this week. And Goff rewarded his coach’s faith in him, finding KhaDarel Hodge streaking from right to left across the back line of the end zone for the two points.
Just like that, Detroit was 41 seconds from ending the league’s second-longest losing streak.
**** The main reasons I would have preferred the Lions to attempt the PAT were I thought it was important for the Lions to have something tangible to show for the attempted comeback. If the Vikings didn't have enough success on 1st Down, Mike Zimmer might have decided to send the game to OT. The Vikings were reeling. The Lions had all the momentum. The other reason is the Vikings Defensive Line was dominating the Lions Offensive Line in the passing game. Even though the 2 point conversion was successful, Jared Goff was under pressure. It's a credit to Goff to throw the 2 point conversion pass as well as he did.
As it turned out, 37 seconds was too much time for the Vikings with 2 timeouts and the Lions using passive strategy on 2 of the 3 Vikings Offensive plays. ****
Of course, anyone watching the Lions over the years knows no win is assured and that any loss is possible.
Detroit sent a three-man rush while dropping into a prevent defense, like it did late against Baltimore. Minnesota picked it apart too, just like Baltimore did. Kirk Cousins connected with Adam Thielen on a 21-yard shot, then did it again two plays later for a 19-yard shot before racing to the line of scrimmage to kill the clock with just seconds on the clock.
**** The first play was with a 4 man rush but very loose zone coverage. The 3 man rush on the 19 yard pass gave Kirk Cousins way too much time. Much like Lamar Jackson had 2 weeks ago. I expected Greg Joseph to make the 54 yard FG. Zimmer's strategy for attempting a 49 yard FG with a 10 point lead, which I never would have done in his position, actually might been the difference in Joseph making the game winning 54 yard FG. The miss could have led to a correction. Yet, the Lions passive strategy on 2 of the 3 Vikings plays on their final drive before the FG, increased the chances of the Vikings being in position to even attempt a FG from 54 yards out****
Another kicker ran onto the field, this time Greg Joseph, and he pumped through a 52-yard field goal to send Detroit to its second buzzer-beating loss in three weeks.
**** It was a 54 yard FG****
And he didn’t even need the crossbar.
Fake snow fell from the U.S. Bank Stadium rafters. Prince blared from the speakers. And Dan Campbell walked back up the tunnel wondering just what he has to do to get his first victory in Detroit. He’s now lost five straight games, the longest losing streak for a new Lions head coach since Marty Mornhinweg lost his first 12 games back in 2001.
**** Stop playing prevent Defense when there's enough time to be burned by the strategy****
Detroit has lost nine straight games overall, the second-longest losing streak in the league. It returns home next week to host the Cincinnati Bengals at Ford Field, still searching for its first win of the season, still wondering how the hell it hasn’t already got it.
****Injuries are making getting a win more and more difficult. The Lions greatest strength is resolve. That put the Lions in position to get a win today, despite struggling mightily to pass protect after the early part of the game. ****
Let’s get to some instant observations.
-- The Lions have now lost eight straight games against Minnesota, the first time they’ve done that since dropping 10 straight from 2002-06. They still haven’t beaten the Vikings since Jim Caldwell’s final season in 2017, when Detroit rode its defense to a 14-7 win and took sole possession of first place in the NFC North.
****It will be much more difficult to beat the Vikings if they have a relatively healthy Dalvin Cook, with the team they had on the field today****
Needless to say, a lot has happened since. Detroit has lost 14 of its last 15 games against the North, and is just 3-18 in divisional games since the hiring of Matt Patricia in 2018. Mercifully, the club now gets a prolonged break from its divisional beatdowns. They face the Bengals, Rams, Eagles, Steelers and Browns over the next six weeks, before another showdown with the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving. Yes, the Chicago Bears. Again. On Thanksgiving. Just the matchup America was clamoring for. [crickets]
**** I hope the Lions have at least one win going into the Thanksgiving Day game with the Bears. ****
-- Rookie offensive tackle Penei Sewell missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday because of an ankle injury, and wasn’t expected to play on Sunday in Minnesota. But he worked through the discomfort during a partial day of practice on Friday, then passed his medical checks at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday and dressed for the game. Give the kid credit, because there’s so much on his plate right now, and now he’s doing it while working through an injury too.
