Week 14 Detroit Lions Beat the Minnesota Vikings: Better to be Lucky than Good

Lions Analysis: Lions 34 (8-5) Vikings 28 (2-11)

Summary:

The Lions received an early Christmas gift on Sunday: an unearned victory. Coaching staffs at times love these kinds of coaching lessons. A victory that helps your standings but presents numerous things to work can be ideal from time to time. The Lions victory really does feel like a defeat…they almost lost to the Vikings third string QB; in fact he was their starting WR last week. The Vikings won in almost every category…except one: turnovers. That statistic proved to be the most important.

Matchup outcomes:

1. Jeff Backus vs. Jared Allen: Advantage: Jared Allen. I guess inspiration alone cannot overcome talent. I should know better than that. Allen had three sacks and destroyed many other plays. Backus looked worse that what he was due to Stafford’s lack of escapability. At times it appeared Stafford was confused in the pocket and felt phantom pressure. That led him to almost run into Allen instead of stepping into the pocket. I do not want to take anything away from Jared Allen but Stafford didn’t help.
2. Percy Harvin vs. Detroit Defensive Backs: Advantage: Percy Harvin. Percy Harvin had 10 receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for about 40 yards and almost returned a kick for a touchdown. Harvin appeared to be the best player on the field almost the entire game and kept many drives going. Detroit had no answer for him.
3. Vikings Offensive Tackles vs. Lions Defensive Ends: Advantage: Lions Defensive Ends. Cliff Avril had two sacks and KVB had one. They also caused two turnovers by stripping the quarterback. While the Vikings pass protection was much better in the second half the damage had been done. If the Lions DL wasn’t wrecked by injuries and suspensions this could have been worse.
4. Calvin Johnson vs. Vikings Defensive Backs: Advantage: Vikings Defensive Backs. Calvin Johnson had 3 receptions for 39 yards. I know other receivers picked up some of the slack but Megatron was missing a battery in this game. He was blanketed all game long and it appeared on a reverse that he got shaken up after a big collision. Other teams should watch tape of this game for future matchups.
5. Detroit Lions vs. Themselves: Advantage: Themselves in a good way. Lions still committed too many penalties and almost gave up a return for a touchdown but improved in many ways. They only had one personal foul and it was not after the whistle. The Lions also had no turnovers and left the game without anymore injuries. The Lions also stopped the Vikings at the 1 yard line to preserve victory. This kind of luck and coming up with a big play is new to Detroit. Maybe it will continue.

Questions That Need Answers:

1. Why did Gunther Cunning ham use Cliff Avril as a quarterback spy near the end of the game? I am no defensive coordinator but taking a DE who is your best pass rusher and using him as a spy is not logical. Avril is no where near as fast as Webb and was basically a wasted a man on the field. It would make more sense to use a Defensive Back who is quicker and allowing Avril to rush Webb into making a bad decision. Lions were playing scared and that is when mistakes tend to happen.
2. Is Amari Spievy regressing? At the beginning of the season he was acting quickly against the run and causing turnovers in the passing game. Since Delmas’ injury, Spievy seems to have lost a lot of confidence and is late on making reads. Spievy either needs to improve or be replaced moving forward.
3. Will the Lions ever get their 3^rd and 1 offense to improve? It is almost worse for the Lions to be 3^rd and 1 than 3^rd and long. Our interior OL gets no push, our Running Backs are decimated with injuries, and we have a limited athletic quarterback with bouts of inaccuracy. To be a deadly offense we need to get better at this fundamental problem.

What’s Next?

Lions travel to Oakland next week and it is vital the Lions win against a floundering team. Carson Palmer has no mobility and is still out of tune with his team, the Raiders defense is leaking, and it is yet to be seen if McFadden will play in that game. The Lions post season hangs in the balance of this game. Stay tuned true believers.

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