The ten things we learned about the Detroit Lions in the Giants game
By Ash Thompson
The Detroit Lions lost the game 30-17 Friday night against the Giants. The preseason is not about the scoreboard, however, and we learned a lot about the team.
We saw a lot more of the Detroit Lions starters this week. Matthew Stafford was on the field. Ziggy Ansah made his 2018 debut. Both units played well into the second quarter.
The New York Giants could not say the same. Eli Manning, Saquon Barkley and Odell Beckham Jr. all sat out the contest. The Lions were facing Davis Webb, Wayne Gallman, and Sterling Shepard. The results were not great.
The Lions were playing a lot more aggressively this week. They blitzed a lot more on defense, and unsurprisingly in a defense that will rely on its linebackers to generate backfield pressure, they generated significantly more pass rush.
Giants coach Pat Shurmur and Lions coach Matt Patricia had a previous relationship, having coordinated joint practices between the Vikings and Patriots in previous seasons. The Lions and Giants had been working together for a few days prior to the game, and some hostility carried into Friday night.
There was still not a lot of scheming to take advantage of opposition weaknesses, but the quarterbacks clearly had more leeway to change plays at the line. This looked a lot more like an NFL football game is supposed to look.
The Lions lost the game 30-17 but preseason games are not about the score. Both sides of the ball clearly still need work, but here are the things we learned about the team Friday night at Ford Field.