Detroit Lions News, Notes and Thoughts from Preseason Game 1

In a wet and rainy game against the New York Giants, the Detroit Lions lost 14-3 in their first preseason game. We can equate this loss to the Lions not playing their starters but the weather was certainly a factor for both teams. We saw the weather cause muffed punts and players slipping on attempted tackles.

But these aren’t excuses and at halftime, Lions head coach Dan Campbell didn’t make excuses. He acknowledged the weather and needing better execution from the offense. Talking with Lions reporter Dannie Rogers asked about the offense and he said, “Look offensively, we’ve got to make some plays. We’ve got a wet one here but when we need some plays, we need to make some plays.”

Offensive Notes

It was an uneventful night for quarterback Nate Sudfeld. He wasn’t efficient with the ball in his hands and as he extended plays beyond the pocket, he would hold the ball for too long. Rather than checking the ball down, running it or throw it away, he’d get outside of the pocket and still get sacked.

As Campbell said, they needed the offense to make some plays. So he turned the football to quarterback Hendon Hooker in the second half and this led to some plays being made. On his second drive with the offense, Hooker led the Lions 88 yards down the field on a 14-play drive.

This drive stalled when Hooker had a slight overthrow to Donovan Peoples-Jones in the corner of the end zone on the 3rd down. It was great effort by Peoples-Jones, who did his best to replicate an Odell Beckham Jr., one-handed catch in Metlife Stadium but he wasn’t able to secure the pass. Ultimately, this led to the Lions going for it on 4th-and-goal and not getting it.

On both drives that Hooker played in the 3rd quarter, his mobility really stood out. He ran the ball 4 times for 34 yards. His longest run was for 16 yards and he trucked a Giants defender on his way for the first down.

Throwing the ball, Hooker finished 5-for-9 for 36 yards and he showed good rapport with UDFA receiver Isaiah Williams. They connected on consecutive plays during the 14-play drive in the 3rd quarter. After that drive, Hooker came out of the game and was being evaluated for a concussion. This led to Sudfeld coming back into the game and finishing the 4th quarter.

Outside of the quarterbacks, the rest of the offense was a mixed bag. Some players stood out, and others needed a lot of work. On the offensive line, there appeared to be some miscommunications that led to defensive linemen being unblocked, or defensive backs piercing into the backfield to wrap up running backs before they could make a move.

The one running back that looked pretty good was Sione Vaki. His first carry went for 15 yards and he made an impressive cut to gain the additional yardage. He finished with 29 yards rushing on four carries. If he’s able to stack performances like this, he could emerge as the 3rd running back for this offense.

That said, I’d still be surprised if Craig Reynolds doesn’t make the roster. Despite only having 11 yards on four carries, Reynolds had consecutive runs that led to 8 yards during the Lions’ second drive of the game. Despite having three straight carries on that drive, Reynolds played on the punt team and he ran down to make the tackle.

Defensive Notes

While there were only a few bright spots on offense, the Lions defense played well for the most part. Early in the game, the Lions defense saw big plays made from rookie Ennis Rakestraw and free agent acquisition Amik Robertson.

On the opening kickoff, Robertson made the first tackle of the game. In addition to that, he had a pass breakup on that opening drive. To top that off, Ennis Rakestraw made a great tackle on 3rd down and this led to the Giants punting on their opening drive.

For the defensive line, we saw plenty of James Houston in the first half. He did have two tackles and a QB hit. There was a moment in that first half where he got away with hitting Drew Lock late near the sideline. As for other defensive linemen, it was a strong showing for Nate Lynn, Isaac Ukwu and Brodric Martin.

Leading the way, Martin had four total tackles and two pass deflections. He almost had a sack but he let Tommy DeVito slip through his hands. Fortunately, Nate Lynn was there and he made the sack on DeVito.

It was a strong first showing for Lynn as he had two sacks, two QB hits and a sack. The Lions defense only recorded two sacks against the Giants and the other sack was made by Ukwu. He showed decent bend while running the arc to bring down Drew Lock.

Other bright spots on the defense were linebackers DaRon Gilbert and Malik Jefferson. Starting with Jefferson, he had a strong showing in the second half with six tackles and a tackle for loss. He made some tackles on special teams as well.

As for DaRon Gilbert, what a fun story he’d be for the Lions. He’s undrafted out of Northern Illinois but a Detroit native that played at Birmingham Brother Rice High School in Michigan. He started getting in a groove in the second quarter with good positioning and multiple tackles. If he made the Lions 53-man roster, he’d have the entire city behind him.

The Lions do have five linebackers already locked onto the roster. Those players are Alex Anzalone, Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, Malcolm Rodriguez and Jalen Reeves-Maybin. But if they’re open to having a 6th linebacker on the roster, it feels like it’ll come down to Jefferson or Gilbert.

The last roster spot I want to focus on is the 4th safety spot. As I mentioned in my game one preview, the Lions will have an important decision to make on who the 4th safety will be after Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph and Ifeatu Melifonwu.

The experienced player is C.J. Moore and he recorded three tackles in this game. However, he did slip while attacking downhill during a run by Giants running back Eric Gray. With Moore missing, this gave Gray plenty of running room as he took it to the house. Later in the game, Moore was limping in the end zone on the Giants second touchdown of the game. It looked like a possible knee or ankle injury but nothing has been mentioned of an injury at this time. Either way, it’s still worth monitoring.

As for the competition with Moore, there are two other players to really keep tabs on with Morice Norris and Brandon Joseph. Starting with Norris, he had three tackles but none of the tackles were like the one he made in practice earlier this week.

The standout for the 4th safety spot was Brandon Joseph. He had three tackles, a pass breakup and an interception. On the interception, he jumped a route over the middle of the field and looked like his old self at Notre Dame. If the Lions can get him playing like that again, what an addition that would be for the Lions secondary and special teams.

Final Thoughts + Injury Notes

Overall, it was far from pretty for the Lions but it wasn’t horrible. Again, that’s expected with no starters playing. There were a lot of positives with some skilled players on offense but ultimately, the defense played really well outside of two drives. Improving the defense was important for the Lions this off-season. Despite a quiet three series for first round pick and presumed starter Terrion Arnold, the depth of the defense appears to be taking shape. We’ll see if that carries over to the rest of the season.

The Lions did have a few players get banged up in this game. Offensive lineman Connor Galvin got rolled up on and had to be carted off with a knee injury. Receiver Antoine Green went to block a Giants defender but he essentially got launched to outer space and left the game with a concussion. Earlier, I mentioned that Hendon Hooker is in the concussion protocol. Lastly, we did see defensive tackle David Badda go down with an achilles injury.

After the game, it was confirmed by Dan Campbell that Badda and Galvin probably suffered some long term injuries. Those will be worth monitoring as the Lions still have two preseason games to play. Next Saturday, the Lions will travel to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Kansas City Chiefs.

Oh, and, yes, kicker Jake Bates did hit a 53-yard field goal in the first quarter.