Looking ahead to @DET
 

The lions currently have the number 1 defense in the NFL. Yes, you read that correctly they have the number 1 defense in the NFL. Let's take a look at the offenses they have faced to earn that number 1 spot:

NYG 18th
CAR 24th
GB 27th
NYJ 26th
BUF 25th


So, what does this list make you think about the number 1 rank defense in the NFL?

The Saints currently have the BEST offense in the league. Yes, folks the Saints who have yet to play their best ball have the best offense in the NFL. Now they do tend to leave points on the field with turnovers but that can be fixed. Let's look at the Saints opponent's defensive rankings:

ATL 29th
CLE 31st
MIN 15th
DAL 22nd
TB 30th

Not all that impressive, right?

It should be an interesting match up. This game could right the Saints ship or sink the boat, because the divide between 2-4 and 3-3 is vast.

Re: Looking ahead to @DET
 

Well the bills just won in that place.

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Any Given Sunday...

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The Lions have allowed 16 sacks in the past four games. They have hit just 4 of 12 field-goal attempts. Like us they have some issue.

The bye should help us focus on some recurring issues like knowing when a sack is better than a pick 6 and understanding that a defensive turnover for us means means stop. Do not continue. Go down and play dead.

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I know that this is :deadhorse2:. But, we need to develop a "road personality". Perhaps review of our major gaffes on the road and promise not to commit, at least, those. O-line protection issues immediately come to mind. And, run the damn ball.

I loved the way we won in OT today.

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OL needs som major work. Armstead looks allright and Grubbs too but Evans is surprisingly bad at the moment. To go from being an All-Pro to his current performance is quite astonishing.

DL needs a swift kick in the arse. They were doing a decent job against the run against TB but the pressure needs to get better when the QB drops back.

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Can't agree more with some of the observations. I think yesterday's games speak volumes at what, IMO, will determine the outcome of this game ... "chutzpah". The Lions simply don't have it & the Saints may have finally found theirs this season in Tampa Bay.

I did entertain the idea (briefly) that the new player additions & coaching staff would give the Lions a chance at beating the Saints, and there is the whole "Saints aren't road warriors" theory that I'm still kinda' clinging to, ;), but fact of the matter is (as pointed out), the Lions simply haven't beat anybody of note (for a long time) and starting with Wk #7, their schedule will tell their story.

Don't get me wrong, I luv me some Reggie Bush, Joique Bell, Calvin, MattFord, Jed Collins, N-drama-kong Suh, Nick Fairley, Golden "Mr. YAC" Tate III, DeAndre Levy, Eric Ebron, Jim Caldwell, Joe Lombardi, Jeremy Ross and all the rest, they're just being over-hyped once again, :neutral:.

It may not be the 45-28 second half blowout as the last playoff meeting between the two teams was, but the end result should be the same as the Saints are playing a little below potential, it's on the road & the Lions have improved in some critical areas that will test the Saints defense & offense.

After years of Eddie Murray, Jason Hanson & one of the consistently best kicking games in the league, we're somehow left with kickers (where's Kickalicious when you need him?) that couldn't hit a field goal or any one of the Great Lakes from <50yds, so keep it close and win it at the end with a well-placed kick ... Buffalo did it, :rolleyes:.

Should be a good game, :) ... if things had continued this week as they had been going, I would have given the Lions a better chance, but the OT win is the start of the Saints getting their moxy back, the bye week just reinforces it & is the opportunity to rest and the Lions are just another stepping stone to NO returning to form, <sigh> ... and I did have such high hopes this year, at home, :lol:.

Calvin may be out, Graham? ... injuries have decimated the Lions defensive backfield (that wasn't that great to begin with) and may be a factor also (for both sides), but there's no denying the key to the game, IMO ... it all goes back to the number "1" ... the number of playoff games the Lions have won in 50yrs and the number of SuperBowls the Saints have won ... "chutzpah" my friends, "chutzpah". :)

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Will be interesting to see how Reggie Bush plays, we did pretty well stopping the bucs running game but former players seem to play their best against us

He's still kinda prone to putting the ball on the turf when gang tackled though, hopefully our D plays with the same sort of emotion as yesterday and brees can do his best to throw to people in the same uniform as him.

