The Detroit Lions enter their Week 12 contest with the New York Giants knowing full well that one matchup could affect the outcome: the battle between Giants EDGE rusher Brian Burns and Detroit’s offensive tackles, Penei Sewell and Taylor Decker.
It is a strength-on-strength duel that will test the Lions’ pass protection and overall toughness up front.
Burns has been nothing short of dominant in his second year in New York. Through 11 games, the 27-year-old pass-rusher has already set a career high with 13 sacks, to go along with 21 quarterback hits, 17 tackles for loss, seven passes defensed and two forced fumbles.
He’s coming off a two-sack performance against Green Bay, and has earned a solid 77.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, including a 75.9 pass-rush mark that ranks 23rd-best among 117 qualified players at his position.
His pace even puts him within striking distance of the elite 20-sack plateau – a mark hit by only 13 players since sacks became an official NFL stat in 1982.
Containing a player this disruptive falls squarely on Detroit’s tackles, a tandem that has played at a high level despite recent injury concerns.
Both Sewell and Decker suited up against Philadelphia in Week 11, and have combined to allow just one sack and four total quarterback hits all season.
Sewell, in particular, continues to anchor Detroit’s line with a 75.7 pass-blocking grade, ranking 18th among 77 qualified tackles.
He has surrendered pressure on a mere 5.2 percent of his pass sets, good for second-best among all right tackles and the lowest rate of his NFL career, per Next Gen Stats.
Decker has been steady in his own right, too, posting a 70.7 pass-blocking grade. That mark is good for 34th at his position.
The challenge to limit Burns grows tougher given Detroit’s recent protection issues.
The Lions enter the Week 12 affair ranked 26th in pass-block win rate, succeeding on just 56 percent of their reps. It’s a figure that heightens the importance level of this matchup and the potential danger Burns presents if left unchecked.
If Sewell and Decker can curtail Burns’ pass-rush efforts, Jared Goff and the Lions’ offense should have no problem getting into a rhythm. If not, though, Burns could help New York pull off a surprising defeat at Ford Field Sunday.
At this present juncture, I’m going to predict that Burns finishes with a sack, a couple of QB hits and three total pressures.