The Detroit Lions looked lost in their season opener without their former offensive mastermind. They’ll need to perk up to defeat their ex-coordinator and his new team.
Without Ben Johnson, the Lions managed only one late touchdown in a 27-13 loss at Green Bay on Sunday. Detroit will face Chicago, which hired Johnson as its head coach this offseason, in the Lions’ home opener on Sunday afternoon.
John Morton’s debut as Johnson’s replacement was a dud, but it had more to do with blocking than playcalling. Quarterback Jared Goff was well protected while executing Johnson’s creative schemes, but he was under steady pressure from the Packers’ defense and often checked down when he did deliver the ball. Goff completed 31 passes, but only one went for more than 20 yards.
That’s what Johnson saw as well.
“I thought Green Bay came out flying around,” he said. “That’s what showed up on their tape was that defense was all over the field. They were relentless. They (the Lions) have some young players up front (but) I anticipate they’ll be much improved this week.”
The Lions’ dynamic rushing duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery was limited to 44 yards on 20 carries.
“We’re going to address it head-on. We talked about it in walkthrough. The focus, the footwork, the little things,” head coach Dan Campbell said of the run game issues. “We’ll get it right. And we are going to be much better.”
Contrast that with last season, when the Lions reached the 30-point mark in 10 regular-season games while averaging 409.5 yards per game. So it’s understandable why there’s a lot of belly-aching going on in Detroit.
“That’s the nature of what we’re in right now. That’s a good thing, that means we’ve risen above what we were at one time,” Campbell said. “That’s our world, man. But I know that if we felt that way and acted that way, we’d be in trouble.”
Some fans felt betrayed that Johnson took a job with a division rival. That was a consideration before he accepted the position.
“Everything last year ran through my head,” he said. “That was one of the unfortunate parts of making that decision, was you were saying goodbye to a lot of friends and a great place. My family, myself, we have a lot of strong relationships in that community. Hopefully, that continues to stay that way as well, but we felt like this was the best opportunity for myself and my family. At times, you have to make tough decisions.”
For three quarters, Johnson’s debut was going well. Chicago held a 17-6 advantage over Minnesota on Monday night but allowed three touchdowns in the final quarter of a 27-24 loss. Caleb Williams passed for 210 yards and rushed for 58 more, but Johnson’s ability to make the Bears resemble the 2024 Lions is still very much a work in progress.
The Lions also lost their defensive coordinator, Aaron Glenn, to the Jets. Goff believes all the talk regarding the coordinators is overblown.
“I think we’ve put it behind us, to be honest,” he said. “I don’t feel like there is, certainly not a narrative in here, of anything about last season. I think we’re very aware that last year we had a good year, this year we’re 0-0 and now we’re 0-1. Very aware of the reality of that.”
Detroit linebacker Jack Campbell (ankle) and offensive tackle Taylor Decker (shoulder) missed Wednesday’s practice. Defensive lineman Grady Jarrett (knee) and defensive back Kyler Gordon (hamstring) were listed as DNPs for the Bears.
