The preseason hype was indeed being justified by the performance of the Detroit Lions.
They were roaring right along. Then they slammed right into a butt-kicking on Sunday.
“Those guys played exceptionally well. They really beat us,” said Dan Campbell, head coach of the Lions, referring to the Baltimore Ravens after they defeated Detroit 38-6. “They deserve credit for it.”
Heading into Sunday with a four-game winning streak and a 3-0 record on the road, Detroit was halted in their tracks when Baltimore, the host, swiftly built a 28-point lead in the first half and maintained it.
Detroit ran 72 plays in the game but netted just 337 yards. In contrast, the Ravens recorded a mind-spinning 9.1 yards per play, spearheaded by a stellar showing from Lamar Jackson, who had 357 yards and three touchdowns through the air and also rushed for 64 yards and a score.
“Us, Lamar defeated,” stated Campbell. “He pummeled us using his throwing arm. He executed his throws with impressive precision. He utilized his running skills as necessary and we failed to counter it effectively.”
Jackson’s brilliance, combined with the Lions’ unsuccessful response, led to Detroit’s most devastating loss since Week 8 of 2021, when they were defeated by the Philadelphia Eagles by a margin of 38 points. The 44-6 loss then had pushed the Lions to a dismal 0-8. In contrast, their current record now stands at 5-2. While Campbell was, and still remains, the head coach, it is clear that circumstances have significantly evolved since then.
Campbell believed that Sunday was simply a terrible day where early problems couldn’t be fixed.
“He said, “We failed to establish an early offensive rhythm. It seemed as though they were playing with house money. Once they built a significant lead at a certain point in the game, they had the freedom to do whatever they wanted.”
The Lions, held to their lowest scoring output since Week 7 of last season, didn’t get on the board until Jahmyr Gibbs broke through for a 21-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. By that point, the Ravens had racked up the game’s first 35 points.
“When you find yourself in such a difficult situation, there’s a tendency for everyone to start panicking,” said Campbell. “You end up overextending yourself and this can escalate the issues. This applies to both offense and defense. In fact, it’s true for all aspects of the game. Unfortunately, we did not perform well this time around. It pains me to say it, but this was one of those games where we were our own worst enemies. I have to give credit where it’s due – our opponents played exceptionally well and really showed us up.”
The Lions will look to clean off their noses and dust off the loss before heading home, where they’ll host the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8.
How the Lions respond to their defeat this Sunday should be revealed next Monday.
Campbell stated, “It’s already happened and it’s here. It will inspire us to keep going. The true disappointment will be if we fail to learn from this and improve for the upcoming week, letting it impact our performance against the Raiders. That would be the most regrettable outcome.”
