Detroit Lions grades vs. Jaguars: Straight A’s for most complete win of Dan Campbell era

Detroit Free Press

Free Press sports writer Dave Birkett grades the Detroit Lions in their 40-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Ford Field.

Quarterback

Jared Goff is a different quarterback when he has all his weapons healthy, and it showed Sunday. Goff was an impressive 31 of 41 passing with a handful of drops and throwaways. He threw for two touchdowns and engineered an offense that scored every time it touched the ball in a non-kneel-down situation. Goff was lucky to avoid red zone interception on the Lions’ opening possession, when Darious Williams jumped a slant to Amon-Ra St. Brown. But Goff threw a dime of a 41-yard pass to DJ Chark on the second drive and did solid job avoiding pressure on the few times the Jaguars got in the backfield. The Lions can win a lot of games when Goff plays like he did Sunday. Grade: A

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Running backs

D’Andre Swift matched a season-high with 18 touches as he finally appears to be over the injury problems that have nagged him most of the season. Swift was elusive in the open field, turning four dump-offs into 49 yards receiving, and he showed his vision as a runner, bouncing outside and breaking two tackles on his 1-yard touchdown run. Jamaal Williams (11 carries, 35 yards) had a quiet day as the Lions leaned heavily on the short passing game, but still scored his 14th rushing touchdown of the season. Justin Jackson had a drop in the flat on the Lions’ first field goal drive of the second quarter, on a pass that was thrown behind him but that he should have caught. He couldn’t hold onto a second pass that was a tick high but hit his hands in the Lions’ two-minute drive at the end of the first half. Grade: A

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Wide receivers/tight ends

St. Brown (11 catches, 114 yards) showed great hand-eye coordination catching a pass that bounced off Williams’ fingers near the goal line, and he ran a pristine route to beat Tyson Campbell for his first touchdown. He’s as good as any slot receiver in the NFL. Chark (five catches, 98 yards) had a nice day against his old team. Along with the 41-yard catch he had in tight coverage down the sideline, he made a nice grab on a 19-yard pass thrown slightly behind him early in the second quarter. Because the Jaguars play their safeties in such deep coverage, Goff said the game plan was for him to get the ball in the hands of his receivers and let them chew up yards after the catch, which they did with ease. Rookie Jameson Williams played six snaps and did not catch the only pass thrown his way in his first NFL game. Grade: A

Offensive line

The Lions allowed five quarterback hits in 43 dropbacks Sunday, and Goff was effusive in his praise of his line after the game. “They kind of set the tone run game and pass game,” he said. “Specifically for me in the pass game, it was clean pockets all day long.” Jonah Jackson and Taylor Decker had a nice combo block to open a hole for Williams on his 12-yard run late in the third quarter, when tight end Brock Wright lent a hand as a pulling blocker, and Jackson and Frank Ragnow were out front blocking one play later on Swift’s 14-yard gain on a screen pass. The Lions did allow one sack when Travon Walker came unblocked off the edge, and another when Ragnow and Kayode Awosika got split on a stunt. But they converted a third-and-1 running between Ragnow and Jackson and outclassed Jacksonville in the trenches most of the day. Grade: A

Defensive line

The Lions held the Jaguars to 14 first downs and 266 yards of offense Sunday, but Jacksonville had some mild success running the football. Trevor Lawrence had 32 yards on four carries and Travis Etienne had 54 yards rushing before the game got out of hand. Aidan Hutchinson misplayed a fake jet sweep fake on the Jaguars’ second play from scrimmage, when DeShon Elliott stripped a fumble from Etienne. Hutchinson came unblocked off the edge to split a sack with Benito Jones, who has quietly put together a couple nice performances. James Houston has his third sack in two games on the final play of the first half, and I thought John Cominsky was the Lions’ best lineman. He shed a block from Luke Fortner to stuff Etienne on third-and-5, batted a third-and-7 pass in the air (and might have had an interception on the play had Houston not run in front of him while celebrating), and got a pressure on Lawrence with an assist from Hutchinson on a stunt. Grade: A

Linebackers

Alex Anzalone recovered the fumble that Elliott caused on the Jaguars’ second offensive play and showed great play recognition when he blew up Etienne on a screen pass in the fourth quarter, racing from the opposite side of the field to make a tackle in the right flat. Derrick Barnes was a step late in getting to Etienne on a screen that went for 13 yards early in the game, but made a great read on a toss to the Jaguars running back, when he beat Tyler Shatley for a tackle for loss. And rookie Malcolm Rodriguez showed his closing speed when he stuffed Etienne for no gain on a quick pass to the flat. As a unit, the Lions’ linebackers did a good job tackling and stifling Jacksonville’s short passing game. Grade: A

Defensive backs

The Lions held the Jaguars to 171 yards passing, but that number could have been worse had Zay Jones held onto his three drops. As it was, Christian Kirk was about the only Jaguar who hurt the Lions in the pass game. Jerry Jacobs whiffed on a tackle on a bubble screen to Kirk on the second series, and he collided with linebacker Chris Board while trying to cover a rub route on a third-and-6 conversion late in the third quarter. Kirk also beat Kerby Joseph with a crisp route for a 25-yard gain on third-and-7, and one of Joseph or Jeff Okudah got caught on a pick play on Jacksonville’s lone touchdown. The secondary played well overall, though, getting off the field on 9 of 12 third downs. Elliott forced a key turnover on the opening possession, Will Harris had a big hit on Evan Engram to force a third-and-1 drop, and Jacobs recovered just enough to get a hand on an underthrown Lawrence pass near the goal line. Grade: A

Special teams

Michael Badgley was a perfect 4-for-4 on field goals, making from 45, 47, 38 and 44 yards. He wasn’t the only standout on the Lions’ special teams, either. Jackson had two nice kick returns of 39 and 32 yards to give the Lions good field position, Kalif Raymond averaged 10 yards on his two punt returns and Jack Fox had a great day … holding. Fox didn’t punt the ball Sunday, but he did cleanly field a low Scott Daly snap. Grade: A

Coaching

The Lions have often struggled to rebound from tough losses over the years, letting one defeat seep into the next week, but that wasn’t the case Sunday as the Lions played one of their best games of the season coming off their tough loss to the Buffalo Bills. Dan Campbell and his staff had players ready to play and put them in the right positions to succeed. Campbell made a smart challenge on a pass to Chark when there was no definitive shot on replay immediately available, Ben Johnson called another impressive game as he continues to pad his resume for a head coaching job this winter, Aaron Glenn’s defense put together its third straight solid performance and the Lions did not commit a penalty until the fourth quarter. Grade: A

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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