Monday, September 11, 2023

Morning Lions Links for Tuesday 9-12-23

Articles:

NOTEBOOK: Rookie Branch's playmaking ability already on display:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/notebook-rookie-branch-s-playmaking-ability-already-on-display

Lions-Seahawks preview: Sleepless nights for Seattle after Week 1:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/lions-seahawks-preview-sleepless-nights-for-seattle-after-week-1.html

Get turnt and roar: Detroit Lions expecting rowdy fans at season opener:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/get-turnt-and-roar-detroit-lions-expecting-rowdy-fans-at-season-opener.html

Lions rookie Brian Branch: I’ve watched the pick-six 100 times:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/lions-rookie-brian-branch-ive-watched-the-pick-six-100-times.html

Lions’ Frank Ragnow says new health director got him out of dark place with toe:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/lions-frank-ragnow-says-new-health-director-got-him-out-of-dark-place-with-toe.html

Lions to increase touches for electric rookie RB Jahmyr Gibbs after light debut:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/lions-to-increase-touches-for-electric-rookie-rb-jahmyr-gibbs-after-light-debut.html

Ever wonder where Dan Campbell’s aggressiveness comes from? Here you go.:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2023/09/ever-wonder-where-dan-campbells-aggressiveness-comes-from-here-you-go.html

NFC North roundup: Vikings and Bears fall, Packers prevail in Week 1:  https://lionswire.usatoday.com/lists/nfc-north-roundup-vikings-bears-fall-while-packers-prevail/

Notebook: Origins of Dan Campbell's Aggressiveness:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/notebook-origins-of-dan-campbell-aggressiveness



NFL Week 1's big questions, risers and fallers: 49ers' offense, Browns' defense and Tua-Tyreek duo impress (Detroit 21, Kansas City 20 - Lions:  Will Lions QB Jared Goff break the NFL record for most consecutive passes without an interception? Goff was not intercepted Thursday and has now gone 359 consecutive passes without a pick. That's the third-longest streak in NFL history behind Tom Brady (399) and Aaron Rodgers (402). Goff says he's comfortable in the offense and has placed an emphasis on ball security, so there's reason to believe he can do it.  Stock up after the win: DE Aidan Hutchinson. The second-year edge rusher had a career-high six QB pressures on Thursday night, tied for the most by a Lions player since the start of the 2020 season.  Stock down after the win: WR Marvin Jones Jr. The veteran dropped a pass and coughed up the first fumble of his 12-year career during the second quarter on a scoring opportunity on his 563rd career touch. -- Eric Woodyard):  https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/38338359/nfl-week-1-2023-questions-risers-fallers-takeaways-lessons-stats

FMIA Week 1: Tagovailoa bursts back as Rams, Browns, 49ers lead surprise-filled NFL weekend (An officiating debacle.  The NFL is lucky that the continued ignored infractions of Kansas City right tackle Jawaan Taylor didn’t cost Detroit the game Thursday. The 27 million people who watched Detroit-Kansas City in the opener saw Taylor consistently break the NFL rule of how deep he can line up behind the line of scrimmage, and at least occasionally break the rule for false starts; he began his pass- or run-sets a split second before the snap of the ball more than a few times.  The way officiating works in the NFL, when either of these things happens, an official is supposed to warn the player and his coach about the violations. An official might say to Taylor, You’re lined up at least a half-yard behind what’s legal, and if you do it again, I’m throwing a flag for it. NFL rules say the helmets of guards and tackles “must break a vertical plane that passes through the beltline of the snapper.” As one NFL rules analyst told me over the weekend, “I’d be surprised if Taylor was legal on one snap all night. He was a good yard-and-a-half behind the snap of the ball.”  The down judge and line judge are responsible for policing these calls. What’s amazing to me is that one of these officials Thursday night was line judge Carl Johnson, a 21-year veteran official and the NFL’s former VP of officiating. How he and down judge Frank LeBlanc let those things slide most of the night is something the NFL can’t be happy with. No way it continues.  7. I think these are my thoughts on Detroit 21, Kansas City 20:  a. Detroit deserved it, because you get what deserve in the NFL. Kadarius Toney did hand it to the Lions on a silver platter, but the Lions did so much well. They’re stout defensively, they can run with power and speed, the secondary is feisty. The Lions are absolutely not overrated.  b. Best player on the field for Detroit: Aidan Hutchinson. How fortunate for them that Jacksonville passed on Hutchinson with the first pick in the 2022 draft. After a terrific rookie year, Hutchinson in Kansas City influenced the pocket for four quarters, pressuring Patrick Mahomes seven times, per PFF. “I was thinking I’m not letting this dude get out of the pocket,” Hutchinson said afterward. That’s how it looked. Even with right tackle Jawaan Taylor getting away with false start after false start, leaving his stance early to prep for Hutchinson’s rushes, the defender still had a huge edge.  c. Jared Goff’s interception-less streak is at 359 (44 away from breaking Aaron Rodgers’ record of 402), and though he didn’t spot a wide-open Amon-Ra St. Brown for what would have been an easy TD, Goff played efficiently on 91- and 80-yard TD drives. His protection was good too.  d. St. Brown’s a marvel—202 catches now in 34 career games. Tough and physical, he’s the perfect leader for that receiver corps.  e. David Montgomery’s the tough inside runner Dan Campbell craves, but Detroit will need to feature Jahmyr Gibbs (nine touches in 70 Lions snaps) more.  f. Mahomes lost 111 catches and 1,239 yards in 2022 after the trade of Tyreek Hill; Mahomes survived that and won the Super Bowl. On Thursday, he was without Travis Kelce, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman (213 catches, 2,568 yards, 19 TDs between them last year) and nearly survived that.  g. Big mistake, I thought, by Andy Reid, going for it on fourth-and-20 from his 35-, then fourth-and-25 from his 30-, with 2:09 left. No reason for it. Punt it there, use timeouts, make a stop, and if you succeed, you’ve got the ball back with Mahomes needing to go 30 yards or so for the game-winning field goal. Don’t get that one.):  https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/fmia/news/nfl-tua-tagovailoa-browns-49ers-rams-fmia-week-1-peter-king

