Getty Ryan Tannehill scores easily on Detroit's defense.
The Detroit Lions have been gouged this season on the defensive side of the ball no matter what happens by the end of the game, but losses have exposed a significant challenge moving forward.
Detroit’s defense has been very bad all year long, but in the losses, they’ve been downright exposed. They have given up an average of over 35 points and 400 yards in the losses. Perhaps most notably, the defeats have come against better teams they have played, especially on offense.
In their nine losses this season, the Lions have allowed averages of 35.2 points and 414.1 yards.
The Lions haven’t had any answers this season at all on defense, and that was only proven more in this game. Whether it was run or pass, the Titans did whatever they wanted against the Lions and managed to have a huge day. Detroit’s been just good enough at time to sneak by some bad teams this year, but against the best of the best they are constantly exposed.
Detroit’s defense is bad at this point in time, and there’s simply no way around that fact.
Lions Defense Struggling Statistically This Season
This season, Detroit’s defense has been plagued with inconsistency in every single way on the field, no matter who the opponent might end up being. Their pass rush has struggled constantly, and the team has been up and down on the back end while battling injuries. Detroit also hasn’t forced enough turnovers and is generally unable to get off the field against good teams and good offenses. As a whole, the Lions place 29th in the NFL in total defense through Week 15 this season. They continue to give up points and constantly look underprepared, which has been bad news for Cory Undlin and his group most of the year.
Matt Patricia’s defenses were never good in his tenure in Detroit, making his status as a defensive guru fraudulent. The stats only show just how bad the team has been this season in losses, but also within victories as well. Everything points to the fact that huge changes are needed in order for the Lions to find a way to get back to contention.
Lions Defensive Fixes Daunting
Many folks fixate on the offense where decisions will need to be made, but the team’s defense has been miserable this season and needs a total overhaul. Whomever the head coach is will need to find a way to manage the defense better and implement a plan that works. The next defensive coach needs to be an established boss who has a clear vision, and the general manager needs to find a way to clean up one of the biggest messes in the entire NFL in terms of personnel. It’s a tall order which might mean whomever takes over is facing a long road uphill.
The next general manager and coach has such a daunting job with the overhaul this defense requires.
Detroit’s next staff has a major cleanup on their hands, and will have to find a way to turn around a defense that only regressed after the former coaching staff took over. The blowouts in the losses only help serve this to be the case.
READ NEXT: Hunt Report: Why Lions Don’t Have to Move on From Matthew Stafford