Detroit Lions: 3 Defensive Players Who Stepped Up Against Cardinals

The Detroit Lions head into their bye week following a convincing 45–21 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. At 3–2, Detroit remains tied with the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears in the NFC North, while the Minnesota Vikings lead the division at 5–0.

After allowing too many points during the opening weeks of the season, Detroit’s defense needed a strong performance. Although Arizona isn’t the toughest opponent on the schedule, the Lions showed encouraging signs of improvement.

Three players stood out in particular: DJ Reed, Jack Campbell and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. All three delivered some of their best performances of the season, giving Detroit reasons for optimism heading into the bye week.

1. DJ Reed — 80.0

DJ Reed turned in his best performance of the season against Arizona, recording seven tackles and five defensive stops. He was targeted seven times and allowed just four receptions for 30 yards.

Reed played 72 snaps and finished with an 80.0 overall defensive grade, a 74.7 run defense grade and a 78.9 coverage grade. His coverage grade was not only the highest among Detroit’s defenders in the game but also his best mark of the season.

Detroit relied heavily on man-to-man coverage against Arizona, and the results were encouraging. Reed’s performance suggests the defensive scheme could be starting to play to the strengths of the secondary.

If the Lions can continue getting this level of play from Reed, it would provide a significant boost to a defense searching for consistency.

2. Jack Campbell — 79.2

Jack Campbell has struggled at times this season, but he has started to show signs of improvement over the past two weeks.

Last week, Campbell recorded his best overall defensive grade of the season at 66.9. He followed that performance with a significant jump to 79.2 against the Cardinals.

Campbell finished with eight tackles and four defensive stops while allowing just three receptions on four targets. He earned a 69.7 run defense grade, an 84.6 tackling grade and a 61.1 pass-rushing grade. Both his tackling and pass-rushing marks were season bests.

His coverage grade also climbed to 76.6, a substantial improvement over his previous season high of 59.7.

Campbell’s recent progress is an encouraging development for Detroit. If the Lions’ defense hopes to turn the corner, they will need their starting linebacker to maintain this level of play moving forward.

3. Ennis Rakestraw Jr. — 71.0

Ennis Rakestraw Jr. recorded his best overall defensive grade of the season against Arizona, finishing with a 71.0 mark. He also posted a 78.3 tackling grade and a 71.2 coverage grade.

Although Rakestraw played just 35 snaps, his performance showed encouraging signs of improvement.

Since Week 3, Rakestraw has recorded a 67.1 PFF coverage grade, ranking 32nd among 109 qualifying cornerbacks. His 63.8 passer rating allowed when targeted over that span ranks 25th, while his 11 yards after the catch allowed rank 20th.

It’s important to remember that Rakestraw entered this season with just eight games of NFL experience. While he is technically in his second year, he is still developing and gaining valuable experience at the professional level.

His recent performances suggest he is beginning to make progress, and Detroit will hope that trend continues after the bye week.