The Detroit Lions may be tied for the fourth-most points per game on offense (29.2), but it has been the improved play on the defensive side of the ball that has been the most impressive. Even though the offense was held in check to just nine points in the loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, the defense made more than enough stops on its end for the Lions to win the game, which could force head coach Dan Campbell to reconsider some of his play-calling tendencies.
It is no secret that Campbell likes to be aggressive on fourth down. Look no further than Sunday night when the Lions were 0-of-5 on fourth down, including back-to-back drives in the first half when the ball was near midfield and on a fourth-and-5 in the third quarter on the Eagles' 32-yard-line. Instead of trying to pin the Eagles deep or settling for points that were hard to come by already, Campbell continued to go for it despite how well the defense was playing and the lack of a guaranteed touchdown of late on offense.
"We're going to play to the strength of our team, however that goes, Campbell said, per 97.1 FM's Will Burchfield. "And you learn, you evolve as the season goes, you figure out who you are and truly what your strengths are, and you adapt and you adjust. Our freaking defense is playing outstanding right now."
Dan Campbell Should Put More Trust in His Defense
It sounds like Campbell is certainly open to making adjustments, which is something he may want to highly consider doing since the Eagles converted two of those stops into field goals. If you factor in the pair of field goals and the missed extra-point attempt from Lions kicker Jake Bates, Detroit could have easily had a shot on Sunday night, making Campbell's decision-making even more costly in the end.
Entering Week 12, Detroit ranks fifth in total defense (291.8), eighth in pass defense (192.1), eighth in run defense (99.7), and tied for 10th in scoring defense (21.6). That is even more impressive when you consider the defense has dealt with injuries to key players all season, including Kerby Joseph, D.J. Reed, Terrion Arnold, Marcus Davenport, and Josh Paschal, making it extremely likely that defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard could earn a promotion and find himself elsewhere after the job he's done this season.
One of the biggest surprises on the defense has been offseason acquisition Rock Ya-Sin. After mostly playing each of the last two seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers on special teams, Ya-Sin has held his own and proved to be a reliable option for a depleted Lions defense. According to Pro Football Focus, Ya-Sin's overall grade (63.2) is 47th out of 108 qualified cornerbacks in the league, and he just held Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown to four receptions for 39 yards on eight targets. Rookie defensive tackle Tyleik Williams also continues to get better and has improved as a pass rusher, giving Detroit another force to pair with Aidan Hutchinson on the defensive front.
Other than a 44-point outburst against the 3-8 Washington Commanders, Detroit's offense has not been as flashy in recent weeks, scoring 24 points or less in four of its last five. In the loss to Philadelphia, specifically, Goff completed less than 50% of his passes, and the usually reliable run game of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery was held to just 74 total yards on the ground.
Aggressive calls are nothing new for Campbell, but if he is going to continue calling the plays and build some momentum down the stretch, he needs to strongly consider taking a safer approach on fourth down, especially if the Lions are in a position to get points and their defense keeps performing at such a high level.