Detroit Lions' Week 1 Offensive Grades

For the third straight season -- all three years with head coach Matt Patricia at the helm -- the Lions have failed to win their season opener.

And this year, just like in 2019, Detroit blew a fourth-quarter lead.

Sure, the defense is mostly to blame for the loss.

But, quarterback Matthew Stafford and the offense are also guilty of some porous play down the stretch.

Without further ado, here are the team's offensive grades after its Week 1 loss to the NFC North divisional rival Chicago Bears.

Quarterback

Stafford had an uneven day Sunday in his first game since Week 9 of last season against the now-Las Vegas Raiders.

He completed 24-of-42 passes for 297 yards and both a touchdown and interception.

His interception was costly, as it came with 2:45 to play and led to the Bears' game-winning touchdown.

He still had a chance to lead the Lions on a game-winning drive, and threw a perfect, should've-been touchdown pass to rookie running back D'Andre Swift with six seconds to go that slipped out of Swift's hands.

However, that doesn't erase the fact Stafford failed to execute during "dagger time" and was unable to close out the Bears when he had the chance to.

Grade: B

Running backs

Speaking of uneven play, it can be easily said about Detroit's running backs unit Sunday.

Future Pro Football Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson had a great Lions debut, with 93 yards on 14 carries.

However, the rest of the Lions' backfield was inconsistent at best, including the aforementioned Swift.

Incumbent No. 1 back Kerryon Johnson rushed just seven times for 14 yards, while Swift rushed three times for eight yards and a score and caught three balls for 15 yards.

But, unfortunately what the first-year back will be most remembered for in his NFL debut is the ball he didn't catch that would've been the game-winning score for Detroit.

He had the ball in his hands for a split second, and proceeded to drop it as he turned around to enter the end zone.

#Lions rookie D'Andre Swift dropped the touchdown that could've won the game.pic.twitter.com/Y8K8rUSucZ
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) September 13, 2020

It was another disappointing moment in a tough string of finishes in recent memory that haven't gone the franchise's way.

Peterson's performance catapults the running back group to its final grade.

Grade: C

Wide receivers/tight ends

Second-year tight end T.J. Hockenson sure knows how to put together an impressive performance in a season-opening contest.

He hauled in the lone touchdown among the pass-catchers Sunday, finishing with five catches for 56 yards.

Veteran slot receiver Danny Amendola amassed the most reception yards with 81, and had the longest reception of the game with a 32-yard catch.

Meanwhile, rookie wideout Quintez Cephus showcased some glimpses of excellence with 43 yards on three catches. But, it's also worth noting that he was targeted 10 times, and should've hauled in more of those pass attempts from Stafford.

All in all, it was a decent performance from a receivers group that was missing its No. 1 wideout Kenny Golladay.

Grade: B-

Offensive line

It was the most positive position group on the offensive side of the ball in Week 1.

Collectively, the line only allowed one sack on the day, and the team's backs managed to rush for 4.8 yards on the day.

The only negative was third-year pro Tyrell Crosby's play.

He committed two holding penalties. Luckily, for his sake, though, one of them -- which came in the fourth quarter -- was negated by a defensive holding call.

Grade: A-