Bold Prediction of the Week: Lions jump out to early lead, shut down Seattle ground game

We’re starting to hit the time of year where the contenders separate themselves from the pretenders. Opinions on the Lions were all over the map, and the majority of the Pride of Detroit staff thought that it would take a while for the Lions defense to adapt to Matt Patricia’s learning curve. That has been exactly the case, but the Lions offense getting out to hot starts has allowed the defense to stick to their better half: pass defense. Now seven weeks into the season and having checked off the bye week, the Lions defense is looking much smoother and this week’s addition of Damon “Snacks” Harrison should only help that.

Bold prediction of the week: Lions jump out to early lead, hold Seattle to under 100 rushing yards

Seattle enters this game sitting at seventh in the league in offensive rushing, with just over 127 rushing yards per game. Their passing offense isn’t that strong, as the Seahawks lost speedster Paul Richardson in free agency and star receiver Doug Baldwin has seen limited usage thus far in the season. It’s safe to say they won’t beat you through the air, especially if Matt Patricia wisely entraps Russell Wilson in the contain scheme that he used to shut down Aaron Rodgers.

That brings us back to the run game. The key to winning this game will be shutting down Chris Carson and keeping Russell Wilson in the pocket. While the acquisition of Damon “Snacks” Harrison this past week will certainly help, one man doesn’t fix a run defense. Instead, the key will be what the Lions have done fairly consistently in weeks recent: jump out to and force the opposition to attack through the air.

If the Lions can do that, then they shouldn’t have too much trouble handling the Seahawks’ passing game. They don’t have the finest line and Patricia has proven he knows how to keep a quarterback contained, and defensive backs Darius Slay and Nevin Lawson have the speed to keep up with the Seahawks’ speedy receivers.

Jumping out to an early lead will be key to a solid game this week. If the Lions can pull off the win, it would go a long way to proving that they are in fact contenders and not pretenders.