That said, he’s clearly struggling right now. He allowed two more sacks in Minnesota, one of which led to a strip-sack by former Lion Everson Griffen. Just like last week, when he allowed two sacks in Chicago, one of which led to a strip sack by Robert Quinn. That’s four sacks in two weeks. Taylor Decker, by comparison, has allowed four sacks in his last 24 games. I know I’m comparing a rookie in his first month to a sixth-year veteran, but that’s kind of the point. There seems to be a lot of folks out there who think the Lions would be mad to keep Decker at left tackle, and I’ve never understood it. That guy was borderline elite last year. He didn’t allow a sack in 15 games. There’s a reason the Lions paid him all that money, and it would be kind of silly to ask him to learn a new position in the middle of a season, as he’s trying to come back from an injury, while allowing literally the youngest player in the league -- who hadn’t even played since 2019 because of COVID -- to incur all of his struggles at a more difficult position, and one that protects the quarterback’s blind side at that.
There’s a reason the Lions wanted Decker on the left and Sewell on the right, and dollars to doughnuts, that’s where they’ll be whenever Decker returns from injured reserve.
**** Penei Sewell had much more success as a run blocker in this game than as a pass blocker. Everson Griffen is a different ( better player ) in the Vikings Defensive Scheme than he was in the Lions Defensive Scheme that Matt Patricia put in place. This was the Griffen that I was hoping the Lions would get. ****
-- Receiver Quintez Cephus was carted to the locker room with a shoulder injury in the second quarter. That’s never a good sign, and the young receiver did not return. That was a serious blow to a receiver corps that was already paper-thin, and that’s doing a disservice to paper. They had one of the worst sets of receivers in any training camp, then cut one projected starter (Breshad Perriman) before losing another to a brain injury three quarters into the season (Tyrell Williams). The Lions don’t have a wideout who ranks among the top 60 players in the league in receiving. Cephus hasn’t done a lot either, but he’s done more than most, leading the team in both explosive catches and touchdown catches. He led Detroit in receiving in the first half against Minnesota too, catching three passes for 38 yards, before hitching a ride to the locker room, yet another blow for one of the lowest-scoring teams in the league.
**** Key injuries continue to pile up for the Lions. Hopefully, Tyrell Williams is no longer dealing with the affects of the concussion he suffered vs. the 49ers. The Lions certainly need him.****
-- Speaking of low scoring, the Lions scored just six points in the first half against Minnesota, after getting shut out in the first half the previous week against Chicago, after getting shut out in the first half the previous week against Baltimore. That’s an average of 2.0 points before intermission in their last three games. Which means they’re always playing from behind, and that’s an awful place to be for a team that can run a little bit, but can’t pass and hasn’t defended all that well either. In case you were wondering how the Lions could lose five straight games to open the season.
**** Despite this, it took a record setting 66 yard FG and a 54 yard FG on the last play of the respective games to defeat the Lions in these 2 games. ****
-- It’s tough to watch five straight losses, and if you’re a Lions fan, you don’t need anybody to tell you that. But the hard truth is this was always the expected outcome of the season. We’re still in the opening weeks of a multi-year rebuild, and they have the roster to reflect it. This season was always about establishing the new culture, rebuilding the foundation of the roster and developing young players. It’s too soon to say much about the first two goals, but there is a lot to like on the latter. Rookie defensive tackle Alim McNeill was a training camp darling who turned in his best game last week, then topped it in Minnesota with a lot of disruption in both the run and pass games. Levi Onwuzurike, the other early-round defensive tackle, was the backfield a lot and finished with four tackles. There are plenty of other young guys who are getting valuable time elsewhere on both sides of the ball, including current starters like Penei Sewell, A.J. Parker and Jerry Jacobs, along with backup linebacker Derrick Barnes.
