ALLEN PARK — Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard had a hard time finding much bad upon reviewing the defense’s game tape from their 16-9 defeat on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles.
It’s hard to blame Sheppard as his defense held the first-place Eagles to their second-lowest point total this season, a measly 4-of-15 on third downs and 1-of-3 in the red zone.
But in the team’s pursuit to improve and do what it needs to get a win next time around, Sheppard found the area that he believes would’ve got the job done — takeaways.
“The way that game was structured on that night, our offense needed one more possession and that’s kind of was the nature of that game,” Sheppard said Thursday. “That was the one thing if I could kind of look to anything that we could have improved upon, it would have been stealing a possession for offense.”
The Lions didn’t have a takeaway against the Eagles aside from a late turnover on downs that gave Detroit a chance to make it a one-score game in the final three minutes.
It wasn’t an isolated problem as it was the fourth time this season the Lions didn’t force a turnover and the third time in the last five games they failed to do so.
Sheppard believes part of that is league-wide improvement in ball security, but it’s still no excuse for a team that forced nine turnovers from Weeks 2-5.
“The guys are attacking it,” Sheppard said. “We have to find ways to generate those. Not guys going outside of the scheme, but within the scheme and within the framework, finding ways to get more attempts on the ball. The ball has got to be ours mentality.”
The Lions have been missing their top ball hawk in safety Kerby Joseph — still leading the team with three interceptions — for more than a month, but the effort to rip the ball out for fumbles has slowed way down.
Aidan Hutchinson still leads the NFL in forced fumbles after he punched the ball out in four straight games. It’s been another four games since the star edge rusher has managed to do so and the rest of the team accounts for five forced fumbles the entire season, last recovering one in Week 7 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Detroit’s upcoming opponent, the New York Giants, aren’t particularly prone to turning the ball over despite having a game with five turnovers this season.
Expected starting quarterback Jaxson Dart has thrown three interceptions this season in nine games, but also has a team-high three fumbles. Giants running backs have combined for one fumble this season.
As the Lions try and bounce back from their latest defeat, takeaways will be at the top of mind for their defense.
It seemed like the Detroit defense did everything it could to get a win on the road against one of the best teams in the NFL. True to form, the unit’s leader believes they could’ve done more.
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