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For now i don't trust this team. OT or not they should have man-handled the Bucs. They fought back, but it was against the Bucs. Not impressed until they rally against more quality teams, and can get everyone on the same page for one game. Then I believe they have their mojo back to where it should be.

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I think RB proved in Miami that he could run between the tackles and Detroit uses him that way somewhat, more so with Bell's recent injury, but they also got George Winn off the practice squad who got a lot of carries yesterday to cover Bell's role & did Ok ... kinda' fumble-prone though, which is why he was on the practice squad.

Bush should have an Ok game, IMO ... he was part of that 'first-running-back-tandem-to-each-have-over-500yds-rushing/receiving' NFL record last season and that is one of the improved areas from the last DET/NO lmeeting I was referring to.

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Yeah definitely, not taking anything away from bush because he was a huge part of us getting back on the map. Plus I think you guys have found the correct balance for him of inside runs and pass catching plays, he showed in miami he could run between the tackles but the problem they had is they tried to force him to be a 3 down between the tackles runner, Bush's injury history alone speaks for itself on that front.
You guys have found a good balance where to best utilise his skill set, although I'd love for him to go back to the dancing Reggie of old in 2 weeks time, just for one game;)

Stafford will come out slinging to test our D though, pass rush is as vital as ever for us if we hope to stop him

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Detroit is loaded with ex-Saints. That usually means disaster for us.

This game will come down to the usual.

Turnovers and team discipline. If we play our A-game, we win. Anything else is probably not good enough.

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Hoping the BYE week cures some ills. Hoping going into the bye with a win makes us get this together, but man oh man we have issue at LB... bad.

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I have no idea which team will show up for this game on either side. But if Reggie Bush beats us, I will know Karma is real SOB.

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Pressure on Stafford. Give him the time we gave Glennon, et al - we are gonna get burned for 400yds+ passing.

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Detriot is a dam good football team. Need to bring the A-Game. I hope our O-Line is feeling better. They will have their hands full.

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Is Ingram gonna play, because we could use him. Drew can't do it by himself anymore.

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I've been praying for us to draft a linebacker with our first or second round picks for the last 3 years or so. Historically the best linebackers, or defensive talent in general is drafted in the first two rounds. We haven't had two second round picks in the last 2/3 drafts, but still we need one badly. I was hoping for Jerry Attaouchu in the second. Seeing as SJB has nothing to offer this year it looks like it would've been the right move.

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Well, right now after the Buffalo game, MattFord and the offense are taking the heat for only scoring 7pts (the other 7 were on a Rashean Mathis interception). They're loaded with first and second round draft picks that just aren't living up to their billing. Golden Tate'll burn you, though, :).

The general consensus is Stafford is holding on to the ball too long and is lost without Megatron, despite having been given multiple offensive weapons this season. He did seem to be turning it around from a tough last season, but the Buffalo game showed he can still be rattled back there with some pressure.

Johnson has a lingering ankle injury that was aggravated vs the Bills. It's being bandied about that he should rest Wk #6 vs the Vikings so he'll be in better shape & available Wk #7 vs the Saints.

It's not looking too good for the Lions here on out ... just sayin', :neutral:.

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Slo, you know if your next game wasn't against us -- I would wish you all the luck in the world.

What I will say is -- I think this is going to be an uphill battle for us -- especially without JG and MI. Somewhat tempered by possibility of no MegaTron. But, even so, you guys are loaded. And, you have been playing well -- unlike us. Should be a good game -- unfortunately in your house.

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If you guys aren't gonna' have JG or MI, that does help the Lions out quite a bit ... I thought home field would be an advantage until now, since Buffalo came to town & beat 'em, :rolleyes:.

No Calvin, possibly no Reggie Bush/Joique Bell, no Graham/Ingram, Detroit's weak defensive backfield vs Brees, NO O-Line, DET O-Line ... it's almost gonna' be like a game of attrition/last man standing, :lol:.

I hope it's a whole game though, not like in past games where Detroit only shows up for one half.

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It's all words till the Saints can take a road win.

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Yep, and Wk #7 would be the opportune moment to right that ship for New Orleans.

I ain't kidding you guys, I'd like to see Detroit gut it out at home and beat a quality opponent for a change, but if the Saints come to town playing "Saints football", it may be a challenge for 'em with some of the improvements to the Lions game, but a road-win in the end.

