The Detroit Lions struggled mightily against the Minnesota Vikings, losing in Week 9 due in large part to their offense's inability to control the game in the trenches.
Most of the afternoon, the Vikings prevented Jared Goff from feeling comfortable and getting into a rhythm. This dynamic was the biggest reason the Lions weren't able to win a close game.
In Week 10, that has to change in order for Detroit to win on the road. Instead of wondering about their own potential in the wake of a tough loss, the Lions have been locked-in on improving their mistakes that Minnesota exposed according to guard Graham Glasgow.
"I think last week was more about scheme stuff they did more than actual offensive line play. They did a really good job. They schemed us up pretty good. We're going to have to make sure that doesn't happen again the next time we play. But the stuff that they did, we're addressing it now and we're making sure that it's something that won't bite us potentially two weeks in a row."
While the Lions are preparing to potentially see similar wrinkles that the Vikings used to their success, tackle Penei Sewell isn't sure that will entirely be the case. As he knows, every defense is different and the Lions have to focus on themselves in order to see the improvement they need.
"Defenses, they all have their own philosophies and I feel like if you start changing who you are, your own identity starts to maybe get out of hand a little bit. There's little similarities in terms of front between Washington and Minnesota, so we just got to take the things that we just fixed and we learned from to apply now to this game."
The veteran linemen have all been here before, and realize that they are being counted on to change the narrative on their own this week. It's a heavy expectation, but one that the group seems to have met head-on.
Sewell believes Lions must move on mentally from Week 9 frustration
More than any analysis, practice or film study, the Lions have to mentally find a way to move on from the frustration of what happened against the Vikings last week. That mental variable might be bigger than anything they have done on the practice field to prepare, and is a huge challenge after any loss.
Sewell believes the key for the Lions is not dwelling on the past, and looking forward to the next play to see what kind of impact can be made.
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"When things aren't going your way, there's always a level of frustration. I think we just got to stay clearheaded and know that there's a task at hand and it's always (about) that next play. If you're close-minded and you start overwhelming yourself with all those things that just happened, you're going to miss the next one. It's up to us to come in to fix those things so that when the opportunity presents itself, we're going to be better."
This week, the Lions will get a crack at a Washington team that is 3-6 and having a dreadful season offensively and defensively. They've had bad injury luck just like Detroit last year, which gives the Lions a great opportunity to recapture lost momentum.
As the offensive line knows, it starts and ends with their ability to set the tone in the trenches. If they can make the needed improvements, the Lions will be in good shape