Detroit Lions film review: Closing book on Dallas with a closer look at reignited pass rush and big pass plays allowed
Allen Park — We’re nearly a week removed from the Detroit Lions’ 44-30 win over the Dallas Cowboys. That’s long enough for the game to be fully in the rearview, particularly with a critical matchup against the conference-leading Los Angeles Rams on deck. However, enough of you were interested in a deep dive into the defensive performance that we’re dipping back to put a bow on last Thursday’s victory.
On paper, it’s not a particularly easy one to process. The Cowboys ran a ton of plays — 82 when you factor in the six wiped out by penalty — racked up more than 400 yards and 30 points, had 10 explosive gains and were successful on both of their fourth-down tries.
Conversely, the Lions defended the run well, were stellar in the red zone, and most significantly, unlocked their dormant ability to produce sacks and takeaways, dropping quarterback Dak Prescott five times, while forcing three fumbles and intercepting two passes.
So plenty of good, contrasted against some lingering concerns. Let’s take a look a closer look at the film before turning our attention wholly to the Rams.
Pass Rush
For the sake of brevity, we’re going to blow through the run defense.
The key numbers you need to know from the outing are that the Lions held the Cowboys to 3.8 yards per carry and a 36% success rate. Three runs did pop for 10 or more yards, including a Prescott scramble. Additionally, one of two 11-yard carries for back Javonte Williams was the result of a miscommunication that had second-level defenders scrambling to get lined up correctly as the ball was snapped.
One area the Lions will look to tighten up against the run is tackling. They had a handful of whiffs, led by an uncharacteristically shaky performance by linebacker Jack Campbell, who missed multiple tackles for just the second time this season.
Moving on to more interesting matters, the Lions rediscovered the pass rush, sacking Prescott five times after getting to quarterbacks just four times in the past four games. That’s more impressive when you consider the Dallas QB had been among the league’s least-sacked coming into the matchup.
So what changed?