Sunday, September 7, 2025

Lions Links for Sunday 9-7-25

Articles:

RECAP: Lions at Packers:  https://www.detroitlions.com/news/recap-lions-at-packers-goff-teslaa-love-arnold

Packers dominating Lions on both sides of ball in Week 1: Coordinators called out:  https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nfl/lions/2025/09/07/lions-packers-reaction-week-1-nfl/86031686007/

Lions-Packers: Here’s what Dan Campbell had to say at halftime:  https://www.mlive.com/lions/2025/09/lions-packers-heres-what-dan-campbell-had-to-say-at-halftime.html






Dan Campbell Not Sure of Severity of Terrion Arnold Groin Injury:  https://www.si.com/nfl/lions/news/dan-campbell-not-sure-severity-terrion-arnold-groin-injury







Lions’ critical, untimely errors costly in opening loss to Green Bay Packers:  https://lionslowdown.com/2025/09/08/lions-critical-untimely-errors-costly-in-opening-loss-to-green-bay-packers/


Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell are going to face heavy criticism for their offseason choices after Lions loss to the Packers, 7 more big takeaways:  https://atozsports.com/nfl/detroit-lions-news/brad-holmes-and-dan-campbell-are-going-to-face-heavy-criticism-for-their-offseason-choices-after-lions-loss-to-the-packers-7-more-big-takeaways/

Questions, takeaways off every NFL Week 1 game: How good was Micah Parsons' debut? Have the Colts found their QB? (Lions - How concerned should Detroit be with its offensive performance? Was it first-game jitters? Or adjusting to new offensive coordinator John Morton? Either way, Detroit's offense wasn't sharp at all in Green Bay as it failed to score a touchdown through three quarters, which hadn't happened since 2023 (Week 7 at Baltimore), per ESPN Research. Rookie WR Isaac TeSlaa snagged Detroit's lone TD with a 13-yard catch in the final minute. In 2024, Detroit led the NFL with 33.2 points per game. But with most of their core unit returning, the Lions suffered their first road loss since the 2023 NFC Championship game at San Francisco.  Trend to watch: Second-year CB Terrion Arnold was ruled out during the second half with a groin injury. Injuries were also a big concern during the 2024 season, as Detroit saw 21 players hit the injured reserve list in December, most in the NFL. A league-high 16 defensive players were on that list, so it will be important to see if that trend continues once there's more information on Arnold's injury. -- Eric Woodyard):  https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46139954/nfl-week-1-2025-season-questions-takeaways-lessons-stats-recap-every-game

Micah Parsons runs down Jared Goff late in fourth quarter for first sack as a Packer:  https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46149474/lions-packers-nfl-week-1-highlights-touchdowns-plays

