Football
Grades: Lions offense struggles to find footing in sloppy preseason loss to Giants
The Detroit Lions struggled to get going offensively, and the defense broke one two many times in Thursday’s preseason opening loss to the New York Giants.
After two days of joint practices, the Lions had many of their starters sit out the game and allowed young players to get plenty of game reps. The results were mixed, as the offense failed to find the end zone but put together a pair of strong drives.
Here are grades for each of the Lions’ position groups for their performance in Thursday’s loss:
QUARTERBACKS: D+
With Jared Goff not active, the Lions’ evident plan was to play Nate Sudfeld and Hendon Hooker for a half each. Sudfeld got the first half, and the offense struggled plenty throughout his stint under center through the first two quarters.
Aside from a possession that started in Giants’ territory, the Lions generated little momentum. Sudfeld didn’t get a first down until his fourth series, and led just one drive across midfield in the first two quarters.
He lacked mobility and missed all over early in the evening. The veteran led two good drives, however, one at the end of each half. Still, he threw an interception on the final drive of the first half and couldn’t convert a fourth down on the drive in the fourth quarter.
Hooker flashed plenty of potential in his NFL debut. On his second series, he led a march that took nearly seven minutes off the clock. He displayed mobility in his effort, most notably with a 16-yard scramble on which he leveled a defender.
The Tennessee product will need to continue working on his placement and accuracy, but it was a largely encouraging outing. However, he exited the game with a concussion and his status for next week is in doubt as a result.
RUNNING BACKS: C-
The Lions used five running backs in Thursday’s game and were largely unable to have much success on the ground. A bright spot in this area was rookie Sione Vaki, who displayed the instincts and slippery nature that drew the Lions to him even though he played predominately defense in college.
Vaki shone on the final drive in the second half, carrying the ball four times for 29 yards. He gained nine yards on his second carry, then burst for 15 yards later in the series.
There was little of note from the rest of the backfield crop. Craig Reynolds got the start and tallied 11 yards on four carries. Zonovan Knight had six carries for 12 yards to go with two catches for 10 yards, while Jermar Jefferson and Jake Funk rushed for nine yards apiece.
WIDE RECEIVERS: C
With the struggles of the passing game, it’s tough to firmly evaluate the performance of Detroit’s receivers. Daurice Fountain got bumped off his route on a third down in the second quarter, and Sudfeld missed both Fountain and Kaden Davis on fade routes up the sideline.
Antoine Green had three short catches, but departed in the second quarter after suffering a concussion. The star at the receiver position Thursday was undrafted rookie Isaiah Williams, who paced the group with four catches for 35 yards.
Donovan Peoples-Jones had the longest catch of the night with a 26-yard grab in the fourth quarter. Davis, Maurice Alexander, Tom Kennedy and Jalon Calhoun each had one reception.
TIGHT ENDS: C+
The Lions’ tight end depth was on display as the top two options at the position did not participate in Thursday’s game. As a result, Shane Zylstra, Parker Hesse, James Mitchell and Sean McKeon got longer looks.
Zylstra had a nice third-down conversion on a zone route, as the veteran found the soft spot in the defense and hauled in Sudfeld’s pass to move the chains. Mitchell also hauled in a pass from Sudfeld on the final series of the first half.
Hesse displayed good coordination by hauling in a bobbled pass, then taking a leap and getting upended in an effort to get past the first down marker.
OFFENSIVE LINE: D
Detroit’s second-team offensive line got the bulk of the work in the first half, with Dan Skipper and Colby Sorsdal playing at tackle, Michael Niese and Kayode Awosika at tackle and Kingsley Eguakun at center.
Niese and Eguakun got knocked backward on a third-and-short run that was stymied early in the game, which was emblematic of the struggles the team had on the ground. The Lions averaged 3.9 yards on the ground, but Hooker and Vaki combined for over half of the team’s production on the ground.
The unit as a whole struggled in the ground game, and the pass-protection struggled after a decent start. Detroit’s depth also appeared to take a hit as tackle Connor Galvin was carted off the field in the fourth quarter.
DEFENSIVE LINE: B
The Lions’ youth showed up strongly early in Thursday’s game, as Brodric Martin and Mekhi Wingo were both sturdy presences. Martin nearly got a sack, forcing Drew Lock around the pocket and setting up Nate Lynn for the takedown.
Martin finished with four tackles and two passes defensed, a solid effort for the second-year nose tackle working to take a leap after playing in just three games last season.
Lynn and fellow undrafted rookie Isaac Ukwu both had sacks. They’ve quietly had strong starts to traning camp and produced good moments in the opener. Lynn, in particular, displayed a superb spin move that led to multiple pass-rush wins.
LINEBACKERS: B
Whereas depth showed up in numerous other positions, the Lions’ linebacking corps was led by a trio of veterans. Jalen Reeves-Maybin, an NFLPA All-Pro on special teams last season, made multiple plays. Ben Niemann and Malik Jefferson, both of whom are veterans with special teams experience looking to make the team, each had impactful moments.
Niemann was a presence in pass-coverage early, while Jefferson tied for the team lead in tackles with four and had a tackle for loss. Undrafted rookie DaRon Gilbert also had four tackles and also broke up a pass.
SECONDARY: B-
Terrion Arnold and Ennis Rakestraw made their debuts in varying degrees. Arnold played just three series, while Rakestraw played into the second half and got snaps both on the boundary and in the slot.
Detroit’s starting cornerbacks included Arnold and Rakestraw on the boundary and Amik Robertson in the slot. That group had success, as Rakestraw forced a punt by running a receiver out of bounds on third down on the opening drive.
Brandon Joseph had an interception two series later, as he was responsible for giving the team good field position on their lone scoring drive.
UDFA safety Morice Norris got juked on Eric Gray’s first touchdown run, as he lost his footing which allowed Gray to race into the end zone.
SPECIAL TEAMS: C-
After an up-and-down performance in training camp, Jake Bates restored some confidence by nailing a 53-yard field goal despite the conditions. However, on the ensuing kickoff he incurred a penalty when his kickoff attempt landed short of the 20-yard line.
It was one of three penalties taken on in this aspect of the game for Detroit. Cornerback Steven Gilmore was responsible for the other two, the first being holding on a return and the second coming after he ran out of bounds on his own while covering a punt.
Gilmore did save the Lions when Maurice Alexander fumbled his first punt return attempt. It was a difficult day for Alexander, who took a big hit after not fair catching the second punt attempt and nearly fumbling again.
Jack Fox served as a bright spot for the punt team, averaging just under 50 yards per punt and knocking a 62-yarder on his first boot. Ennis Rakestraw made a nice play to make the tackle on returner Isaiah McKenzie on that big kick.
Alexander and Williams handled the kick returns. Williams had two return attempts, averaging 28 yards per, while Alexander’s one return attempt went for 20 yards.
This article was produced by the staff at Detroit Lions On SI. For more, visit si.com/nfl/lions
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