Getty Godwin Igwebuike celebrates a score against the Steelers in 2021.
The Detroit Lions competed hard against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 10 but still only managed to come away with a tie. To that end, some might not think that the team’s grades would be anything other than poor for yet another week.
Despite that, though, the Lions did a lot of good things on the road, and managed to go toe to toe with a solid team for four quarters. Though they weren’t paid off with a win, the Lions did show signs of life that hadn’t been seen in a few weeks, and as a result, they get some pretty good marks for their work.
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How should the Lions be graded for their non-loss last week? Here’s a look at the ledger for another week on the field.
Lions’ Offensive Grade vs. Steelers
B+
Dan Campbell’s foray into play-calling was a good one, as he helped unlock the Detroit running game to the tune of 229 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Lions showed a bit of brilliance using Matt Nelson, an offensive tackle, as an extra blocker up front in run-heavy looks. Jared Goff struggled to throw the ball, but that may have been a product of a slick ball and lousy field conditions. More important for this discussion is how the Lions have found some depth in the ground game in the form of Jermar Jefferson and Godwin Igwebuike, both of whom scored nice touchdowns.
.@Munchie1_ into the end zone for six!
#DETvsPIT | 📺 FOX
Suddenly, the Lions may have found some serious depth for the ground game to rely on down the stretch, while also seeing D’Andre Swift step up in a major way. Those are a couple of positives for an offense that needed them in a big way.
Lions’ Defensive Grade vs. Steelers
B-
It might be strange to see this high of a grade for the Lions’ defense, but the team managed to do just enough and outside of the early touchdown, the Steelers weren’t that dangerous most of the day. When they threatened in overtime, the Lions made a few winning plays, with Marcus Gilbert and Trey Flowers coming up with key takeaways in winning time.
Keep hustling @MGilbert_3
#DETvsPIT | 📺 FOX
.@III_Flowers on the spot❗️
#DETvsPIT | 📺 FOX
While Detroit didn’t win, it’s tough to blame their defense again. With only 16 points allowed, they did a nice job, tackled well and did not allow the Steelers to run away like it seemed like they would early on. That’s a major win for this group given their recent poor performances.
Lions’ Special Teams Grade vs. Steelers
F
Any time a team misses an extra point and a field goal and ties a game, it’s going to be a bad grade for special teams. The wet field was no excuse according to the staff, so Ryan Santoso gets all the blame for the Lions here, and is likely to be replaced. It seems unfair to Jack Fox and the return units to get a failing grade as a whole, but this ugly kick prevented any goodwill.
Ryan Santoso misses the game winning field goal #Onepride
Detroit’s next kicker had better be able to make clutch boots, because this performance was a very ugly one for the team.
Lions’ Coaching Grade vs. Steelers
B
Early last week, Campbell admitted that he wanted to build the Lions in the Steelers’ image. During this game, the Lions looked just as tough as the opposition in battling them to a draw on the field. It might have been a surprise, but Campbell seemed to do well as a play caller. Defensively, the team had a solid game plan and did a nice job most of the afternoon. It was a decent performance from the staff, minus perhaps trying a new quarterback out to see if it could lead to a win. That’s the only thing that keeps the score lower this week for the staff, but it was still a well above average performance.
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