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PFF player grades: Top performers in Lions Week 1 win over Rams
By Tommy Wiita,
12 hours ago
The Detroit Lions needed overtime to secure their first win of the season on "Sunday Night Football", defeating the Los Angeles Rams 26-20 at Ford Field.
The game was hotly contested throughout as the biggest lead of the game was 17-3 Lions in the third quarter. That was before Los Angeles rallied back to make it a four-point game 17-13 before taking a brief lead, 20-17, with 4:30 remaining in the game.
Lions kicker Jake Bates tied the game at 20 to send it to overtime before Detroit won the coin toss, opted to receive the ball to start the extra quarter of play, and proceeded to bully their way down the field with the offensive line and running game. David Montgomery punched it in at the goal line to seal the deal against former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Rams.
Detroit will next play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0) at home next sunday at Ford Field.
Here is how the top 10 Lions offensive players and defensive players graded out (minimum 10 snaps played) against the Rams, according to Pro Football Focus.
Offense
RB David Montgomery: 86.6
WR Jameson Williams: 83.4
LG Graham Glasgow: 82.2
RT Penei Sewell: 78.9
C Frank Ragnow: 70.3
RB Jahmyr Gibbs: 68.7
LT Taylor Decker: 65.3
RG Kevin Zeitler: 62.2
TE Sam LaPorta: 60.4
WR Kalif Raymond: 54.9
Montgomery (30) and Gibbs (31) were pretty even in sharing the snap count and both scored touchdowns. Montgomery also earned a 88.5 run grade from PFF in comparison to Gibbs' 67.4 grade. And Gibbs had a 68.5 pass grade while Montgomery had a 53.1.
Williams had a breakout game in his young career, hauling in five receptions for 123 yards and a touchdown. He earned the highest pass grade out of all Lions offensive players and had the highest run-block grade (77.0) among other running backs and wide receivers.
Quarterback Jared Goff received the worst overall grade among all Lions (43.2), including a 40.4 pass grade. Goff completed 18-for-28 pass attempts for 217 yards with one touchdown, one interception and an 85.0 passer rating. The run game dominated, especially towards the end of the game.
Hutchinson was an X-factor for the Lions in shutting down Stafford and the Rams' offense. The edge rusher had one sack, three hits and five hurries on 44 pass-rush snaps, according to PFF. He ended the game with a 37% pass-rush win rate and a 95.7 pass-rush grade.
Anzalone was the next standout, as he also earned a 83.4 tackling and 81.4 coverage grade in the game. The linebacker also made history in the performance, becoming the first player in Detroit's history to rack up at least 10 tackles and three tackles for loss in a season-opener.
Rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold didn't make the top 10 performances by PFF but was 13th overall (with at least 10 minimum snaps played), earning a 57.8 overall grade. He did receive an impressive 81.2 tackling grade and played the fourth-most snaps among defensive players (77), trailing Brian Branch (78), Anzalone, (78), and Carlton Davis III (77).
Sep 8, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (97) sacks Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) on the last play in regulation to send their game into overtime at Ford Field.
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