**** There were many players on the Lions Defense that had strong performances today. Even when the score was 16-6, I felt better about this game than the one in Chicago last week. Alim McNeill was the Lions highest graded PFF player on Defense in the loss to the Bears. I thought he had a better all around game today on Defense at Minnesota. Levi Onwuzurike looked like the high caliber run Defender of the pre-season. Jerry Jacobs had a strong overall Defensive performance. Tracy Walker played with passion, strength, and good technique on multiple plays. A rare exception was the angle he took on Alexander Harrison's long run should have been better.
****
-- A.J. Parker, an undrafted rookie, has looked good in the nickel this year. That’s especially true in run support, and he had two tackles for loss against Minnesota, the first time a cornerback has ever done that in team history.
**** Good game by A.J. Parker overall. An exception was the poor tackle attempt on Harrison's TD run. ). ****
-- Jerry Jacobs, another undrafted rookie, got his first career start at cornerback. He replaced Bobby Price, who had been replacing Ifeati Melifonwu, who had been replacing Jeff Okudah. But then Okudah went on IR, then Melfifonwu did too, which forced Price into a tough spot the last couple weeks. The former undrafted rookie made several high-profile mistakes, and Detroit turned to Jacobs instead on Sunday. Jacobs was credited with one pass defended, but struggled at other times.
**** IMHO, Jacobs played very well. ****
-- Rookie linebacker Derrick Barnes has gotten a lot of love this year, and rightfully so. But he made a huge mistake in the third quarter, missing a tackle on running back Alexander Mattison at the line of scrimmage. Mattison then outran Jerry Jacobs, Tracy Walker and the rest of the Lions defense until he was 48 yards downfield.
**** That was a huge missed tackle. It was a mixed bag performance by Derrick Barnes. ****
-- Walker avenged the mistake moments later, when he deflected a Kirk Cousins pass into the air. Linebacker Alex Anzalone made a sliding grab for the interception off the carom, then snuffed out a trick play on the following series too, reading the direct snap to the running back and tackling him for a loss on third down.
**** Great job by both players on the interception play and by Alex Anzalone on the trick play. He's played substantially better in the 3 games without Jamie Collins. ****
-- Has anyone checked Jack Fox’s birth certificate to determine whether he’s human? He had yet another 65-yard punt in Minnesota, this one going 67 yards before it died inside the Vikings’ 5-yard line. That was the 75th punt of his career, actually -- and he now owns the NFL record for both gross average (49.4) and net average (45.1) through a player’s first 75-career punts. Jack Fox: Punt ===
*** The final word in the paragraph can be read by going to the article link. As great of a Punt Jack Fox had ( one of the best I've ever seen ) and his overall tremendous punting in his combined 21 games with the Lions, the term used is not appropriate from my point of view. ****
-- Charles Harris burned out as a first-round pick in Atlanta, but he’s been a really nice pickup for Detroit this season. He notched a sack in a fourth straight game, a nice boost for a club that had been playing without Trey Flowers. Then Flowers made his return in Minnesota, and both of them had sacks.
**** The downside was Charles Harris' questionable Roughing the Passer penalty, that gave the Vikings the ball in the red zone. They soon scored their only TD afterwards. ****
-- Kicker Austin Seibert made his return to the field after missing two games with COVID. He was strong too, converting all three attempts, including the 40-yarder that drew Detroit within a score late.
**** Tremendous all around performance by Austin Seibert. Better than I expected his first game back. Seibert looked like a long term solution in this game. ****
.........
This new thread is a continuation of the following thread:
Lions at Vikings preview: Game # 5 ( 2021 )
detroit-lions-forum.proboards.com/thread/1210/lions-vikings-preview-game-2021
