Lions Scored On All But One Trip To Red Zone In Preseason
by Sean Yuille on Sep 2, 2011 2:01 PM EDT
in Red Zone Recap
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PrintThe Detroit Lions offense was very explosive during the preseason, especially from inside their opponent's 20-yard line. The Lions were excellent a year ago in the red zone, and they were almost perfect during their four preseason games this year.
Over the course of the preseason, the Lions made 14 total trips to the red zone. Of those 14 trips, nine resulted in touchdowns for the Lions and four resulted in field goals. Only one trip -- a third quarter drive against the Patriots that ended on a Drew Stanton interception in the end zone -- didn't result in any points.
Here is how the scoring broke down for the Lions' 13 successful red zone trips:
vs. Bengals: seven-yard TD pass from Matthew Stafford to Nate Burleson, seven-yard TD run by Shaun Hill, 37-yard field goal by Jason Hanson
at Browns: four-yard TD pass from Stafford to Burleson, 25-yard field goal by Hanson, seven-yard TD pass from Drew Stanton to Maurice Stovall
vs. Patriots: 33-yard field goal by Hanson, nine-yard TD pass from Stafford to Burleson, 22-yard TD pass from Stafford to Tony Scheffler (the Lions got into the red zone before being backed up by a false start penalty, so this still counts as a trip to the red zone), nine-yard TD pass from Hill to Aaron Brown, four-yard TD pass from Stanton to Derrick Williams
at Bills: 16-yard TD pass from Hill to Stovall, 35-yard field goal by Hanson
If you had to pick one player as the best red zone performer during the preseason, who would it be? Personally I went with Burleson, who had a touchdown reception in the red zone in all three preseason games he played in.
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I'm not surprised
We were very good in the red zone last year, it should only get better with Stafford at the helm.
As far as the poll goes, I have to give the nod to Burleson.
what i see
i give the nod to stafford he been great in the red zone and been putting the balls where only his wr could catch it. my second person i would of gave the nod to would be burleson he made a lot of good catches from stafford the one in the bengal game is still in my mind for some reason.
Putting it where only the WRs could catch it
Is cool and all, because it reduces the chance of the pick. But don’t overstate it, that doesn’t mean “making it easy for the WR to catch it.” Burleson made some sick catches multiple times, just barely scraping his toes inside with defenders draped all over him.
yea i know
that was what i was trying to say with nate being my second notch. stafford did was put it where the wr had a chance. nate made catches where if stafford did that for Derrick williams he would drop possible all of them. sorry for being unclear about that.
Imagine that>
I am going to agree with Mav. Nate was tremendous in the redzone, always open, goes to the ball and get this, he actually catches it.
"I’d probably get arrested because football’s my only time I get to go out there and hit people as hard as I can, and it’s legal," Follett said. "I need that once a year."
Sorry, had to go with the Obvious - The Surgeon
But Nate was lights out. Imagine that! Our 3rd best redzone option IMO was the best…hmm what does that say moving forward….
The Dis-Assembly Line - The unofficial, official name for the next best D-line in football.
Now this title would excite me. The original one above? Whatever.
Lions Scored On All But One Trip To Red Zone During The Season
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
by delusional on Sep 2, 2011 2:47 PM EDT reply actions 3 recs
I'm yucking but that offense is very impressive, and very adaptable which I believe is it's strong suit.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
I'm not yucking
When I say 70% redzone conversion is not out of the question. Last year we were second best in the league with 64.44%.
All we have seen is the tip of the berg
I for one can hardly wait to see the passing game unveiled in all its glory. When they fire up the other 75%, its going to be sublime. You guys know that TB is predicting a blackout opening day. I dont think their fans care much to see whats going to happen when that 75% goes hog wild on their happy asses
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 3:15 PM EDT up reply actions
I do believe that Linehan is easily a top 5 OC.
And while I’m at risk of opening myself up for the moniker of kool-aid drinker", I believe that he’s the top OC in the league.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
If I could convince him to lose that stupid student body left/right 60's Packer sweep
I’d hang a picture of the man and maybe burn a couple of candles LOL.
Ive never been a Linny fan but Im about ready to hat in hand apologize. Im actually giddy about our prospects and Im old enough to be quite alarmed by that. Im almost a little afraid to find out what happens next.