2025 NFL season, Week 1: What We Learned from Sunday's games (Eric Edholm's takeaways:  1.  Love stood tall in a big Week 1 challenge. Jordan Love had two prior starts against the Lions at Lambeau Field, both ending in Packers losses, with Love making critical mistakes in each. Sunday’s effort against the Lions was a far cleaner effort and an important game for Love, helping set an early tone in a statement victory. Too often the Lions had controlled the early action in these matchups, but Love helped the Packers strike first, with two touchdowns and a field goal in their first three possessions. Coming off a procedure to his left thumb, Love had no issues with handoffs and didn’t appear in discomfort. The Lions aimed to stop Josh Jacobs, and Love made a lot of big throws. His first eight completions went to eight different receivers, and after the Lions cut the lead to 10-3, Love quickly hit Romeo Doubs for 48 yards and Jayden Reed for a 17-yard TD. Then after getting conservative, the offense stalled, and Love followed a dropped pick with a pick-six that was wiped out by a defensive penalty. But if any doubt crept in, Love quelled that with a TD drive, converting a fouth-and-1 sneak in the red zone. He wasn’t perfect, but Love played well in a game where the Packers looked like playoff contenders.  2. Lions offense hit a low we haven’t seen in some time. Even with a spectacular TD catch by rookie wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa putting a little perfume of this stinker of an offensive game, it’s hard to get too excited about what the Lions did in John Morton’s offensive coordinator debut. They drove into the red zone three different times in the game’s first 35 minutes, requiring great effort just to get there, and those ended with two field goals and an interception. The Lions had to grind their way for every yard, with Jahmyr Gibbs held to 50 yards on 19 touches. This was not the high-flying unit we saw the past few seasons under Ben Johnson. Morton’s play-calling wasn’t the only issue, but after hitting a deep shot to Amon-Ra St. Brown in the first quarter, Jared Goff wouldn’t attempt another pass of 20-plus air yards, per Next Gen Stats, until there were four minutes left in a three-score game. Everything early was short, short, short – often dictated by heavy pressure. The Lions had quieter games offensively early last season, growing into the offensive machine they became, and even Johnson had to grow into the role of play-caller back in 2022. Those might be reasons not to panic, but this team is built to win now. Even in a tough environment against an improved Packers defense, this version of the Lions’ offense was shockingly tame.  3.  Parsons outplayed Hutchinson in showdown of elite defenders. Micah Parsons and Aidan Hutchinson are two of the most celebrated defenders in football today, yet would you believe that neither were credited with making a tackle until there were four minutes left in the game? That’s true, but the tackle was a chase-down sack by Parsons, earning him roaring approval from the Lambeau crowd in his Packers debut, with the home team up three scores. Parsons was the more impactful of the two defenders Sunday, playing 29 snaps and logging three pressures, with one of them (against the Lions’ Penei Sewell) forcing a Jared Goff interception. Hutchinson played nearly every snap in his return from a season-ending leg injury in 2024 and was quiet early. He hit Jordan Love hard on a dropped interception by Alex Anzalone but had trouble impacting the game – despite Green Bay losing right tackle Zach Tom to injury – than Parsons did. Both stars likely were at less than full strength, but it’s hard not to think that Parsons can elevate this defense to an even higher level if he gets healthy.  Next Gen Stats Insight for (via NFL Pro): Jordan Love was most successful attacking the intermediate area (10-19 air yards) of the field, completing 6 of 8 passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns. Love completed passes to 10 Packers receivers, including every receiver who ran a route other than Malik Heath, who ran only three routes all game.  NFL Research: Josh Jacobs, who scored in his 10th straight game -- including playoffs -- became the 11th player since 1970 to score a rushing TD in double-digit straight games. The only other player to do it in the past 20 years was the Colts’ Jonathan Taylor in 2021.):  https://www.nfl.com/news/2025-nfl-season-week-1-what-we-learned-from-sunday-s-games

NFL Week 1 Recap: Green Bay Packers 27, Detroit Lions 13:  https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-week-1-recap-green-bay-packers-27-detroit-lions-13-2025

Five things we learned from Sunday's Week 1 games (4. The Green Bay Packers hype was absolutely correct.  It was a bit stunning to see so many of our experts dismiss the Detroit Lions as NFC North favorites after Dan Campbell's powerhouse cruised to the conference's No. 1 playoff seed a year ago. Then the Packers took Lambeau Field on Sunday. Even without Micah Parsons fully integrated on defense, Green Bay had no trouble with its rivals, suffocating Jared Goff and the Lions' vaunted ground game while Jordan Love uncorked one beauty after another. This might be your new NFC North powerhouse, folks. Coach Matt LaFleur was already a virtual lock for playoff contention. Now he appears to have the total package on the field.):  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/five-things-we-learned-from-sundays-week-1-nfl-games-dolphins-in-deep-trouble-packers-hype-was-deserved/

Week 1 overreactions: Lions Super Bowl window closing? (The Lions Super Bowl window has closed - Overreaction or reality: Overreaction.  One game doesn't make a season, especially in Week 1. The Lions losing both coordinators this offseason was a storyline, and it was put on notice in an abysmal effort against the Packers.  The Detroit Lions offense was held to 3.8 yards per play (the fewest in a game since 2021), and 4.7 yards per attempt. The unit had just 246 total yards, and only had 62 total yards on 21 plays to open the second half before a garbage-time touchdown late. Keep in mind this was a team that won 15 games last season!  The defense was just as bad as the offense, as the pass defense allowed 8.5 yards per attempt and sold out on stopping the run (which worked). The unit was dominated up front, only having two quarterback hits and failing to record a sack -- and Aidan Hutchinson is back!  .The biggest concern with the Lions is getting dominated in the trenches, a sign that doesn't bode well for a Super Bowl team. Has the window closed in Detroit to win a championship?  The coordinator changes are a concern and the Lions aren't on the level as the Packers right now, but there are plenty of games needed to jell and turn things around. This is a true test for Dan Campbell to get this team right before things really go south, but there's no reason to panic yet.):  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/overreactions-from-week-1-of-nfl-season-dolphins-worst-team-in-nfl-aaron-rodgers-to-throw-for-40-touchdowns/

