The Detroit Lions’ 44-22 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday was the ultimate return to form.
The Lions rung up 546 yards of offense– 320 passing and 226 rushing— and averaged eight yards per play. Nearly every skill player got involved, with Jahmyr Gibbs and Jameson Williams starring in particular as Jared Goff was almost flawless distributing the ball.
The Lions’ defense also came to play, with 1.5 sacks from safety Brian Branch and a stellar half from Terrion Arnold before the cornerback left with a concussion. The Lions went up 41-16 in the fourth quarter before Washington added a garbage-time touchdown.
It was a revelatory display from a glasses-sporting Dan Campbell, who assumed playcalling duties from John Morton for the first time all season. But against a beaten-up, disappointing Commanders team that has now lost five straight games, how confident can we be that this will be the version of Detroit that we see going forward?
Lions' offensive explosion won't be an anomaly
This is not the same Washington team that handed the Lions a stunning 45-31 loss in the divisional round of the playoffs last year. They were without star quarterback Jayden Daniels, wide receiver Terry McLaurin, and both starting defensive ends in Deatrich Wise and Dorance Armstrong on Sunday.
The Commanders haven’t won a game since Oct. 5 and have one of the worst defenses in the NFL. The unit ranks 30th in the NFL in estimated points added overall, and 31st against the pass. They’ve surrendered the most passing yards in the NFL and the fourth most rushing yards.
All in all, not a bad defense for Campbell to call plays against for the first time since 2021.
"It was just, 'Let's try something a little different,'" Campbell said. "Look, I know what I want to do. I know how I want to do it. Now, that being said, this is a collaborative effort now. I was taking input from John Morton that whole time, and the other coaches."
Of course, it was a much better matchup for Detroit than Brian Flores’ Vikings or Todd Bowles’ Buccaneers. But the Lions were so efficient and utterly dominant that a performance like this just can’t be explained away by who they were facing.
Detroit’s 0.46 EPA/play was the most by any team in a game this season. They committed zero penalties and didn’t allow a sack. Those numbers certainly say a lot about your opponent. But they say more about you.
The Lions ran play-action on 26.5% of their pass plays and had its second-lowest rates of both shotgun and 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) all season. Campbell got virtually everyone involved from a variety of looks.
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“I thought he did a great job, I really do," Goff said of Campbell’s playcalling. "It's hard, certainly in your first time doing it since that first year. It's been a long time since he's done it. I thought he did a great job, getting the plays in on time, getting the personnel in, switching up the tempos. He was great."
The Lions’ offense this season has been characterized by good raw box score numbers but poor efficiency. They entered the game 25th in third-down conversions, 16th in explosive play rate and 27th in offensive success rate despite being among the league leaders in points and yards per game.
Campbell had the Lions converting 50% of their third downs, recording the second-highest explosive play rate of Week 10 and a season-best 56.5% offensive success rate. Some of that has to do with facing a porous defense, but a turnaround that large also speaks to the improvements Detroit has made themselves.
There weren’t a lot of self-inflicted wounds for the Lions on Sunday, if any, and virtually every element of the offense was humming. It was only one game against a very bad defense, but Detroit looks like it’s figuring something out. This game could mark a turning point for this team.
“I have a good feel of our players,” Campbell said. “I know what they’re capable of. I know what we’re capable of. That’s the best way I can say it.”