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The Detroit Lions beat the Green Bay Packers by a score of 40-10 on Thursday. Here are my three main takeaways from the game:
The defensive line was as dominant as ever
The Lions defensive line put on a show on Thursday. They combined for 5 sacks (1 by Ndamukong Suh, 2 by Devin Taylor and 2 by Ziggy Ansah) and 7 quarterback hits. Also, Willie Young and C.J. Mosley each had a fumble recovery, and Suh took down Matt Flynn in the end zone for a safety on his sack. What's more, the Lions held Green Bay to only 24 yards rushing on 15 carries (1.6 yards per attempt). That's about as good as it gets.
The offensive line deserves some love as well
The Lions really had their way with the Packers defense. Matthew Stafford went 22 for 35 for 330 yards, 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, and he was only sacked once. The running game was quite outstanding as well. Reggie Bush had a touchdown and 117 yards rushing on 20 carries (5.9 yards per attempt) and Joique Bell scored a touchdown and had 94 yards rushing on 19 carries (4.9 yards per attempt). As a team, the Lions rushed for 241 yards on 43 carries, good for an average of 5.6 yards per attempt. It had been a while since the offensive line was able to open up holes like that.
The #Lions are over 200 rushing yards for first time since 2004. #GBvsDET
— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) November 28, 2013
It may be time to start looking for a new kicker
David Akers went 1 for 2 on field goals on Thursday, making a 27-yard attempt and missing a 31-yarder. He is now 15 for 20 on field goals on the season, which isn't that bad when you consider a couple of those misses were blocked. However, Akers is now 8 for 13 on field goals from 30-49 yards. If a game comes down to a last-second field goal, I certainly won't have much confidence in him, and I think the Lions should at least bring in some free-agent kickers for a workout with the extended break before their next game. I'm not of the opinion that bringing in someone inexperienced like Havard Rugland is the answer here, but there's got to be a better option out there than Akers.
Bonus: The turnovers have got to stop
This goes without saying, but take better care of the ball, please. The Lions turned it over 4 times on Thursday (2 fumbles and 2 interceptions). I get that turnovers are going to happen, but they are happening too often for the Lions. If not for those mistakes in the first half, this game would have been over by halftime. The Packers should have lost by more than just 30 points.
