The Detroit Lions need help from other playmakers if they want to find consistency and reach the postseason.
The Detroit Lions finally got the elusive big game from both Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams they had been seeking all season, and yet it was still not enough to lead them over the Los Angeles Rams.
Offensively, the Lions had a decent first-half against the Rams, putting up 24 points en-route to a lead. In the second-half, they faded, only posting 10 total points while allowing 24. A struggling defense was a big reason why, as the Rams couldn’t be contained in their 41-34 win.
St. Brown and Williams were a dynamic duo on the day. The pair posted a total of 298 yards and three touchdowns, and were the reason the Detroit offense moved the ball much of the afternoon. Jared Goff looked in their direction and found immediate success.
Unfortunately, Jahmyr Gibbs had only 58 total yards on the day, and David Mongomery rushed for 32 yards and one late score. That’s not going to get it done in either a leading or supporting role for a pair of significant players.
St. Brown was frustrated during a tough second-half, and thought that the Lions made a pair of mistakes which hurt them on two key drives which could have kept the game in Detroit’s favor.
“I don’t think they did anything different. I think the (third-quarter) penalty hurt us. I think we had a sack on another (drive). So, these are kind of drive killers for us. We got to try to stay away from those. But I don’t think it was a bad day for us as an offense. I just think we’ve got to make more plays.”
Finding more plays is as simple as finding more playmakers. Whether it’s Gibbs, Montgomery or even Isaac TeSlaa, the Lions need others to produce in order to keep their offense rolling. As nice as it is for the two star receivers to shine, If others don’t step up, it’s likely to be lights out on the year.
Lions need multiple players clicking together in order to save the season
After the Week 15 defeat, the stakes are clear for Detroit. They not only have to win out themselves, but receive help just to be in position to make the playoffs for a third-straight year. It’s certainly not an impossible task, but one that will be a huge challenge.
This season, the Lions have struggled to put everything together consistently on each side of the ball. At times, Gibbs will help carry them. Other days, it’s St. Brown or Williams. Rarely, though, have they had every important player step up on both sides of the ball.
Dan Campbell offers sobering assessment of where the Lions are after loss to Rams
There’s been a few games that have been impressive complementary efforts. Wins against the Chicago Bears, Baltimore Ravens and Dallas Cowboys come to mind. Somehow, the Lions will have to find a way to make those efforts a constant near the end of the season despite only doing so in pockets this year.
Dan Campbell isn’t concerned, because he knows the makeup of his team and believes they will respond in a major way to this new show of adversity in 2025 and find some critical answers late.
“I believe in the guys on this team, the character of the players on this team, our captains (and) the core of it. We needed to play a close to perfect game. We were not able to play perfect enough. We made too many errors against that team, which (against) some other teams would have been enough. It’s not against (the Rams). I know we can do it. The these players know we can do it. You go back to work. I don’t believe for one second anybody’s lost confidence.”
Confidence may not be wavering, but unless the Lions can pull things together with all of their stars at once, they may need to start thinking about the offseason season sooner than they want.
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