DETROIT -- We’re all about to learn what grit means to this version of the Detroit Lions.
They have made those four letters everything they’re about under Dan Campbell. But as the franchise enters new territory, with higher expectations than ever, it’s about to be pushed to the limit. They find themselves in a daunting hole, going 1-3 in the division, and falling a tick further away from reaching the postseason.
Detroit has shown what grit means countless times. But they know the hole they’ve dug themselves is deep, leaving no margin for error.
The Lions have lost two out of their last three games and just got swept by a divisional rival, delivering not only a blow to their hopes to three-peat in the division, but to make the playoffs. Shoot, they haven’t led in regulation for three games.
That’s not anywhere close to Detroit’s standards. The team’s identity is there, but in thought only, as the execution is failing to bring the vision to life.
“You’ve got to do your job. You’ve got to win, and you need a little help,” Campbell said. “And that’s what it is. But it all starts with you doing your job, which is us, and finding a way to win the next one in front of us. It really is that simple. Don’t make more of it than need be.
“It’s frustrating. It sucks. It’s tough, but we did it to ourselves, and we’re the only ones who are going to get out of it as well.”
Frank Ragnow’s return is a major boost for an offensive line that continues to struggle. But Amon-Ra St. Brown might miss time, and Sam LaPorta is on injured reserve and not expected back.
Jared Goff has called those two his security blankets. Their absence gives Campbell an offense that might not mesh with his aggressive go-for-it-all ways. Detroit has failed to convert its last seven fourth-down tries and was beaten by a Green Bay Packers team that embraced and, most importantly, executed those moments when it mattered most.
Campbell remains committed to his ways and isn’t about to budge. But with the playsheet in his hands, he must find the right balance between what he calls, wants and has available.
He took on more responsibility because he knew what he wanted this offense to look like. After an impressive first game in the role against the free-falling Washington Commanders, there are clearly more problems than who is calling the offense.
“But as far as the way that I wanted to play that game offensively, that was the vision I had for it,” Campbell said. “We’ve got to convert. Those first two series that we had, we’ve got to find a way to convert on third (down) and then the fourth downs.”
The trick plays whiffed on Thanksgiving. Goff dropped the double pass. David Montgomery threw an incompletion after running one in for the score in the wildcat earlier on Thanksgiving. An end-around to Jameson Williams went backwards.
There was a weird balance between the rush and pass, with the usually creative offense getting predictable. They ran Jahmyr Gibbs up the gut on a third and then fourth down to start the second half, losing yards both times, with the Packers knowing full well what was coming.
Then, with time dwindling, trailing by 10, they threw three straight times from the 4-yard line, taking their sweet time to get there. If Campbell were set on taking his time and not being predictable, a run wouldn’t have hurt from so close to paydirt.
However, this is where Montgomery threw an incompletion, which was followed by an incompletion to reserve tight end Ross Dwelley, and then Goff got sacked on third down to settle for the field goal.
There is a time and a place for Montgomery to throw the ball, and that wasn’t it. St. Brown and LaPorta were out, and the Lions worked the ball downfield to give have a chance, but they didn’t have the horses to get home.
On top of that, Campbell and the offense wasted more than 6 minutes in a two-score game. He said that was his plan as he wanted to make it all about the final possession.
That explanation would make sense for the 2023 or 2024 Lions. But once again, his vision is disconnected from where this team sits. Detroit was lucky to have a chance that late, and to take the clock from 9:02 to 2:59, never touching the ball again, was a major misjudgment.
Campbell deserves a ton of belief from his team, front office and fans. That’s earned, and this isn’t meant as a takedown of the coach who got this team this far so quickly. But there needs to be an adjustment based on what he has and how this team has performed.
It’s not the same group. He’s missing offensive playmakers who are vital to this operation, which makes further adjustments in play-calling, clock management and aggressiveness necessary.
Right now, the vision and execution feel very disconnected. It’s felt that way in most games against above-average opponents. The offensive line isn’t helping. The loss of St. Brown and LaPorta has made it worse. And while Williams is pure lightning in a bottle, he is never going to be that possession, got-to-have-it option.
Yes, Williams should make the catch he dropped on fourth down in the fourth quarter. Goff’s throw was off the mark, and he must adjust to who he’s targeting. Williams is always thinking about what’s going to happen after the catch, bringing a different style than St. Brown or LaPorta.
That can be a great thing -- the Lions had their highest explosive play rate of the season. Or it can be disappointing when they simply need a catch.
Ragnow’s return gives the Lions an elite player and one of the game’s best warriors of his generation. Now, at 7-5, the question of whether it will happen soon enough or be enough to save them lingers.
“Find a way to win the next one, get to 8-5,” Goff said of the mindset. “Then after that, it’s going to be the same answer. So, yeah, we know where we’re at. We certainly know that this was consequential for division rankings and whatnot. Yeah, we’ve got to win the next one and find a way to beat Dallas.”
It’s a danged shame it’s come to this. There is time to crawl back, especially with Ragnow’s immediate boosting powers. But Detroit must dig in more than ever. They have the pieces to do it. However, much like the vision of what they can be, it remains an on-paper thought, currently disconnected from reality.
Belief alone won’t bridge the gap between those expectations, vision and reality. It’s going to take all the grit in the world for it to be more than a rallying cry and not a reminder of what they let slip away.