Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell spent Friday afternoon laying out the challenge ahead, and the message was clear: Green Bay is not stumbling into Sunday, even with the injuries piling up.
The Packers have been hit hard on defense. Micah Parsons remains out, starting linebacker Edgerrin Cooper and starting defensive tackle Javon Hargrave both tore their Achilles in the last couple of weeks, and now linebacker Zaire Franklin will miss Sunday’s game against the Lions. But Campbell said none of that has slowed the way Green Bay is playing.
“They’ve been playing outstanding. That whole team has trended, I mentioned this, these last two weeks, they’ve really taken off and the defense is dangerous.
I mentioned they play as one unit. That’s what you see.
They play as one unit, and they all know where their help’s at. They play smart football.
They play hard. They’re aggressive.
They create disruption up front. They attack the run, they attack the pass.
They give you multiple looks. It’s a physical, headsy unit.
And look, seven takeaways in two weeks. That’s the thing.
That’s huge.”
That defense isn’t the only part of Green Bay that has Campbell’s attention. The Packers’ offense, and especially Jordan Love, has been humming after some adjustments up front. Campbell pointed to the improved protection and the way Love has been able to operate with more comfort.
“Since they’ve kind of shored up this O-line, these last two games, it’s a lot different,” Campbell said. Later adding, “The protection is pretty dang good right now.
[Jordan Love] is hanging in there. He can always make things happen.
So now he’s able to facilitate and find his completions. Those guys are plucking, run after catch, and he’s still getting the bombs.
So, he’s playing at a high level. I mentioned that.
I think he’s playing as good as anybody right now at the quarterback position this year.”
Campbell also spent time on Detroit’s new punt returner, DeAndre Carter, and sounded genuinely energized about what he brings. Carter was signed earlier this week, and while handing him return duties right away might raise eyebrows, Campbell made it sound like his comfort level came from Carter’s ability to field the ball cleanly and get north in a hurry.
“What you notice on him is he is a catch-and-get downhill, and there is no taking your foot off the gas,” Campbell said. “This guy, there’s a naturalness to him locating the football, and when he goes, he doesn’t pitter-patter.
He is running, and he will find the seam and hit it with speed. So that’s pretty exciting because when you have to defend it, it’s like, ‘Oh man, we’ve got to close these things down quick because he’ll hit it.’
So, I’m excited to watch him play. I think he’ll be good for us.”
For Detroit, the upcoming matchup is not about chasing a repeat of the 45-21 win over the Cardinals in Week 5. Campbell said that performance was the team’s best of the season, but he also made it clear that the Lions have to be cleaner than they were in that game if they want to handle Green Bay.
“I want to make sure we play better than we did against the Cardinals,” Campbell said. “Some of these little things we were talking about, we’ve got to be much cleaner on.
And it was, it was really good. That was our best game, don’t get me wrong.
But this opponent has got weapons, and they’ve been doing this for a while, and they’ve got an outstanding quarterback and an outstanding defense. And so, you don’t have the luxury of messing around or being a little off on a couple of plays because all of a sudden, you’re down 10 points.”
In Other News...
Dan Campbell Finally Addressed Sam LaPortas Contract Frustration
Sam LaPortas frustration over his contract situation had become a talking point around the Lions, but Dan Campbell finally stepped in to put the moment in some perspective. Speaking to the media, Campbell made clear that Detroit is not reading the tight ends recent comments as anything bigger than a player who wants to be paid and has been waiting on the next step in his career.
From the Lions side, the message is that the noise stays outside the building. Campbell said LaPorta remains focused and ready to play, and he framed the remarks as pent-up frustration rather than anything that should change how the team views him. In a sport where contract conversations can quickly snowball, Detroits coach tried to draw a clean line between emotion and distraction. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Pass Rush Could Finally Flip A Frustrating Jordan Love Trend
Jordan Love has been plenty capable against the Lions, but one number has followed him through seven career starts in this matchup: he has never reached 300 passing yards. Detroit has had its share of issues defending the pass this season, yet the one area that can still change the tone of a game is its pass rush, especially against an opponent that has not always been able to keep the pocket clean.
The matchup gets even more interesting because Green Bays offensive line has taken on injuries that could leave Love exposed to pressure. If Detroit can turn that into disruption early, it may be the kind of game where the Lions do not have to solve every coverage problem behind them, because the rush up front does some of the heavy lifting for them. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Enter Packers Game Healthier Than Expected With One Big Question
The Lions came out of their Week 7 injury week in better shape than they might have expected, with no one ruled out for Sundays game against the Packers. Detroit also expects to get Cade Mays and Brian Branch back from the injury lists, a welcome bit of relief for a team that has had to manage its depth carefully through the early part of the season. Rock Ya-Sin is still listed as questionable with a hamstring issue, but overall the picture is far cleaner than many teams deal with at this point on the calendar.
What makes the report especially notable for Detroit is how much it could help stabilize the middle of the roster. The Lions have been shuffling through injury uncertainty at key spots, and getting Mays and Branch back gives them more flexibility as they prepare for Green Bay. The Packers, meanwhile, will be without linebacker Zaire Franklin because of a shin injury, so the health edge tilts Detroits way heading into a matchup that could still come down to how cleanly each team handles the details. [Read more 🡒]