The Detroit Lions finished the 2022 season winning eight of its final 10 games. The team made significant strides in many areas, including defensively.
Excluding the three defensive touchdowns that opponents scored, the Lions defense allowed 204 points during its 1-6 start to the season – 29.1 points per game. Over the final 10 games of the season, the Lions defense allowed 197 points – 19.7 points per game.
While allowing nearly 10 points less per game is the most important improvement the Lions defense made, there were improvements in specific areas that can give fans hope for 2023 and beyond.
Here is a comparison of the Lions pass and rush defenses for the first seven games and the final 10 games of the season.
Pass Defense
Opposing quarterbacks in the first seven games: 160 of 231 (69.3%) for 1,937 yards, 12 TD, and 2 INT. The Lions had 11 sacks.
Opposing quarterbacks in the final 10 games: 193 of 329 (58.7%) for 2,509 yards, 15 TD, and 10 INT. The Lions had 28 sacks – one on Dalvin Cook during an attempted halfback pass.
The area that is most concerning for the Lions going into 2023 is the pass defense. While the 58.7% completion percentage allowed over the final 10 games would have ranked as the best in the NFL for an entire season, the 250.9 passing yards allowed per game during that stretch would have ranked 30th.
There are many reasons that could help explain the improvement against the pass – the firing of secondary coach Aubrey Pleasant, moving Will Harris to the full-time slot corner, Jerry Jacobs return, or the improved pass rush. It was a likely combination of all of these things.
However, there are still significant improvements needed.
The Lions started that process by signing Cam Sutton and Emmanuel Mosley, along with re-signing Will Harris in free agency. But the team still lacks talent and depth on the interior defensive line – the Lions only had 3.5 sacks from interior defensive linemen in 2022. And the Lions defense would improve immensely if it could collapse the center of the pocket.
Rush Defense
Note: this section only includes rush attempts made by opposing running backs and not those made by quarterbacks or receivers.
Opposing running backs in the first seven games: 171 rushes for 899 yards (5.3 yards per carry) and 11 TD.
Opposing running backs in the final 10 games: 193 rushes for 830 yards (4.3 yards per carry) and 3 TD.
The improvements made against the run were incredible for the Lions defense. The 5.3 yards per carry allowed in the first seven games would have ranked 31st over an entire season. However, the 4.3 yards per carry over the final 10 games would have ranked 13th over an entire season.
Much of the damage against the rush defense in the final 10 games occurred in Week 16 when the Carolina Panthers rushed for 293 yards on 36 carries. And while you can’t exclude specific games, it was the outlier of an otherwise dominant stretch.
In comparison, the Lions held the Giants and Vikings (led by Saquon Barkley and Dalvin Cook) to 35 carries for 57 yards in Weeks 11 and 14.
It appears the Lions are content with returning the same linebackers – Alex Anzalone, Malcolm Rodriguez, and Derrick Barnes – for 2023. They will need continued growth from all three players.
One major concern moving forward continues to be defending running quarterbacks. In two games, Justin Fields combined for 23 carries for 279 yards against the Lions. Josh Allen had 10 carries for 78 yards. Trevor Lawrence had four carries for 32 yards.
While the Lions made significant improvements defensively in the 2022 season, a team with division title aspirations needs to improve even more going forward if it wants to achieve its goals. The foundational pieces are there – Hutchinson, Houston, Rodriguez, Jacobs, etc. – but any slacking in development or acquiring talent could put a major dent in the Lions rebuilding plans.