Micah Parsons stars in Packers debut and Jordan Love tosses two TDs as Green Bay rolls over Lions:  https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/packers-lions-live-updates-game-score-week-1-micah-parsons-jared-goff-jordan-love/live/

Micah Parsons, Jordan Love show Packers have real 'Super' combination against Lions:  https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/micah-parsons-jordan-love-packers-super-combination-lions/015a99b986673e2ac78fc42b





Aaron Rodgers Isn't Washed, Packers are Contenders, and What Else We're Learning in Week 1 (Lions: The coordinator departures were a problem, after all.  Detroit spent the offseason shooing away questions about Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn leaving for head coaching gigs. And it’s fair that the Lions didn’t want to keep answering those questions. But I hate to say it: They’re going to have to keep answering those questions. Against the Packers in Week 1, both their offense and defense looked like they were lacking the same spark, creativity and physicality. That has to be, in part, stemming from the brain drain in their coaching ranks.):  https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/what-we-learned-week-1-steelers-jets-lions-packers-ravens-bills

NFL Winners and Losers: After 'kick in the balls' opener, Dolphins might already be in trouble (Winners - Packers defenders not named Micah Parsons: Parsons is a superstar and deserved the ovations he got from the Packers’ fans Sunday at Lambeau Field.  But Week 1 showed the Packers might be more than just Parsons.  Parsons played limited snaps due to him joining the team just last week and also a back injury, and he made an impact on those few snaps. But the rest of Green Bay's defense was responsible for shutting down a Lions offense that led the NFL in scoring last season.  The Lions didn’t pass 200 yards of offense until the final three minutes of the game and didn’t score a touchdown until the outcome was long decided. The Packers won 27-13, absolutely dominating the Lions’ offensive line that lost center Frank Ragnow and guard Kevin Zeitler in the offseason.  The Lions' offense looked like a shell of its normal self, but that might be due to the Packers. Assuming Parsons works his way back to his typical role and plays like one of the best defenders in the NFL, Green Bay seems to have a lot of talent to support him.):  https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-winners-and-losers-after-kick-in-the-balls-opener-dolphins-might-already-be-in-trouble-201948038.html

Micah Parsons Pressure Leads to Turnover in Packers Debut:  https://www.si.com/nfl/micah-parsons-pressure-packers-jared-goff-int

Jordan Love starts fast and Parsons gets a sack in his Green Bay debut as Packers defeat Lions 27-13:  https://apnews.com/article/lions-packers-score-710c9d7b48c67b6e7039a44a08bfc040




Packers Media:

Week 1 Statement: Micah Parsons Lifts Packers to Rout of Lions:  https://www.si.com/nfl/packers/onsi/week-1-statement-micah-parsons-lifts-packers-to-rout-of-lions

Video:






Lions vs. Packers highlights | Week 1:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/lions-vs-packers-highlights-week-1

HIGHLIGHT: TeSlaa's first NFL TD is a one-handed grab:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-teslaa-s-first-nfl-td-is-a-one-handed-grab

Jake Bates connects on 27-yard FG on opening drive of second half:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/jake-bates-connects-on-27-yard-fg-on-opening-drive-of-second-half

Jake Bates puts Lions on scoreboard with 30-yard FG:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/jake-bates-puts-lions-on-scoreboard-with-30-yard-fg

Sam LaPorta opens second half with second big catch of drive:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/sam-laporta-opens-second-half-with-second-big-catch-of-drive

HIGHLIGHT: Goff hits wide-open LaPorta for 32-yard catch & run:  https://www.detroitlions.com/video/highlight-goff-hits-wide-open-laporta-for-32-yard-catch-run


Jahmyr Gibbs gets Lions out of shadow of goal line with 14-yard run:  https://www.nfl.com/videos/jahmyr-gibbs-gets-lions-out-of-shadow-of-goal-line-with-14-yard-run

Posted by LionsFan at 9:18 PM

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