Brett's Cowboys Corner

The Lions are coming off their bye week, well rested after a dominant win against the Seahawks, 42-29. Luckily the Cowboys are undefeated in the Mike McCarthy era facing teams coming out of their bye week, add that to the Cowboys scoreboard this week…they will need it.

This is a more familiar opponent for Dallas, playing Detroit late in the season with a 20-19 win. This game was dominated by Ceedee Lamb who broke the Cowboys single season receiving yards record with a 227 yard performance. But the game will forever be remembered by the Lions 2-point conversion controversy with the linemen not reporting eligible.

The Lions are a very aggressive team offensively, they play all 4 downs, they have no problem going for it on 4th down even if they are in their own territory. They have the best tandem at running back with Montgomery and Gibbs in the NFL. Quarterback plays a safe game and gets the ball into the hands of playmaking receivers. Great blocking up front. The only problem is that the offensive coaching staff and the head coach can be too much of a wild card at times, a big reason Detroit lost last year in Dallas, was not kicking the extra point to tie it when you had multiple chances after penalties and the ineligible receiver call.

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OFFENSE

Dan Campbell / Ben Johnson: The highlight of the week is the guys running the ship offensively. Ben Johnson is the play caller, and since 2022 when he got the promotion to offensive coordinator, he has made this offense more and more efficient each year. He has a tough job as he always needs to have a play ready to go at a moments notice because the Lions play a high risk – high reward style. Dan Campbell has taken the Lions to places they have never been, and is risk taking is the reason they got to the NFC Championship last season. Though it can hurt them as they can lose themselves a game by being too aggressive. The toughest part of playing the Lions offense, is they play with all four downs. So in a passing situation like 3rd and 7, they may run the ball and it only gets them 5 yards. But that’s okay to them because 4th and 2 means go for it! Even if you are 60 yards away from the endzone.

Run Run Run

This is a great offensive line, they play strong as a unit and everything is smooth and well coordinated. The line gets into the second level often and swallows up linebackers. There are times where at first contact linemen will shove defensive tackles out of the way immediately and just run into a linebacker. This has been something the Cowboys have struggled with, keeping their linebackers clean. This is very similar to New Orleans, when the Saints had success getting into the second level, Alvin Kamara feasted. The Lions run with purpose and they have two guys who can make any defender look silly.

A thunder and lightning duo, for Detroit thunder rolls in first. David Montgomery starts the game and runs with a lot of power and aggression. Now he is not necessarily difficult to get your hands on but bringing him down is a different story. Cowboys defenders need to commit to bringing him to the ground and use a lot of power when diving towards him.

But just when you get that figured out, here comes lightning. Jahmyr Gibbs comes into the game and if you try to commit to diving into this guy who are going to miss and hit the dirt. Gibbs is a more elusive runner and will put on the fancy moves to get around you. He also plays a big role in the receiving game for Detroit.

Both Montgomery and Gibbs have combined for 1,706 rushing yards after contact since 2023, most in the NFL by any RB duo. This is a team with good backs and even better blocking. They will use two tightend sets frequently and likes to line up under center. They will also use pre-snap shifts before running, 2nd most in NFL.

Goff is a Surgeon

Jared Goff has found a perfect system in Detroit. He is not asked to be a superhero, doesn’t have to throw the ball 40 times a night, sling the deep ball around. He just has to go out there and make smart decisions, keep the ball out of harms way and don’t lose the game. He has targeted in-breaking routes on a league-high 41.1% of his passes this season. Goff has averaged just 6.2 air yards per completion on such passes this season, the 6th-fewest in the NFL. He keeps the ball close and in front of him.

The Lions move the ball well, they are 3rd in yards per game, 397, top in both run and pass. Goff is the 2nd least pressured quarterback in the NFL and dominates coverages when he has no pressure. Jared Goff has recorded a 113.2 passer rating on unpressured drop backs since 2023 (2nd in NFL) compared to a 64.0 passer rating when pressured (23rd). If you can get to Goff, he will start making big mistakes…just no one can get past that line.

