The Detroit Lions put on their worst performance since their season opener in a 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Coming out of their bye week, the Lions really struggled to look like the same team that earned an eye-catching victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before getting to their break. Penalties, sloppy play and lackluster showings on third down resulted in the Lions taking their first home loss of the season.
The problems showed in the Lions’ Pro Football Focus grades as Detroit was given a 63.8 overall grade, the team’s second-lowest of the season after their Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
The Detroit offense graded out low for its ceiling this season, getting a 67.3 mark — fourth-worst this season — while the defense was given its second-lowest grade of a 58.2.
The Lions actually finished with the advantage in yardage, out-gaining the Vikings 305-258, but partially due to necessity as Detroit played from behind almost the entire game.
See below for more on the PFF grades and rundown of the snap counts:
*PFF evaluates every player on every play in multiple facets of the game, such as passing, rushing, receiving, pass blocking, run defense, etc. It is important to note that PFF doesn’t base its grade on the outcome of the play, butrather what a player attempts to do on a given play.
Five highest-graded defenders (with at least 10 snaps): LB Derrick Barnes (75.2), LB Alex Anzalone (73.5), DL Tyleik Williams (69.6), DE Aidan Hutchinson (69.2), LB Jack Campbell (68.1)
Five-lowest graded defenders (with at least 10 snaps): CB Amik Robertson (36.1), DL Alim McNeill (39.0), CB Terrion Arnold (48.6), CB Arthur Maulet (50.7), S Brian Branch (54.8)
Five highest-graded offensive players (with at least 10 snaps): OL Penei Sewell (84.5), TE Sam LaPorta (82.1), QB Jared Goff (72.4), WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (70.2), WR Jameson Williams (67.6)
Five lowest-graded offensive players (with at least 10 snaps): OL Graham Glasgow (44.9), RB David Montgomery (46.0), OL Taylor Decker (48.6), TE Brock Wright (51.7), RB Jahmyr Gibbs (51.9)
*Quarterback Jared Goff wasn’t dinged too harshly for a 284-yard, two-touchdown performance, the Lions’ pass blockers certainly did. A 58.8 pass-blocking grade wasn’t the worst of the year for Detroit’s O-line, but their 19 pressures allowed on Goff was as they surpassed their previous high of 13. He was sacked five times as the pocket regularly collapsed and only helped to slow down what the Lions could accomplish on offense.
*The Legion of Whom was fractured as the Lions got back Brian Branch and Terrion Arnold in the secondary. But no one in the group did much that was encouraging as the Lions went from a 76.1 coverage grade in Week 8 to a 55.1. The Vikings only managed 143 yards in the air on 56% completion, but in crucial moments Minnesota got the best of the unit. The starting four secondary players — Branch, Arnold, Thomas Harper and Amik Robertson all finished in the bottom-six for defensive grades.
*The Vikings give up over 120 rushing yards on average this season and were coming off a game where they allowed 207 yards on the ground to the Chargers. You wouldn’t have known it was the same group with how they took David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs out of the game for the Lions. The pair combined for 65 yards on 20 carries, resulting in a 44.9 rushing grade, which was the team’s worst since 2022 before either had joined the team.
OFFENSE (Out of 64)
OL Penei Sewell -- 64 (100%)
QB Jared Goff -- 64 (100%)
OL Graham Glasgow -- 64 (100%)
TE Sam LaPorta -- 64 (100%)
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown -- 61 (95%)
OL Tate Ratledge -- 59 (92%)
WR Jameson Williams -- 58 (91%)
OL Christian Mahogany -- 57 (89%)
OL Taylor Decker -- 54 (84%)
RB Jahmyr Gibbs -- 42 (66%)
TE Brock Wright -- 35 (55%)
WR Kalif Raymond -- 29 (45%)
RB David Montgomery -- 24 (38%)
OL Dan Skipper -- 14 (22%)
OL Kayode Awosika -- 12 (19%)
WR Isaac TeSlaa -- 3 (5%)
DEFENSE (Out of 62)
LB Derrick Barnes -- 62 (100%)
LB Jack Campbell -- 62 (100%)
DB Brian Branch -- 62 (100%)
LB Alex Anzalone -- 62 (100%)
DE Aidan Hutchinson -- 61 (98%)
S Thomas Harper -- 60 (97%)
CB Amik Robertson -- 59 (95%)
CB Terrion Arnold -- 57 (92%)
DL Alim McNeill -- 51 (82%)
DL DJ Reader -- 32 (52%)
DL Tyler Lacy -- 31 (50%)
DE Al-Quadin Muhammad -- 30 (48%)
CB Arthur Maulet -- 18 (29%)
DL Roy Lopez -- 14 (23%)
DL Tyleik Williams -- 11 (18%)
CB Rock Ya-Sin -- 3 (5%)
DL Pat O’Connor -- 3 (5%)
LB Grant Stuard -- 2 (3%)
DL Tyrus Wheat -- 1 (2%)
CB Nick Whiteside -- 1 (2%)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Grant Stuard -- 24 (80%)
Trevor Nowaske -- 24 (80%)
Rock Ya-Sin -- 19 (63%)
Sione Vaki -- 19 (63%)
Jacob Saylors -- 19 (63%)
Pat O’Connor -- 18 (60%)
Ty Summers -- 17 (57%)
Brock Wright -- 16 (53%)
Arthur Maulet -- 13 (43%)
Tyrus Wheat -- 12 (40%)
Ross Dwelley -- 12 (40%)
Derrick Barnes -- 11 (37%)
P Jack Fox -- 10 (33%)
K Jake Bates -- 10 (33%)
LS Hogan Hatten -- 10 (33%)
Nick Whiteside -- 9 (30%)
Dominic Lovett -- 8 (27%)
Avonte Maddox -- 8 (27%)
Jack Campbell -- 6 (20%)
Thomas Harper -- 6 (20%)
Alim McNeill -- 6 (20%)
Penei Sewell -- 5 (17%)
Tate Ratledge -- 5 (17%)
Dan Skipper -- 5 (17%)
Kayode Awosika -- 5 (17%)
Isaac TeSlaa -- 5 (17%)
Tyler Lacy -- 5 (17%)
Roy Lopez -- 5 (17%)
Trystan Colon -- 5 (17%)
Kalif Raymond -- 4 (13%)
Christian Mahogany -- 3 (10%)
Brian Branch -- 1 (3%)
Alex Anzalone -- 1 (3%)
Aidan Hutchinson -- 1 (3%)
Amik Robertson -- 1 (3%)
Terrion Arnold -- 1 (3%)
Al-Quadin Muhammad -- 1 (3%)
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.