ALLEN PARK — The Detroit Lions are one of three teams in the NFL averaging more than 30 points per game, but there still appears to be another level of excellence to be discovered under first-year coordinator John Morton.
How do the Lions get there? For head coach Dan Campbell, the answer is third-down efficiency.
“Third down is the most glaring thing right now,” Campbell said this week. “We have to be better. … Those are things that Johnny (Morton) looked at (during the bye week), (and) myself. That’s been the big focus for us, is making sure we find a way to convert. … Nothing to panic over, but there’s certainly room to improve.”
The Lions have converted 37.6% of their attempts on third down this season, good for 22nd in the NFL. Three of their seven games have featured a conversion rate below the league average (39.1%): Week 1 versus the Green Bay Packers (33.3%), Week 5 versus the Cincinnati Bengals (25%) and Week 7 versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (23.1%).
“I think last week was a pretty good example of not being good enough in that area,” quarterback Jared Goff said, referring to the Lions offense against the Bucs, which struggled to find consistency. “I think if we had converted a few more of those, the game is maybe a little bit different.”
Success on third downs has been a major theme in recent years for the Lions, who ranked in the top half of the league each of the last three seasons prior to 2025; there was consistent growth from 2022 (14th, 40.8%) to 2023 (11th, 41.5%) to 2024 (fourth, 47.6%), as the offense evolved into the NFL’s most productive unit.
“We’ll just keep going until we get it improved,” Campbell said. “We’ll find a way here.”
The offensive coaching staff used the bye week to dive deep into Detroit’s uncharacteristic inefficiency on third downs. Assistants took a detailed look at specific facets of the offense. Campbell, meanwhile, took a bird’s eye view.
“The biggest deal about our third down, and I think (Campbell’s) point to all of us, is, ‘Listen, if we’re going to get better at third downs, it’s not going to be a scheme, it’s not going to be a player, it’s not going to be how we’re using a player. It’s going to be a collective whole.’ That’s what he’s watching,” assistant head coach and wide receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said. “He’s watching how we practice it, he’s watching how we card it, making sure our guys, defensively, are doing exactly what the third-down card says. We’ve just got a big emphasis on that. We’ll continue to work (it) out, but it’s a collective whole.”
The Lions are one of the NFL’s most aggressive teams — Detroit averages 1.9 fourth-down attempts per game (T-ninth) — but Campbell doesn’t believe his penchant for rolling the dice has much to do with his team’s problems on third down.
Sure, there are occasions in which the Lions know it’s four-down territory and will opt to make it fourth-and-manageable, rather than selling out for the line to gain on third down. Campbell still doesn’t see the Lions, who are 9-of-23 (39.1%) on third downs between four and six yards (20th), converting at a high enough rate.
“Take those aside, we’re not good enough right now on third down,” Campbell said. “That’s what I do know.”
Campbell hopes improvement on third down can lead to more extended drives, which will in turn allow for increased opportunties for the offense’s playmakers. The Lions are averaging 60.6 plays per game (21st) this season. That’s down from 2022 (13th, 64.2), 2023 (third, 66.8) and 2024 (second, 65.9).
Compared to his breakout 2024 campaign, wide receiver Jameson Williams is averaging 1.7 less touches and 29.4 less yards per game through the first seven contests of 2025. Running back David Montgomery is down 3.1 touches and 15.3 yards. Rookie Isaac TeSlaa has received only six targets on 101 offensive snaps. He’s been on the field for 76 passing plays.
“To really … hum the way you want to, you’ve got to convert, man” Campbell said. “You’ve got to convert third downs into first downs, or fourth downs into first downs. Because now you’ve got another four plays — three to four plays — and then so on (and) so forth. … We are not getting the (amount of) plays that we normally get because we have not converted like we should on third down.”