The Lions escaped Week 1 with a win, but the final scoreboard didn’t hide the problem that bubbled up underneath it. Detroit beat the New Orleans Saints in overtime after the Saints scored a touchdown and converted a two-point try in a push to win the game, only to come up short.
That kind of finish usually leaves a team talking about grit. Instead, ESPN analyst Ben Solak came away focused on something far less comforting: Detroit’s secondary.
“I think ... the Lions' secondary is going to be an Achilles' heel," Solak writes. "...
The Lions are 1-0 after one week without Branch and Joseph -- that's a huge win. I'm just mightily worried about their ability to stay afloat against a more developed quarterback and deeper passing attack."
The concern isn’t coming out of nowhere. Even though the Lions were able to slow Tyler Shough and the Saints early, the game flipped after halftime. Shough finished with 410 passing yards and three touchdowns, including 325 yards in the second half and overtime alone.
That’s the part Detroit has to sit with. The defense looked sharp at the start, then lost its grip badly enough for New Orleans to pile up huge numbers once the Saints adjusted.
And the timing makes the issue harder to ignore. Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch are both out because of injury, and the Lions now head into a Week 2 matchup with the Bills. Josh Allen just put up 36 points against the highly-touted Houston Texans defense, which doesn’t exactly offer much comfort for a secondary already under the microscope.
With Allen and other capable quarterbacks looming, Solak’s warning has plenty of support after one week: Detroit’s back end may be the thing that defines this season.
In Other News...
Chase Young Just Showed What This Saints Team Will Not Accept
After the Saints came up just short against the Detroit Lions in the opener, Chase Young made it clear the mood in the locker room was not going to be one of consolation. He said the team does not accept moral victories, a line that landed with extra weight because New Orleans is trying to build something in a rebuilding year while still demanding a standard that looks a lot more immediate than that label suggests.
Youngs comments offer a useful snapshot of the culture the Saints are trying to sustain. Even with a roster in transition, there is still an expectation that close losses are not something to be filed away as progress, and that the focus has to stay on winning outright. For a team trying to define itself early, voices like his can go a long way toward setting the tone. [Read more 🡒]
Former Saints Tight End Lands In A 49ers Move Worth Watching
The 49ers turned to a familiar veteran for help at tight end, adding Jack Stoll to their practice squad after a severe knee injury hit backup Jake Tonges. Stoll has been around the block, with stops in Philadelphia, Miami, New Orleans and Cleveland, and he gives San Francisco another experienced body as it tries to keep the position steady behind its starters.
For Saints followers, it is a small but notable reminder of how quickly a backup tight end can become part of a much larger depth chart shuffle. Stoll never stayed long in New Orleans, but his latest move shows the value teams still place on a player who knows the league, can be plugged in quickly and can help cover the gaps when injuries start to pile up. [Read more 🡒]
Saints Just Got Pulled Into A Notable Joey Porter Jr. Rumor
Joey Porter Jr. has become part of a wider trade conversation after failing to land a long-term extension with the Steelers, and the Saints are now among the six teams mentioned as a possible fit. New Orleans would make sense on paper for any club looking to fortify its secondary, but at this stage the talk is more about identifying interested teams than signaling anything imminent.
The bigger wrinkle is that a move still looks far off, with Pittsburgh expected to lean on the franchise tag if needed and push any serious contract resolution until after the season. The Bears have drawn the most attention as a potential partner because of their pass defense needs and the old draft history between Chicago and Pittsburgh, but for the Saints and the rest of the field, this is still the kind of rumor that hangs around without quite becoming real. [Read more 🡒]