CINCINNATI, Ohio -- The Detroit Lions (3-1) are taking the quick trip south to Cincinnati to face the Bengals (2-2) in Week 5 action.
We’re taking a closer look at three burning questions at the top of our mind before the game kicks off on Sunday afternoon:
How big of a concern is Detroit’s cornerback depth ahead of tough WR matchup?
Ja’Marr Chase is as good a receiver as they come in this league. Tee Higgins is a 6-foot-4, 220-pound vertical matchup nightmare. But, and it’s a big but, the Bengals have not been able to get those two the ball for much of anything with Joe Burrow out.
Chase and Higgins have 14 catches for 120 yards and no touchdowns combined across the previous two games. Chase has been known to hit those numbers by himself in a single game with Burrow at quarterback. Higgins had 10 touchdowns last year, and there is a reason the Bengals spent $276 million on this receiver duo in the offseason.
On top of that, the Lions are dealing with challenges at cornerback. Top starter D.J. Reed is on injured reserve and will miss at least the next four games. Khalil Dorsey is also out (wrist/concussion) this week after seeing some defensive snaps in Week 4.
The good news is that Terrion Arnold enters the weekend without an injury designation. He suffered a shoulder injury and did not return last week. The second-year cornerback was back at practice all week, and is good to go against the Bengals.
While that is good news, Arnold has not been at his best. Still, this is an opportunity to show that how he played to end last season and in training camp weren’t an illusion when the Lions need him most.
Pro Football Focus ranks Arnold 101st among 108 cornerbacks with enough snaps to qualify through four games. He’s allowed 255 yards in coverage, the second-most among cornerbacks. Arnold’s also been called for four penalties, tied for third-most.
Arnold has played better than this before. He’s a battle-tested man-to-man cornerback who has shown the talent to hang at this level. But the Lions need to see more of that again, and soon.
“It’s a tough job. It’s a tough position,” Lions cornerbacks coach Deshea Townsend said of Arnold. “For him, he’s just got to keep working. Keep grinding on the little things. Let the process mean more than the results. As long as he keeps his process, it’s going to show up. And that’s one thing at this position, you just got to stay consistent, keep working, keep grinding and find ways -- how can you get one play better?
“As a young guy, it’s only his second year, but he’s got to grow quickly. But we’re working on it.”
With Reed and Dorsey out, expect to see more Amik Robertson shifting from the slot to the outside in certain looks. Rock Ya-Sin is also likely to fill some reps in the secondary as he did last week.
If and when the Lions move Robertson out of the slot, look for Avonte Maddox or Brian Branch to help lift the load there. Maddox and Ya-Sin have played all over the defensive backfield in their careers, and it’s part of the reason why they are here in Detroit. Each saw the field last week with Arnold, Reed and Joseph banged up against the Cleveland Browns.
Can Jared Goff and Jameson Williams clean things up after a ho-hum outing last week?
Jared Goff and Jameson Williams just couldn’t get into a groove against the Browns last week. And it wasn’t for a lack of trying.
Goff targeted Williams eight times with an average air yard per target of a ridiculous 25.1 yards. Williams caught his first target of the day for 13 yards, then his last for 27 yards, and that was that.
The electric wide receiver dropped two, and the quarterback was off on a couple, with both playing a factor in the missed chances. Williams dropped what should have been an easy one in the red zone. His other drop was on a tough over-the-shoulder chance, with Goff going away from the safety and Williams adjusting to get in position.
Williams has caught 10 of 20 targets for 214 yards and one touchdown. His 21.4-yard-per-catch average leads the league to this point, and based on last week’s looks, the deep shots will keep coming.
“Yeah, I don’t think that was poor communication. I think I missed it a little bit outside,” Goff said of the missed deep shot. “And I think if he were able to come up with that, it would have been him kind of saving my (expletive) to some extent, making that play. And it’s one I know he would love to make, and I’d love him to make, and he can make that catch.
“It’s a hard catch, though, it’s a really hard catch. But yeah, I think it’s more so me putting the ball where I want to a little bit more inside on him, making that catch a little bit easier, and I’m sure he can come up with it.”
Why do the Lions never seem to play down to inferior opponents?
Even last week, when the offense was struggling, the Lions found a way to put their foot on the gas and pull away for a 24-point win. Let’s be fair, the Bengals have some game-breaking talent. But they have looked lost without Burrow under center, with Jake Browning unable to get the ball to his playmakers (or do much of anything on offense).
For the Lions, it all starts with their head coach setting the tone, and the players buying in. It’s also why MLive’s Lions beat is calling for a blowout win for Detroit’s trip to Southern Ohio.
Through the last two weeks of Browns and Bengals matchups, we’ve heard countless times that this is the NFL, there are no bad players, and trap games don’t exist. Dan Campbell hasn’t resorted to hanging mousetraps from the ceilings like one of his mentors in Bill Parcells. And it’s because he doesn’t have to do anything to remind his team to be ready for games, no matter who the next opponent is.
They already dropped 52 points on the Chicago Bears in a blowout win. Last year, they scored 52 points in a pair of blowout victories over the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars, altogether winning seven times by at least 13.
“No, it’s just like we said last week, we’ve got our standards and we don’t sacrifice those for anybody or anything,” Campbell said earlier this week. “So, sacrifice and identity, that’s what it’s about. We’ve got to go to work, we’ve got to put in a good day’s work ... to make sure we’re ready to go out there in Cincinnati. We do that, then we’ll be ready.”
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