Detroit News

John Niyo   | The Detroit News The Lions have rarely, if ever, been trendsetters. But as what is shaping up to be another losing season reaches the quarter-pole here in Detroit, they’ve fallen behind the rest of the league in a way that’s both alarming and, at times, inexplicable. Points are no longer at a

Nolan Bianchi  |  Special to The Detroit News It’s always special when a player gets to make his debut in the starting lineup of an NFL game. But for New Orleans Saints rookie offensive lineman Cesar Ruiz, Sunday’s start at Ford Field against the Detroit Lions added just a little bit more sentiment: It came

John Niyo   | The Detroit News The Lions have rarely, if ever, been trendsetters. But as what is shaping up to be another losing season reaches the quarter-pole here in Detroit, they’ve fallen behind the rest of the league in a way that’s both alarming and, at times, inexplicable. Points are no longer at a

Bob Wojnowski   | The Detroit News Detroit — Nothing ever gets fixed, or stays fixed. The only thing Matt Patricia’s defense can fix these days is the other team’s struggling quarterback. It’s gotten so bad that when the Lions grabbed a quick 14-0 lead over the Saints Sunday, no one in the Ford Field stands

Detroit — The one-week reprieve provided by an unexpected victory in the desert proved to be little more than a mirage for the Detroit Lions. Coughing up their third double-digit lead of the season, and surrendering 35 straight points in the process, the Lions fell to the Saints, 35-29, at Ford Field on Sunday.  In what has become a

Nolan Bianchi   | The Detroit News Detroit — A lot of negative things have been said about the Detroit Lions defense through four games this season, and rightfully so.  It entered Sunday’s game with the league’s 26th-ranked scoring defense, allowing an average of 30.7 points. That number inflated slightly to 31.8 after the New Orleans

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Detroit — Justin Rogers grades the Detroit Lions’ performance in their 35-29 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Quarterback After throwing two touchdown passes in the first five minutes of the game, Matthew Stafford was uneven the rest of the way. He completed three of his seven throws in

Nolan Bianchi   | The Detroit News The Lions take over at the 25. They trail 35-14 with 8:52 to go in the third quarter. Adrian Peterson is stopped for no gain on first down. Danny Amendola on second down hauls in a 7-yard reception. the Lions rush to the line on third down, as Stafford

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News The Detroit Lions enter Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints about as close to full strength as the team could be.  Cornerback Desmond Trufant, defensive tackle DaShawn Hand, linebacker Christian Jones and cornerback Darryl Roberts each entered the day listed as questionable, but all are active for Sunday’s

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Overnight, concerns were raised about the viability of Sunday’s matchup between the Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints after Saints fullback Michael Burton reportedly tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.  But follow-up testing cleared Burton early Sunday morning — indicating a false-positive result — according to multiple reports out of New

Dave Skretta  |  Associated Press Kansas City, Mo. – The Patriots-Chiefs game has been postponed until Monday or Tuesday due to positive coronavirus tests. Patriots quarterback Cam Newton and Chiefs practice squad quarterback Jordan Ta’amu are so far the only ones to return positive tests, but both teams are doing additional screening. In the meantime,

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Hours after New England Patriots quarterback Cam Newton tested positive for the COVID-19 virus Saturday afternoon, forcing the NFL to postpone this weekend’s game between the Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs, the Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints are faced with a similar dilemma after multiple outlets have reported

Rod Beard   | The Detroit News In their last meeting Oct. 15, 2017, the Lions and Saints combined for 90 points. Ninety points. The Saints accounted for 52 of those points, but it wasn’t just from their dynamic offense. Quarterback Drew Brees had a ho-hum game, going 20-of-30 for 180 yards with two touchdowns and

Rod Beard   | The Detroit News In Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers, Drew Brees dropped back and with good blocking around him in the pocket, he cocked his arm to throw a deep pass but decided against it. Instead, he pulled the ball down, looked to his left and found running back Alvin Kamara

Associated Press Nashville, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans now know when they are rescheduled to play the Pittsburgh Steelers after the first NFL game postponed by a COVID-19 outbreak. Getting back into their own building depends on the results of continued testing. The Titans’ outbreak expanded by two more players testing positive Friday, pushing the team’s

The Detroit News Justin Rogers, Rod Beard, John Niyo and Bob Wojnowski of The Detroit News offer their predictions on the outcome of Sunday’s Lions vs. Saints game at Ford Field in Detroit (1 p.m., Fox/760 AM). ► Justin Rogers: The Saints are down six starters, including five Pro Bowlers. Comparatively, the Lions are relatively healthy and have some confidence and

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Lions cornerback Desmond Trufant doesn’t sound like a man who plans on missing Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints.  After being sidelined the past two weeks with a hamstring injury, Trufant is officially listed as questionable for the contest. But meeting with the media Friday afternoon, the veteran sounded

Rod Beard   | The Detroit News Lions vs. Saints Kickoff: 1:00 p.m. Sunday, Ford Field, Detroit TV/radio: Fox/760 Records: Lions 1-2, Saints 1-2 Line: Saints by 4½ Rod Beard of The Detroit News breaks down the Lions’ Week 4 matchup against the Saints. Key matchup MATTHEW STAFFORD VS. SAINTS SECONDARY For much of the season, there’s

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Heading into a Week 4 matchup with the New Orleans Saints, the Lions’ ground game has been passable. Given the team’s recent history, that’s a solid start. But there are two questions fans have been routinely asking coming out of the team’s victory over the Arizona Cardinals last week. 

Justin Rogers   | The Detroit News Sean Payton is the second-longest tenured coach in the NFL, having been with the New Orleans Saints for 15 years. Still, this will only be the fourth time Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia has been on the opposite sideline, coaching against one against Payton’s New Orleans teams.  But the