Detroit Lions grades: Handing out our first A’s of season after upset of Cardinals

Dave Birkett
 
| Detroit Free Press

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GLENDALE, Ariz. — Free Press sports writer Dave Birkett grades the Detroit Lions after Sunday’s 26-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals.

Quarterback

Matthew Stafford was incredibly efficient, completing 22 of 31 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns. Stafford missed a few throws early, but he threw a dime late in the fourth quarter to Marvin Hall that was overturned on penalty. He made two more clutch passes on the final drive for first downs, and seemed to be on point diagnosing Arizona’s blitzes. Case in point, a swing pass to D’Andre Swift for 19 yards on a two-minute drive in the second quarter. Overall, it wasn’t Stafford’s best game, but he was efficient when it counted and he played turnover-free football for the first time this year. Grade: B-plus

[ Give Lions coach Matt Patricia credit: He outcoached Cardinals in win ]

Running backs

The Lions leaned heavily on Adrian Peterson in the backfield Sunday, with Peterson getting 22 of the team’s 25 carries by running backs. Peterson ran well early and finished with 75 yards for the game, but he had just 9 yards on eight second half carries. Kerryon Johnson spelled Peterson as a situational back. The Lions deployed him as a blocker and on the pick route that set tight end Jesse James free on his first half touchdown. Swift played a bit role Sunday, with that single 19-yard catch. Swift would have had another nice gain, but he did not recognize the hot read and had Stafford’s pass hit him in the back. Grade: B

Wide receivers/tight ends

The Lions didn’t have a single player top 60 yards receiving Sunday, but they got contributions from almost everyone in the passing game. Kenny Golladay showed his worth in his first game back from a hamstring injury with a team-high six catches and 57 yards. Golladay drew a defensive holding penalty on Patrick Peterson early in the game and he made a nice twisting touchdown catch that not many other players would have come down with. After a relatively quiet start to the season, Marvin Jones had an important first down pickup late, and the Lions got important contributions from tight ends Jesse James and T.J. Hockenson. James’ first catch of the season was an important 15-yard grab, when he sold a block well on Jordan Phillips to get open. Hockenson used his big body to shield his defender and convert a third-and-4 in the fourth quarter, but he also gave up a sack and a had a false start penalty on third-and-7. Grade: B

[ The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Lions content. ]

Offensive line

The Lions shuffled personnel on their offensive line Sunday and had their choppiest performance of the season up front. Halapoulivaati Vaitai made his Lions debut after missing two weeks with a foot injury. He got bulldozed by Jordan Phillips for a first-quarter sack that stalled a drive and got beat for another sack by linebacker Devon Kennard. Vaitai also had the holding penalty that negated Stafford’s long pass to Hall. While Vaitai’s mistakes were the most noticeable, the Lions had a few other negative plays up front. Taylor Decker made a nice block to spring Peterson for an 8-yard gain late in the first quarter, but also had a false start on third-and-6. Frank Ragnow, who like Decker has been one of the Lions’ steadiest performers all year, got beat by Corey Peters on one run where Peterson was stuffed at the line of scrimmage. Stafford took four sacks in all, though one appeared to be the result of poor play design when Ragnow helped on an interior lineman and left Johnson to block Peters. Grade: C-plus

Defensive line

The Lions allowed another 100-yard rushing day Sunday, but they kept the big plays to a minimum and did a good job keeping Kyler Murray in the pocket. Romeo Okwara saw what felt like his most extensive playing time of the season. He had the Lions’ only sack and had another good pressure on a third down incompletion with the Cardinals backup at their own goal line, but he also misplayed a Murray keeper on third-and-5 when he took the running back expecting a pitch. Da’Shawn Hand had three tackles, including one on a third-and-2 running play in which he shed a block from Kelvin Beachum to make the stop. On the down side, the Lions still aren’t making many plays behind the line of scrimmage: Grade: B

Linebackers

Jamie Collins showed why the Lions were so willing to discard Kennard this offseason when it became apparent they could add Collins to their defense. Collins had the pressure up the middle that forced Murray’s first interception, and he picked off a poorly thrown Murray pass in the second quarter that was intended for Larry Fitzgerald. Jahlani Tavai made a nice read on the opening drive of the second half to blow up an end-around that went for a 6-yard loss, one play after Christian Jones missed a tackle-for-loss on Drake. Jarrad Davis did not start and played sparingly Sunday, and Reggie Ragland had one of the game’s biggest hits on a run-stuff on Chase Edmonds in the second quarter. Grade: B-plus

Defensive backs

Like Collins, safety Duron Harmon showed why the Lions went out of their way to acquire him in the offseason. Harmon intercepted a pass that deflected off Dan Arnold’s hands and made a heads-up block to spring Jeff Okudah for a 36-yard return on his interception. Okudah had another up-and-down day. He got beat on long pass on the opening drive, then had a coverage mix-up with Tracy Walker on a 26-yard Murray pass to Andy Isabella. He also was left lunging at air on Murray’s touchdown run and drew a defensive holding penalty on DeAndre Hopkins in the third quarter. Darryl Roberts got beat for two touchdowns, though the first was a beautiful ball by Murray. He also drew a pass interference penalty on Larry Fitzgerald, and Walker got beat on a 15-yard crossing route by Edmonds on third-and-3. If not for the timely turnovers, this grade would be lower. Grade: C-plus

[ Lions would win the Super Bowl if it were played in Week 3 ]

Special teams

Matt Prater made all four of his field goals, including the game-winner as time expired from 39 yards out. Prater had a couple long misses the first two games, but the Lions trusted him enough to play for the field goal at the end. Jack Fox had another big day punting. He netted 50.5 yards on his four punts and his numbers would have been even better had Tony McRae not stepped in the end zone when he was trying to down a punt late in the first quarter. Fox did leave one pooch kickoff a little short, and Elijah Lee had a holding penalty on a second half kick return, but the special teams, from punting to place kicking to coverage, were very good overall. Grade: A-minus

Coaching

Give Matt Patricia and his staff a ton of credit for their game plan Sunday. They flustered Murray with coverage and made it hard for him to make plays in both the passing and running games. The Lions seemed to play more zone than usual, and they juggled personnel. Okudah played right cornerback and Amani Oruwariye left corner for the first time this season, and Vaitai played right guard after spending all of training camp at right tackle. Offensively, the Lions did their best to keep Murray and Arizona’s potent offensive off the field with a balanced attack, and Patricia made the right call when he passed on a 58-yard field goal and counted on Fox to pin Arizona’s offense near its own goal line. The Lions’ defense came up with a key stop, and Stafford and the offense responded with the game-tying field goal drive. Grade: A-minus

[ Monarrez: Lions’ upset win means Patricia won’t be axed in-season ]

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Lions content.