The Detroit Lions are back from their bye and into the part of the schedule that matters most inside the division.
Detroit opens Week 7 at Ford Field against the Green Bay Packers, and DraftKings has the Lions as a three-point betting favorite. Green Bay comes in at 4-2 after beating the Dallas Cowboys, 23-13, on Sunday Night Football.
The Lions used the bye to zoom out, and Dan Campbell made it clear last week that one strong outing wasn’t enough to change the bigger picture. After Detroit played well against the Arizona Cardinals, Campbell said the staff would dig into every layer of the operation - not just the outcome, but the details that still need work.
“I think it's important we look at the whole thing. We played much better.
It's one of our best games. It was our best game this year.
But to say that, 'Well, there we are, we've arrived,' that would not be wise. So no, my plan is to look at all of them,” said Campbell.
“Like I told those guys, I don't need the numbers. I don't need the, 'Well, here's where we're at at third down percentage.'
I don't need all that. I know what that is.
I need to know schematically, what can we improve on? What are some things that defenses are offering like they've got a tendency on us that we need to adjust.”
Campbell also said the staff wants a clearer read on which players can be counted on when the game tightens up.
“What players are really making big plays for us across the board in critical moments? We need to know who those are.
We've got a pretty good idea of who they are for us,” said Campbell. “But there's some guys that may pop a little bit like, 'Okay, we need to use this guy a little bit more.
This is somebody we can really count on.' And then, 'Hey, this guy's really good until you get in critical moments.
And then we get in critical moments and this guy's killing us.' Well, we need to keep him out of critical moments.
It's little stuff like that and it makes a difference.
“So, those are the things I want to look at, and we're going to look at it in totality,” Campbell added further. “We've got a pretty good idea.
I mean, we just went through the four weeks of things that weren't so good. But we're going into the bye on a positive note, and we've got things to clean up.
And I mentioned this last night, that's a step in the right direction. But to think that's going to be good enough for Green Bay, it's not.
We still need to clean up more than, we need to clean up a lot more than that, and we can, and we will.”
In Other News...
Why The Lions Contender Hype Suddenly Looks A Lot More Real
Through six weeks, the Lions have started to look less like a team riding early-season momentum and more like one with a real path to staying in the NFC race. The numbers back up the eye test, too, with the offense and defense both showing meaningful improvement from where this group has been in recent seasons. Detroit has been efficient enough to keep pace with almost anybody, and the way the unit is functioning now suggests the ceiling is higher than many expected back in September.
A big part of the optimism is what still appears to be coming. The defensive front has shown more bite, the secondary has steadied in stretches, and the team is set up to get healthier after the bye with key pieces coming back into the mix. Add in a remaining schedule that does not look overwhelming, and the case for the Lions as a legitimate contender suddenly feels a lot less theoretical. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Suddenly Face A Packers Threat That Looks Much Worse
Green Bay has spent much of its recent stretch looking like a team trying to find its footing on the ground while leaning harder on the parts of its offense that can still stress a defense. The Packers have battled inconsistency in the run game, but they remain dangerous in the vertical passing game, and their safety play has given them a sturdy backbone as they head into a matchup with Detroit.
For the Lions, that creates a very specific kind of problem. Detroit has struggled to handle deep shots, and the Packers have shown they can punish teams in those areas while also targeting the middle of the field with confidence. A few personnel changes could shape how much balance Green Bay can bring back into the offense, and that is what makes this matchup worth watching closely as the week unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Campbell Sees Something Even Scarier In Penei Sewell
Penei Sewell has already built a rsum that would satisfy almost any lineman in the league, but the Lions still believe there is more room to grow. Since Detroit drafted him in 2021, Sewell has handled the move from right tackle to left tackle with ease, and coach Dan Campbell continues to talk about him like a player still on the rise rather than one who has peaked.
That is what makes Sewell such a fascinating piece of Detroits foundation. He is already a four-time Pro Bowler and three-time NFL All-Pro, yet both he and Campbell see more improvement ahead, and Sewell has pointed to his daily battles with Aidan Hutchinson as a big reason he keeps pushing his level higher. For a Lions offense and team identity built on toughness up front, that kind of internal competition is exactly the sort of thing that can keep getting scarier. [Read more 🡒]