Detroit Lions’ Week 8 snap counts: How the defense adapted to multiple injuries

In Week 8, the Detroit Lions improved to 5-2 on the season and 2-0 in the NFC North after beating the NFL’s last undefeated team: the division rival Minnesota Vikings.

Let’s take a look at the snap counts from this game and see what they mean for the depth chart hierarchy and what we can check for in the future.

If you just look at the score, you might think Goff wasn’t his usual self, but he showed extraordinary composure under constant pressure (the Vikings blitzed nearly 90 percent of the time) and held the lead when it counted.

Phew, what a game. The Lions ran the ball 16 times for 66 yards in the first half, with Gibbs accounting for 37 yards on 11 carries (3.4 yards per carry), while Vaki had five carries for 29 yards (5.8 ypc). But dedication to the running game, coupled with more interior trap plays, opened things up in the second half, as Gibbs completed all 12 of his carries for 116 yards (9.7 ypc) and Vaki delivered 36 yards on six carries (6.0 ypc).

Gibbs will be all over the highlights this week – and rightly so – but it’s important not to overlook the “big step” Vaki took in this game and why he was able to gain “a lot of trust” with this coaching staff. Vaki consistently gained positive ground on his runs, which allowed the Lions to reduce Gibbs’ workload and should give the Lions tremendous confidence that they have two legitimate options in the backfield.

Even though they were playing the #1 defense in the NFL, it was rinse and repeat for the Lions receivers. Their offensive splits and contributions were close to their season average – TeSlaa’s was reduced a bit due to the Lions’ two tight end sets – as St. Brown was the volume option, Williams was the deep threat (he has a 46-yard reception), and all three were crushing people in the running game. The St. Brown Arena football drive was technically considered a run because Goff threw the ball slightly backwards, which gave the Lions 10 additional yards to their rushing total.

The NFL has struggled with the Vikings’ “double cup” blitz concepts for some time now, but Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing unlocked the puzzle by deploying two tight ends in the backfield – LaPorta and Wright – and running an interior trap blocking scheme. This unique feature complicated the Vikings’ aggressive approach by blocking and displacing the “gaps” in the Lions’ front with their own aggressive descent.

While the Lions were successful in that approach and leaned on it in the second half, Wright had his most offensive snaps since Week 11 of last season. Additionally, according to Colton Pouncy of The Athletic, the Lions saw a big increase of 13 members (three tight sets)using the formation 16 times against the Vikings (previously they used it 19 times in the first seven weeks) and had a 73.7% success rate.

The Lions offensive line had a strong game, showing flashes of dominance in the fourth quarter that should remind fans of the 2023 unit that has intimidated teams. While Sewell was called for four penalties, he was a monster in the rushing attack and the Lions ran behind him all game. The guards continue to excel and improve, while Miller remains steady, which is all you can ask of a rookie against the Vikings’ confusing front.

Mays continued to shine since his return, but an early injury sidelined him and Scruggs returned to a starting center role. If the Lions’ running game took off after Scruggs’ entrance, I think it was more due to a change in blocking philosophy in the second half, but that shouldn’t discount Scruggs’ impact, as it’s an incredible luxury to have a player who can step in seamlessly and help the OL dominate.

While the rest of the defense has undergone some changes in snap distribution, the interior defensive line has remained fairly consistent. As the Lions deploy more passes, Gill-Howard gets a slight advantage over Williams — and the rookie rewarded the team with a sack — but we could see both of these flip snap counts in the coming weeks.

After Wonnum was forced to leave the game with a concussion, the Lions relied more on rookie Derrick Moore to replace him at the edge. Even though coaches tend to prefer to lean on their veterans in these situations, they did not deviate from their role as a player and turned to Moore, allowing Lacy to remain in the primary role. For the second week in a row, O’Neill finds himself faced with obvious passing situations.

The Lions came into this game with an apparent plan to alternate some of their linebacker roles, with the exception of Jack Campbell. Unfortunately, his gruesome neck injury forced him out, and with Rolder also out with a hamstring injury, the Lions had to shuffle their linebackers even more.

Overall, the plan seemed to be to cut Barnes, increase Nowaske and get Rolder on the field for significant reps, but injuries changed the roles and opened the door for Rodriguez to expand his role. Watching live, it wasn’t clear who MIKE’s primary linebacker was (All-22 was not yet available at press time), but it appeared Barnes and Rodruguez were in different spots.

Ogbongbemiga was the only defensive player not to play defense in this match.

Reed was forced to leave the game with a hip injury, but he was made available in the locker room after the game, which is usually a good sign that his injury won’t be long-term. Reed has been sensational lately and, over the past three weeks, has improved his game:

McCreary saw his reps reduced from previous weeks and continues to represent both inside and outside, but it appears he left room for Ya-Sin to see a big increase in snaps, his largest since he was benched after Week 2. Dorsey continues to step up in “and long” and third-down situations, while Rakestraw was limited to just one snap, which came after Reed was benched. the gap.

With Branch out early with a concussion, Clark saw his playing time increase and opened the door for Abney to get back into the mix. Izien has been deployed in specific situations against tight ends, but he continues to struggle with his assignments.

Bates missed his first kick of the season in that game, but the Lions were able to deal with it, and it ultimately didn’t become too much of a factor.