What do they call this? A "trap-game"? If the Saints win, they beat "the Lions", no big deal ... but if they lose, they can't win on the road. If the Lions win, they beat the Saints, a quality opponent ... or did circumstances dictate that they only beat a Saints team in decline?

Injury reports prior to the game are gonna' say a lot about who does what in this game. If the Saints do not pull this one off, it won't be because the Lions are new & improved, but rather because the Saints are in a bit of disarray at the moment. JMO. It'll happen now & again, but I looked for the Saints to be the Lions first true gut check this season and I hope beating the Bucs and the Bye week allows them to reassemble somewhat.

In Detroit, we already know we're the King of the <.500 teams, we'd like the opportunity to match up vs some of the winning franchises (in form) & see how it goes ... as ugly as that's turned out in the past, :lol:.

I speak for myself, of course ... the rest of Lions Nation rarely agrees with me, ;).

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Haven't been able to get good pressure on anyone yet. If they don't, megatron and stafford will have a throw and catch day, all day.

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How we play after the bye will determine our future. We have to be aggressive again.........and perhaps even have an attitude.

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Haven't been crunching the numbers as in seasons past, but as game day approaches, I will for this one ... want to see how the injury roster shapes up after DET/MIN this weekend ... it's only week five and half the league's out already ... did I just never pay attention to this before or are injuries getting worse earlier every season?

Two of the great matchups in NO/DET are going to be the offensive/defensive lines. Detroit's got a semi-retooled offensive line that's gotten mixed reviews so far (and was pretty much shredded by Buffalo) and while I'd love to say the Lions defensive front is playing to it's potential, it's really not. I see some improvement, but they're not dominating/taking over a game like they should be.

The New Orleans O-Line was always the unit I liked the best, :) ... and now you guys got my Michigan home-boy Tim Lelito on there, I like 'em even better. I'm looking forward to see how Goodwin/Grubbs/Evans fare vs Fairley/Suh ... there's some good viewing right there, ;).

(You guys could do me a favor, eh? You may or may/not know I always dispute the whole, "Suh is double-teamed on every play" theory ... let's take this opportunity to focus on those matchups and give me some expert, non-biased feedback ... maybe I'll start up a thread or something close to gameday, :))

Detroit's O-Line has it's detractors, but I've never been one of them and it seems like the Saints D-Line has always had one issue or another. If you can pressure Stafford, he'll make mistakes ... leave him alone & he'll shred you with Calvin alone, not too mention all the new toys (Bush, Tate, Ebron, et...) the front office got him to play with. I kinda' see the Lions' winning this matchup, but not convincingly. The right side of the line has been underperforming, might be a good day for Hicks.

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Lots of analysis here... maybe too much. We have two 5000 yards passers on the same field. It'll come down to which defense does a better job and of course turnovers and special teams play.

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Full health, this should be NFC game of the week.

Our offense should be fine. Ingram should return. Call me crazy but the loss of Jimmy Graham may help our offense, at least in the short term.

Our defense is streaky but improving. Breakdowns in the secondary will happen but I expect them to improve. Don't look now but Junya and Camouflage Jordan are #2 & #3 ranked in the NFL on QB hurries. They're getting closer!

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What don't any of our linebackers remind you of Levontae David?

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Because of Joe Vitt.

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Yep, gotta' talk about something during the Bye week ... besides, I got a sinking feeling "Touchdown" Teddy Bridgewater just might gonna' be more than the Lions can handle this weekend & I'm trying to avoid the subject, :).

I like the 5000yd passer comparison ... even though MattFord has really only done it once, whereas Brees sets the standard. That one season I thought Staffy was gonna' win the crown, Brees beat him by something like 50yds, but both can certainly put on a show.

In other news, they resolved "laserpointer-gate" at Ford Field, so there'll be no shenanigans from the crowd ... unless that guy that called the bomb threat into the Superdome the last time has been paroled, :rolleyes: ... and people ask, "Slo, why don't you go to more games?", :lol:

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Because he is a unique talent. So is Patrick Willis. Those kinds of players don't exist every draft.


So Tampa made him who he is? The crappy head coach and his crappy staff?