Could it really be? We’ve waited decades. Could we really be seeing the sunlight and not a freight train?
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 3:34 PM EDT up reply actions
Depends.
Are you looking forward or up?
I know I, like my Lions, are looking straight to the sky. Last time I checked, freight trains don’t fly. :)
by Mavyrk on Sep 2, 2011 3:39 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
We have all watched enough offenses in our football lifetimes.....
Someone name a pro offense that flows better, or has more options then this one?
As long as Linehan loses his establish the run first ethic at times.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
by delusional on Sep 2, 2011 4:12 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Kalamazoo College Hornets - 2003
Jonas Jerebko once killed a charging female rhinoceros in heat protecting its young with nothing more than a hook shot.
No, seriously
i know from experience that it hurts to get hit by a freight train.
October 22, 1997. 2:20pm between Lansing and Battle Creek. Got hit on the drivers side rear of a Ford Ranger. Truck landed 150 feet from the intersection.
Did you know that you were about to be eaten alive by a train
Or did it sneak up on you?
A Train ate my Granddaddy on a track outside of Portland Or. back in the 40s. Course he was one legged in a wheel chair, drunk as a skunk and got stuck on the tracks. Grandma said they found one of the little wheels from the chair about 2 miles away
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 5:17 PM EDT up reply actions
I work for one of the RR's....
I could tell you all some stories.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
by delusional on Sep 2, 2011 5:19 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
By all means, please do...we are in the doldrums for now
I love train stories. I was rather proud of Grandpa, its not easy to get eaten by a train
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 5:22 PM EDT up reply actions
Almost 36 years worth RR.
I bet for a rough guess I’ve worked through 75 whackings.
It’s been anything from a car full of kids, to famalies being wiped out, to murder coverups by propping the prior dead body up, and putting a burger in their hand to make it look like it was dinner time.
A recent trend is stupid kids wearing the earbuds and walking down or crossing the tracks.
It’s usually a 3 hour ordeal with coroners, cops trying to scrape up and scoop up as many of the bits as possible.
A lot of body fat is left on those engines.
Of course at times they just drive right into the side of a moving one and buy the farm 6 cars back.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
by delusional on Sep 2, 2011 6:03 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
The burger ploy is fantastic, did it work?
75?? Wow, sadly thats a lot. I have the utmost respect for the beasts personally. Specially since one ate Grandpa
Nice thing about the desert is they have a really hard time sneaking up on you. If you get eaten round here, you were probably asking for it. I would guess the reduced line of sight around those parts really increases potential for disaster
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 6:21 PM EDT up reply actions
It's been a while since the last one.
Now that I think about it.
.Does your momma have a Big Ass like your head?
by delusional on Sep 2, 2011 6:35 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
As long as the RR you work for isn't Rich Rodriguez.
I never met him, but he was family to me... R.I.P. Tom Kowalski We will all miss you.
agree on that freak'n sweep!
use it once in a while to see if you can get lucky – but not a few times every game!
The Dis-Assembly Line - The unofficial, official name for the next best D-line in football.
I think we should differentiate between straight redzone and redzone td %
From that close, Hanson is deadly accurate. If we could score tds on 64.29% of redzone trips (ie our 9/14 TD rate in the preseason) I would be incredibly happy. I think it’s too much to ask, but if we are close to that redzone TD rate, we should easily make the playoffs.
I hope the trend
can continue when the real season gets underway. I’d be even more impressed if they were able to continue the streak into the playoffs. I would shit an Escalade if they continue that to the Lombardi Trophy.
However, they have played well together in the preseason and I look forward to another year of Detroit Lions football. Lets hope that this preseason wasn’t fools gold.
What I saw this preseason
was three guys who can catch the ball on the fade (CJ, Nate, and Sto), and Titus Young flashing some of that advertised ability to change directions and shed defenders. Plus a QB who can put the ball on the money or in a spot that only the receiver has a chance.
They played against some pretty poor pass defenses, but if this level of performance carries over to the regular season, that will be one passing combo that will be tough to defend.
pass defenses, yes
but Stafford was taking advantage of pro bowl CBs in Hall and McCourty…I tihnk he made Haden look bad to if I remember right…
The Dis-Assembly Line - The unofficial, official name for the next best D-line in football.
