Detroit Lions

Lions beat Saints, improve to 9-3 — but defense appears to be a major issue

Published Dec. 3, 2023 5:41 p.m. ET

The Detroit Lions needed a bounce-back game.

On Thanksgiving at home, they succumbed to a surging Green Bay Packers team in Week 12. They needed to score 17 points in the last three and a half minutes of a game against Chicago a week before that to pull out the win.

And while the Lions won on Sunday, 33-28 in New Orleans against the Saints, I'm not sure if you could go so far as to call it a bounceback.

Detroit's defensive issues are becoming more glaring. The Lions came out of the gate at the Superdome and scored 21 points before half of the first quarter had even gone by. Part of it was thanks to the Lions defense, as safety Brian Branch intercepted a tipped ball from Saints quarterback Derek Carr. It set up tight end Sam LaPorta's touchdown in a sequence of standout second-round rookies.

But that's where the defensive help stalled.

New Orleans was able to climb back into the game after halftime. They scored 14 unanswered in the third quarter and outscored the Lions 21-3 between the first and fourth quarters to pull within three points late in the third quarter.

An injury to Lions center Frank Ragnow in the second quarter left the offense scrambling. Between Sunday and Week 12, Detroit hasn't been able to rely on their defense since the first month of the season. It doomed them against the Packers, with multiple offensive line injuries hampering the protection around Goff and limiting offensive production as a whole.

Against mediocre teams, it hasn't been an issue. Against better competition? It has been the Lions' Achilles heel. Detroit doesn't have a win against an above .500 team all season. The defense is giving up an average of 23.5 points per game, which ranks inside the top 10. But that doesn't manifest in complementary situations.

When Goff isn't protected, the offense isn't capable of scoring more than that — especially against good teams. They scored just six points against Baltimore in Week 7. Even against the Chiefs in Week 1, a game they won, they only scored 21 points. That's about the last time the defense was able to limit opponent points, too. The Lions have allowed 20 or fewer points five times this year. They all happened within the first six weeks of the season.

The Lions are staring down the barrel of the postseason and their defense has regressed to concerning levels. Detroit's pass defense ranks 22nd in yards allowed. They have almost no secondary depth. Their top two corners and top two safeties are playing all or the vast majority of the defensive snaps, week in and week out. There is virtually no rotation.

Cornerback Emmanuel Moseley was lost for the season to a knee injury. CJ Gardner-Johnson went on injured reserve against the Seahawks in Week 2. That explains the lack of depth for a unit that was heavily fortified in free agency. Why it wasn't addressed before the deadline seems baffling in retrospect.

On top of that, the pass rush hasn't been there despite a blue-chip pass rusher in Aidan Hutchinson. The Lions had the seventh-fewest sacks in the league, with only 25 coming into Sunday. Their sack rate is just 6.12%, which ranks 26th in the league. They lost second-year player James Houston to IR in the second week of the season, the same game they lost Gardner-Johnson. There was hope Houston could return this season — and there still is. Same with Gardner-Johnson.

'We went back to work' — Lions' Jared Goff on bouncing back and defeating Saints, 33-28

Detroit is going to need both of them back if they have any hope of winning in the postseason.

Expecting to outscore opponents is a dangerous game to play in January. The injury to Ragnow provides an additional externality. Head coach Dan Campbell said it is potentially less serious than they initially thought, but he'll know for sure on Monday. I don't think it's a stretch to say that ailment could limit the Lions' chances for success in the postseason — as much if not more so than the defense.

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For as hot as the Lions have started — they're 9-3 for the first time since 1962 — it will all come down to health. There's just no out-scheming a lack of healthy players and there's no place that's more evident than on the defensive side of the ball.

Carmen Vitali covers the NFC North for FOX Sports. Carmen had previous stops with The Draft Network and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She spent six seasons with the Bucs, including 2020, which added the title of Super Bowl Champion (and boat-parade participant) to her résumé. You can follow Carmen on Twitter at @CarmieV.