Lions' Week 1 Grades: Offense Makes Noise Late, Defense Sputters

For three quarters, it was ugly -- no other way to put it.

The Detroit Lions, in the debut of head coach Dan Campbell, were on the verge of being routed by the San Francisco 49ers Sunday. Thanks to a late rally, however, Detroit nearly completed a late comeback. In the end, the Lions fell to the 49ers, 41-33.

Poor tackling, inaccurate passing and ineffective coverage were just some of the issues that plagued Detroit in its season opener.

Here are the postgame grades for Detroit’s position groups, following the loss.

Quarterback: C

Jared Goff struggled for three quarters, before stepping up to lead the late rally.

The new Lions quarterback threw a pick-six late in the first half, after making a bad read and throwing into triple coverage.

Detroit dialed up very few downfield passes with Goff in charge. His longest completion of the day was a screen to D’Andre Swift, who turned the short pass into a 43-yard touchdown.

With the Lions needing some life late, Goff turned it up. He threw a late touchdown to Quintez Cephus, and kept his team alive. He looked composed during the fourth quarter, and inspired his teammates, nearly getting the job done.

He finished the game 38-for-57 for 338 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.

Running backs: B

After seeing no action in the preseason, Swift split the workload in the backfield with offseason acquisition Jamaal Williams. The two were solid, and produced in both the run and pass games.

Williams led the team in rushing yards with 54, while Swift had 11 carries for 39 yards. Behind a banged up offensive line and with little downfield passing, the running backs were in a less than ideal situation.

Swift, a former Georgia Bulldog, reminded everyone of his speed and playmaking ability when he sprinted into the end zone on the screen pass. Williams, meanwhile, turned short gains into longer ones, with his tough running style, and punched in a late touchdown.

Wide receivers: C

There wasn’t much to see from the wide receivers in the opener, as most of Goff’s completions went underneath to tight ends and running backs.

Some of this lack of production was based on the lack of downfield passing, but some of the responsibility falls on the receivers’ inability to separate. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Trinity Benson each had their first career receptions in the game.

Cephus made a pair of noteworthy catches, including an exceptional toe-tap in the corner on a two-point conversion late in the game.

Tight ends : A

If there’s one bright spot from the loss, it’s tight end T.J. Hockenson. The former Iowa Hawkeye was outstanding in his 2021 debut. There were questions about how he’d perform after not playing in any of the preseason games, but those were put to rest.

Hockenson finished the day with eight catches for 97 yards and the first touchdown of the game. As the season goes on, it’s clear he’ll be a huge part of the offensive gameplan.

Offensive line: B-

With starting left tackle Taylor Decker off to injured reserve, the Lions were forced to shuffle their offensive line around late in the week. Rookie Penei Sewell was forced to move from right to left tackle, and matched up with All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa.

There were plenty of growing pains for Sewell, who had a tough time with Bosa. At the other tackle position, Matt Nelson had a tough time against Arik Armstead. Yet, the front-five rebounded, and did a good job of giving Goff time to throw late in the game.

The offensive line did a good job in the run game, in the limited run plays Detroit had. Center Frank Ragnow and the interior offensive linemen battled. Sewell held his own and showed potential, and this unit should be alright in the future.

Defensive line: D+

Detroit’s defensive line was abused in the run game. San Francisco, playing without starting running back Raheem Mostert, bullied the Lions, and totaled over 400 yards of total offense.

The Lions were able to generate some pressure at times, and recovered a fumble on the 49ers’ first play from scrimmage. However, it was not nearly enough. San Francisco averaged five yards a carry in the run game, and marched down the field repeatedly.

Linebackers: D

Along with the success San Francisco had in the run game, there was plenty to go around through the air. Detroit’s linebackers missed play after play, struggling to make tackles in the run game and to cover tight end George Kittle.

San Francisco rookie running back Elijah Mitchell ran for over 100 yards in his NFL debut, and exploited a variety of weaknesses.

Secondary: F

There was a certain amount of optimism surrounding Detroit’s young secondary, specifically 2020 first-round pick Jeff Okudah. However, that optimism was subverted significantly, as the secondary laid an egg in the opener.

San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo gashed the defense for 303 yards, including a 79-yard bomb to Deebo Samuel.

On that touchdown, Okudah played solid coverage until the last moment, where he lost his view of the ball and made a disgruntled attempt at a tackle and allowed Samuel to run free for a score.

To make matters worse, the former Ohio State Buckeye left the game with a foot injury that kept him out the rest of the game. For a player who has struggled so much with injuries early in his career, one can only hope that the most recent setback is not significant.

Add us as a preferred source on Google