That is how you shake off a loss.
A week after falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in disappointing fashion, the Detroit Lions did a complete 180 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite entering the night with a battered and short-staffed secondary, it was Detroit putting the defensive clams on MVP-frontrunner Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers offense. Every part of the defense was showing up. Sprinkle in some game-changing scoring plays and turnovers, and the Lions coasted fairly comfortably to their fifth win of the year.
With a well-timed bye week on deck, the Lions will have time off to recuperate and prepare for the Minnesota Vikings. Until then, they can reflect on a solid team performance on Monday night.
The Lions flat-out do not win this game without a Herculean effort from Gibbs. The Lions had a modest day through the air, and a performance like that would have sunk them in many weeks. However, the offense was buoyed by Gibbs in multiple facets. As a receiver, Gibbs shined out of the gate. He had a brilliant catch and run on the opening drive that highlighted his ability to stop on a dime and accelerate, turning a fringe first down into a 30-yard breakout. On the day, he had just three catches, but he turned those into a whopping 82 yards.
Gibbs truly dominated on the ground. You need look no further than his 78-yard sprint that demonstrated his pure uncatchable speed. The quickness and burst is frankly unmatched in the NFL right now. He had a few runs that were stuffed for minimal gain, sure, but those are the types of plays you live with when he can blow the top of a defense on a whim.
The Lions were trotting out their skeleton crew secondary against a tough Buccaneers passing attack, yet it was Detroit that surprisingly emerged as the overwhelming winner. Up and down the depth chart, the Lions got phenomenal contributions. Arthur Maulet had a hard-fought interception. Rock Ya-Sin had some lockdown coverage snaps, including a crucial pass defended on third down. Nick Whiteside, who had to sub in for Ya-Sin when he dealt with cramping, had three stellar pass breakups. Amik Robertson had a picture-perfect forced fumble on yet another punch out. Erick Hallett led the team with eight tackles. Thomas Harper was quietly phenomenal as the deep safety, notching himself a pass breakup and multiple open field tackles.
Kelvin Sheppard, Deshea Townsend, and every player mentioned above deserves credit for putting in an unreal performance. Missing Brian Branch, Kerby Joseph, D.J. Reed, Terrion Arnold, and Avonte Maddox was a nightmare scenario for the Lions—few teams can succeed without their starting five defensive backs. Not only did the Lions survive, they outright thrived.
On paper, it was a good outing for Goff—he completed 20-of-29 passes for 241 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. However, the Detroit offense vastly outperformed Tampa Bay, yet they only tallied 24 points. I think Goff was to blame on a few too many instances. The Lions were a paltry 3-for-13 on third down attempts, and of Goff’s nine incompletions, four of them came on third down. Another came on a failed fourth down, though Goff’s overthrow of Isaac TeSlaa was likely impacted by an uncalled defensive pass interference. Goff’s worst throw of the day was his interception that had no Lion in the vicinity. Goff looked uncomfortable on multiple occasions due to the Buccaneers’ pressure.
Goff normally deals well with pressure, but it was an uncharacteristic off night for him in that regard. Sure, the offensive line could have held up better, as could have the running backs and tight ends in protection, but we have seen enough from Goff to know that a game like this is not his usual self. The Lions left a lot of points on the board.
Winner: Aidan Hutchinson, DE
It may seem weird to list the Lions’ star edge as a winner given his zero-sack performance, but this game was a perfect demonstration of why sacks are not a definitive representation of pass rushing success. Hutchinson commanded attention from the Buccaneers, and he was still chaotic to their offensive line. The Lions walked away with four sacks on the night, and while Hutchinson got none of them, he was a key factor in all of them. He gets chipped, blocked, held, yet he still walks away with pressures on a regular basis.
Hutchinson’s ability to create pressure even with all eyes on him is the sign of a truly elite defensive end.
McNeill hardly looked like a player playing his first game post-ACL tear. From the onset, McNeill was bulldozing the Buccaneers interior offensive line, recording multiple pressures and hurries on the day. He even added a batted pass to boot. For as good as DJ Reader and Tyleik Williams had been, this level of interior pass rush was a welcome sight to see.
Wheat had been a complete afterthought for the Lions to start the season. He had been active for four games, yet played a grand total of six defensive snaps across those games. Against the Buccaneers, Wheat played a mere eight snaps, but they were downright dominant. Wheat finished the day with three tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble, a stellar stat line for just eight snaps. He has earned himself a larger role going forward.
Winner: Offensive line run blocking
While I think the offensive line was modest in pass blocking, they really opened up the field in the ground game. On the day, the Lions were moving the Buccaneers front seven to spring sizeable plays. Gibbs can thank Penei Sewell and Tate Ratledge for springing him on his 78-yard scamper. Sewell and Ratledge double teamed the defensive linemen, then Ratledge peeled off to take the linebacker behind him. That space was all Gibbs needed to bolt his way downfield. Sewell also deserves props for his downfield sprint on a Gibbs swing pass—how many lineman can run in front of Gibbs?—though he will certainly kick himself for missing a block that would have sealed a touchdown.