Haden and McCourty are good
but they both were rookies last year, so they probably surprised a few people, much like Sam Shields did in GB. I suspect they won’t surprise as many people this year.
The Team
I also agree with Burleson; making the most out of his opportunities. There is one other selection for my top pick, which wasn’t available, but encompasses all… THE TEAM.
by Gee Garold Lembach on Sep 2, 2011 3:19 PM EDT reply actions
Yeah I would think the O-Line should get some consideration
Jonas Jerebko once killed a charging female rhinoceros in heat protecting its young with nothing more than a hook shot.
Let's not forget
Hanson touched the ball on every single one of those red zone trips (except for the ones that were Rayner).
on the other hand
none of the field goals actually came from inside the red zone, so I’ll take that one back.
with Hanson
Half the field is the redzone. :)
by Mavyrk on Sep 2, 2011 3:26 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 5 recs
Did any of you
hear the Buffalo announcers say something to the effect "that hanson doesnt have much of a leg?
Put me down...Lions win at least 11 games next season! 1/6/11
I didn't
But I was watching WXYZ detroit, so the announcers were Detroit pressers.
by Mavyrk on Sep 2, 2011 6:06 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Twice, at least
On the first one, Jason promptly booted it out of the back of the end zone. On the second one, they got the return where Jason got the killer tackle to stave off disaster.
40 years old, 165 pounds soaking wet and he’s playing like a madman in preseason. I love Jason Hanson.
"Common Sense, isn't" Solomon Short
by YpsilantiJeff on Sep 2, 2011 6:28 PM EDT up reply actions
I wanted to vote for Hanson,
But what really impressed me about him was the consistency on longer field goals, so instead I voted for Stafford. His game management so far has been impressive.
what impressed me the most with Hanson was his ability to hit the 1 yard line on pretty much every single kickoff.
I think our special teams play is gonna be huge for us this year. The only downside is that if our defense does their job, our offense will be forced to play with short fields and won’t get to pimp their numbers as much.
Jonas Jerebko once killed a charging female rhinoceros in heat protecting its young with nothing more than a hook shot.
debbie downer
over here…
The Dis-Assembly Line - The unofficial, official name for the next best D-line in football.
by rames on Sep 2, 2011 7:15 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
If our defense does its job
we’ll be playing short fields a lot because of turnovers!
No slogans. Just win!!!
Derrick Williams is on that list?
Really? Really?
…
Fan of the Tigers ~ Red Wings ~ Lions - No Better Town to be a sports fan of!
Avid Gamer and Anime Junkie
voted for Nate
he showed that he wants to be the legitimate counterpart to Megatron, displayed great ability to catch passes that would have otherwise been incomplete, and otherwise just looked ready to prove something. Stafford was a close 2nd in my opinion, he’s gonna be something to watch this season
Fan of the Tigers ~ Red Wings ~ Lions - No Better Town to be a sports fan of!
Avid Gamer and Anime Junkie
stovall
I needed to show that guy some love. He stepped up in a big way. I would be SHOCKED if he didn’t play his way into a starting job.
Is this what you wanted?
Is this what you had in mind?
Is this what you wanted?
'Cause this is what you're getting.
by chaunce on Sep 2, 2011 4:01 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Stafford & Burleson get equal credit
My only concern is the lack of Calvin anywhere in there. But then again, I’m not really worried. That will come in due time.
yeah...they didn't need to practice CJ in the endzone...what they did was perfect.
Teams are already gameplanning for CJ in the red zone and given the number of catches and TDs he had (9 TDs in the red zone alone vs. 7 for the rest of the team combined), showing off some of our other red zone weapons will make teams think twice about over-defending CJ…
Jonas Jerebko once killed a charging female rhinoceros in heat protecting its young with nothing more than a hook shot.
by The Boourns on Sep 2, 2011 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I chose Staff
He just looked great. Very accurate. Consistant.
Put me down...Lions win at least 11 games next season! 1/6/11
Yes he does....
and his reads are quick and decisive. If he is able to keep defenses off balance the run game will be fine. I won’t be worried if they start a little slow, I expect them to be playing great at years end and that is key.
I will never pretend to know more than they do; except in Millen's case.
We were impressive as well last year
It’s not unreasonable to expect something similar to happen this season.
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