They Let Playmakers be Playmakers

The reason Goff doesn’t need to be the hero is because the Lions offense knows they have so many weapons. They are not afraid to let them be great, mentioned the two running backs who will dominate but when the offense has to throw, they start to look for their jump ball guy in St. Brown or two RAC guys in Williams and LaPorta.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is their most targeted receiver and will be found on slant routes and curls. He plays more outside and is a possession receiver. This is the guy Goff looks to on third downs. He has been targeted 11 times on 32 routes on third down, resulting in in 7 receptions for 77 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Jameson Williams is more of a speedster, and has started to find his footing this season in the Detroit offense. He currently leads the team in yards gained. He averages around 14 yards per route, and averages 22 yards after catch. He will come down the middle or deep post and create a lot of separation.

The Cowboys will have Trevon Diggs and the returning Daron Bland to deal with these guys, based on ability, I think Bland would be better off playing St. Brown and Diggs running with Williams.

A great weapon and safety valve for Goff is Sam LaPorta. He stays closer to Goff, with only 4.9 air yards per target but makes up for it with his great athletic ability to run after the catch with 12.3 yards after catch. So on 3rd and 8, a 2 yard dump off to LaPorta is a good decision because on average he will turn that into a new set of downs.

DEFENSE

Aaron Glenn: Former Dallas Cowboy’s Cornerback, Glenn has been the Lions Defensive Coordinator since 2021. He has coached a great run defense, and has some talent on the front seven to help that out. His secondary has improved a lot over the years, the Lions play press man coverage at the 5th highest rate in the NFL. He really did have a lot of success against Dallas last season when it came to coverage and pressuring Dak Prescott, but it seemed that the fire that came from Ceedee Lamb was too hot to handle. Let’s see how he makes the adjustment and deals with Lamb this time around, considering Lamb has more success against press man coverage than off coverage, maybe they will make a switch this Sunday.

You Can Only Hope to Contain Hutchinson

The Lions are good at run fits and defending a rush attack, which will be a test to a Dallas offense that just figured out how to run the ball last week against the Steelers. When it comes to pass defense, the front seven hasn’t created a lot of sacks or pressures. Except for Aiden Hutchinson.

Hutch has been wrecking games this year and should start being considered as one of the top defensive ends in the league. If the Cowboys can figure out how to block this guy, then they will be fine in the passing game. But Dallas has struggled dealing with strong edges as they did last week with TJ Watt.

Hutchinson now has 25 pressures through four weeks, most in the NFL. Last year, Terrence Steele had a long day against Hutch, 4 pressures and 2 sacks.

Expect him to move all over the line though, he is going to take a few reps at Guyton and will even exchange to the inside against the guard and center when they blitz a linebacker or corner.

Defensive Scheme

The Lions defense has used base personnel on a league-high 50.8% of snaps this season, making them the only defense above the 50% threshold. Base is their 4-3 defense and they will line up against 11 personnel in base, which is uncommon in the NFL since that means three receivers are on the field.

This may be the biggest factor in the Cowboys having success on Sunday. Dak Prescott has not been sacked and has completed 13 of 19 passes for 163 yards and a touchdown on 20 drop backs against base personnel this season. Through his career, Dak has thrived against teams that stay in base defense a majority of the time, with a 60% win rate.

Move Away from the Safeties

The safety group in Detroit are great at making any offense a no fly zone. Teams have stayed away from them, opposing passers have thrown 43.0% of their passes outside the numbers against the Lions this season (5th-highest). It will be critical for the Cowboys to move Lamb around and not let the Lions keep a guy like Kerby Joseph shadowing him at safety.

Safety Kerby Joseph has come away with as many or more interceptions (3) and passes defensed (4) as he has receptions allowed (3) as the nearest defender in coverage this season (10 targets, 25 yards allowed).

Brian Branch lined up at slot corner a bunch last season, he has shifted more to a safety this season. He lines up there about 60% of the time. He is the hard hitter and will take out crossing routes.

The Cowboys will dealing with a lot of injuries, just as they were last week. They will be including Eric Kendricks to that mix. This is going to be a needed win from the Cowboys offense, Dak may have to be superman to get this done. No more redzone turnovers, need points…and not just from Brandon Aubrey.