The Good, Bad and Ugly From the Lions’ Loss to Carolina

Things were going well for Detroit until they weren’t when the Lions took on the Carolina Panthers in front of the entire country on Sunday Night Football. Their defense not only got exposed but was embarrassed, too. As bad as the cornerbacks and entire defense were, there were still some good things that came from this game. There were also some bad things, and, of course, there was one really ugly thing.

The Good

After a slow start from Jameson Williams and Isaac TeSlaa, both receivers finally caught their stride against the Panthers and finished as the No. 1 and No. 2 leading receivers on the team.

Both Williams and TeSlaa had their best games of the season. Williams received eight targets and came down with six receptions for 102 yards, despite missing a deep pass from Jared Goff that could have resulted in a 70-yard touchdown. Williams led the Lions in receiving and finally broke the 100-yard mark, with a long reception of 49 yards.

If Williams can carry this momentum into the coming games, he will be a major playmaker for the Lions’ offense.

The same can be said for TeSlaa, who recorded the longest pass play of the game with a 57-yard reception. Unfortunately, the big play only led to a field goal for Detroit. TeSlaa set a career high in receiving yards with 95 yards on four receptions and eight targets.

TeSlaa provides an extra boost to the Lions’ offense when one of their other playmakers needs a break or isn’t having their best game.

The Bad

While everyone is talking about Kelvin Sheppard, I believe Drew Petzing should face some criticism, too.

Detroit had a chance to win the game on the final drive and couldn’t even convert a single first down. Although Petzing’s offense was averaging 31 points per game entering the Panthers matchup, the Lions have struggled mightily in the first quarter.

Heading into this game, Detroit was averaging just 2.3 points per game in the first quarter, scoring on only one drive during their first three games of the season. Detroit did manage to get a field goal on its opening drive, but that was followed by a three-play, four-yard three-and-out.

The Lions are now averaging 2.5 points per first quarter, which ranks 26th among NFL teams.

Simply put, this has to change. No matter how bad the defense has been, Detroit should have won this game.

The Lions kicked four field goals, although I’ll discount the field goal right before halftime. That leaves three field goals, two of which came after Detroit reached the Carolina 25-yard line.

Detroit was also down 13 points and needed a score with nine minutes remaining in the game. The Lions put together a nine-play, 64-yard drive that reached the Carolina 15-yard line, but ultimately settled for a fourth-and-20 attempt that was not converted.

I think Petzing has done an OK job so far, but the reality is that he has been carried to a certain extent by the elite offensive players the Lions have.

The Ugly

Let’s talk about it.

The Lions’ secondary is the worst secondary in the NFL.

They allowed Tetairoa McMillan to go off for 192 yards and two touchdowns. Despite the Lions’ defensive line having the fourth-best win rate in the NFL at 56%, Detroit has allowed the most points per game, the most passing yards per game, the most third-down conversions and the most fourth-down conversions.

Detroit had seven different players allow a 100% completion rate when targeted, totaling 175 receiving yards. The Lions’ defense also recorded just two pass breakups the entire game.

Players such as DJ Reed recorded a 52.2 coverage grade, Ennis Rakestraw recorded a 56.6 coverage grade, and Christian Izien recorded a 48.8 coverage grade.

Detroit has not recorded a single interception since Week 1, and no cornerback has recorded one all year.

Lions cornerback No. 1 DJ Reed allowed 19.3 yards per reception. Reed also allowed the Panthers’ longest pass play of the game, a 32-yard reception, and gave up a touchdown.

Needless to say, getting Brian Branch back will be a significant boost to the Lions’ secondary.