Film Review: Barnes Is Bright Spot, How Seattle Contained Hutchinson
The Detroit Lions fell to 1-1 with a disappointing loss in their home opener.
Criticism has been spread in the ensuing days, as the defeat comes on the heels of a big win in Week 1. Though still early in the 2023 season, the team could be approaching a crossroads entering Week 3 while dealing with plenty of injuries.
Before looking ahead to the challenge Atlanta presents, let's revisit Sunday's defeat at the hands of Seattle. Here are five lessons learned from a film review of the game:
Barnes stands out
Based on the snap counts from Sunday's game, Derrick Barnes appears to have beaten out Jack Campbell for the second starting linebacker position. After the snaps were more evenly distributed in Week 1, Barnes played 54% compared to Campbell's 32%.
This was justified by the Purdue product's performance. On Seattle's first drive, he shot past center Evan Brown through the A gap and corralled Kenneth Walker III for a minimal gain.
He did the same thing later in the drive, beating his blocker through the first level and getting his hands on Walker.
That gap integrity was on display throughout Sunday's game, as Barnes made seven tackles. Working both on off the ball allowed him to find the ball-carrier and attack. Though he was disciplined, he also relied on his instincts to make plays.
These instincts he displayed are precisely what the Lions were hoping to see from him in his third season. It wasn't a perfect effort, as he allowed two completions on two targets in the pass game.
There were plenty of encouraging signs from Barnes, who seems to have embraced the competition that Campbell and Malcolm Rodriguez present.
The linebackers, as a whole, played a big part in neutralizing Seattle's run game. Though the defensive line struggled, the performances of Anzalone, Barnes and others at the second level was strong against Walker.
Pass rush problems
Aidan Hutchinson's talent is no secret. As a result, he continues to get plenty of attention from opponents. With Seattle entering the game without both starting tackles, the game plan involved using multiple bodies to account for Detroit's talented edge rusher.
The Michigan product is still developing, which could cause some of his difficulties getting to the quarterback. He still recorded six pressures on Sunday, a solid number.
To combat Hutchinson, Seattle utilized a number of different avenues. They chipped him on pass plays with an extra blocker in the backfield. On runs, he often saw double teams.
Quarterback Geno Smith also used his quick release to avoid dealing with the rusher.
Elsewhere, the Lions continued to struggle to get pressure with their interior linemen. Alim McNeill, Levi Onwuzurike, Benito Jones and John Cominsky were all held without a single pressure.
Smith's quick release and Seattle's gap integrity played big parts in this. Their interior linemen won a strong majority of their one-on-one's against Detroit's counters in passing situations.
Physical receivers too much for Lions' secondary
Seattle's trio of DK Metcalf, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Tyler Lockett presented a tough challenge for the Lions secondary. This challenge was not passed.
Metcalf, one of the league's most physically imposing wideouts, used his strength to overpower Lions in man-to-man coverage. In particular, he had three catches against Jerry Jacobs, a much smaller defender.
Rookie safety Brian Branch also had a difficult showing. This tone was set early in the game, as he played too soft of coverage on a Smith-Njigba out route leading to a seven-yard catch.
He was also beaten for Lockett's game-winning touchdown. On the play, the Seahawks deployed crossing routes that froze the rookie for an instant, allowing the veteran wideout to create the minimum amount of separation required for the short scoring catch.
Goff dialed in
While the defense struggled, the offense had another encouraging showing. Much of that has to do with the play of Goff. Outside of a costly mistake, the veteran passer was once again on the money for the majority of the afternoon.
His chemistry with both Amon-Ra St. Brown and Josh Reynolds is on point through two games. Goff's timing with both is impeccable, as he drilled multiple dagger routes. Among those was Reynolds' second score, on which he separated in the end zone to find the ball as soon as he broke his route.
Reynolds' first touchdown was on a seam route that Goff placed perfectly. The passer hit his target as he entered a soft spot between Seattle's linebacker and safety. Upon making the catch, Reynolds held on while taking a hit from Quandre Diggs.
Goff's interception came on a mistimed route with running back Jahmyr Gibbs. Dan Campbell placed the bulk of the blame on the back, stating that he needed to run a better route. However, the pass was behind the intended target by a decent margin.
A reasonable explanation for that could be Goff believing that Gibbs would sit in the soft spot of the coverage rather than turn his route toward the middle of the field.
The passer also had an ill-timed miss to St. Brown on the final offensive series. He missed behind the receiver on this pass also, failing to lead the wideout who had created optimal separation from his defender.
Outside of those two passes, there were very few issues with the passer's performance.
Montgomery's tough runs
Much like Goff, Montgomery's day could very easily be defined by a mistake. His fumble on the first play of the third quarter was a game-changing play.
However, the veteran running back once again delivered a physical performance before leaving with injury. Given Gibbs' usage, it's clear that there is more confidence in Montgomery when it comes to getting key yardage.
He forced seven missed tackles on 16 carries Sunday, with two carries over 15 yards. There is an element of explosiveness to his game that the Lions were lacking last season.
With the running back potentially missing time in the near future due to his injury, the Lions will be pressed to find a way to replace his element of physicality that created opportunities for big plays on the ground.
