Behind Enemy Lines with John Maakaron of All Lions

Ahead of tomorrow's Christmas Eve matchup with the Detroit Lions, I reached out to All Lions publisher John Maakaron to get some inside on arguably the hottest team in the league.

1. Why has Jared Goff been so successful this season?

Goff has worked closely with offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to highlight his strengths. They spent extensive time in the offseason watching film of what he did well with the Rams. The Lions have built a solid offensive line and given him solid offensive weapons, as second-year wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown has emerged as a reliable and consistent target. What plagued Goff earlier in the season was turnovers, but over the past 8 games, Goff has been protecting the football well and has been playing the best football of his career. He has the longest streak in the NFL currently without tossing an interception.

2. Biggest reasons the Lions went from losing one-score games to finding ways to win them?

The Lions started the season with a disappointing 1-6 record. Many bristled when head coach Dan Campbell told the media he truly felt his team was close to winning games and would be on the other side of close games if they stayed the course. Now, the Lions are clearly winning the turnover battle every week and they have been able to make the critical plays late. As I mentioned earlier, Goff is playing at an elite level and the defense is taking advantage of young players stepping up like Aidan Hutchinson and James Houston. The secondary was playing so poorly to start the year and the tough decision was made to fire defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant. Since then, the secondary has steadily improved.

3. One under-the-radar Lions player

Left tackle Taylor Decker came out this week and expressed his disappointment he was only named a 5th alternate for the Pro Bowl. Arguably, the veteran offensive lineman has played the best football of his career. He has not allowed many quarterback pressures or sacks and is part of one of the best offensive line units in the entire NFL. If Goff is given time and the protection holds up, Detroit's offense is among the most prolific scoring units in the NFL. Detroit's offense is scoring at a high clip, despite the running game not firing on all cylinders the past few weeks. If Detroit executes running the football this week, they will be impossible to beat this week.

4. Score prediction

This looks to be another close game for the Lions. I have been impressed with what Steve Wilks has been able to accomplish given the circumstances. Typically, the team with the better quarterback will end up winning these close games. I think Jared Goff and this Lions team are hungry and playing playoff-caliber football. Sam Darnold struggled in the passing game last week and the Lions will be looking to bring the pressure this week. If Detroit can force a couple of turnovers, they can leave Carolina with their seventh victory in their last eight games. It will be imperative for Detroit's offensive line to neutralize Brian Burns and keep Goff upright and with enough time to find his offensive weapons. I see the Lions winning this one, 27-24.

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