NFL Week 1 Rookie Rankings 2023: Puka Nacua, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Zay Flowers Lead List of Promising Young Stars (2. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions:  Yes, Chris Jones was in a suite and not on the field. And the Detroit Lions came off as predictable offensively. But still, what was once considered a reach in the first round ended up averaging six yards a carry against the Super Bowl defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.  Seven carries for 42 yards comes off as preseason numbers, but it’s the way Gibbs got his yards that becomes most impressive — especially this first carry in his NFL career.  Gibbs brought his early blend of vision, power, speed, and determination in that order in a game that sent out the early sign that the Lions will be a force. Now the league gets to see if he can build and stack more days like Thursday night.  8. Brian Branch, Safety, Lions:  Gibbs wasn’t the only impactful rookie on the Lions. His fellow Alabama Crimson Tide teammate Brian Branch showed his awareness and instincts on a third-quarter interception that swung the tide of the game in Kansas City.):  https://www.profootballnetwork.com/nfl-week-1-rookie-rankings-2023/

Adam Caplan’s NFL News and Rumors Notebook: Ravens’ RB Plan B, Browns’ Key To Stopping Burrow, and More (Detroit Lions - While rookie RB Jahmyr Gibbs is known in scouting circles for his blazing speed, what the Detroit Lions didn’t know when they drafted him is how physical of a runner he was.  Gibbs, who isn’t blessed with a big frame (5’9”, 200), ran through would-be tacklers during last Thursday’s 21-20 win over the host Kansas City Chiefs.  A source with knowledge of the situation said that Gibbs’ college tape didn’t show the physical nature that the coaches and front office saw at times during training camp and during the Week 1 game, which was a welcome surprise. And he carried that over against the Chiefs.  Veteran RB David Montgomery is the clear starter, and Gibbs only saw 19 of 70 offensive snaps, but the first-year pro is headed for a bigger role going forward.  “No, I would say that was what we talked about with him. First game out of the gate, there again man, and we really didn’t want to overload any of those guys,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said when asked about whether Gibbs’ snaps were planned or game dictated by the game.  “I think it’s important you go in and let them get a feel of what it’s going to be like. It’s the first one, let’s go in and make sure that the guys that have been around here, the guys who have taken a load for us that we’ve been in games with, that they take on a bigger load and we work these rookies in and get them a feel of it. And now they’ve got that one under their belt, so for Gibbs, he’ll begin to get more touches now. So, that was just the beginning last night,” Campbell added.  Montgomery is seen as a very physical type of player, but the fact that Gibbs ran with such velocity and power through the hole has to give the offensive coaches confidence that he’s more than just a speed back.):  https://www.profootballnetwork.com/adam-caplan-nfl-news-and-rumors-notebook-week-1-2023/




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