THE Detroit Lions stunned the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night, taking them down 38-30.
The Lions offense exploded against the Ravens, with the team’s running back room showing its full potential.
David Montgomery and the Lions ran all over the Ravens on Monday night[/caption]
Jahmyr Gibbs and Montgomery contributed two touchdowns each[/caption]
Derrick Henry lost a crucial fumble in the fourth quarter of the game[/caption]
Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery ran all over the Ravens, while Derrick Henry continued to have fumbling issues.
Lamar Jackson did everything he could to keep the Ravens afloat in the game, but came up just short.
It was a huge confidence boost for the Lions to be able to take down such a solid opponent, but what went so right for their offense?
Find out the answer to that question and more on this week’s episode of The U.S. SunSport’s Football Xs and Os.
SEEING DOUBLE
The Lions had their way with the Ravens in the rushing game.
Between Gibbs, Montgomery, and six yards from Jared Goff, Detroit rushed for a total of 224 yards against the Ravens.
“It was just an all-around, well-round performance from the running backs on the Lions,” NFL expert David Scott said.
You would usually expect the Ravens to run all over an opponent, but that wasn’t the case on Monday.
Henry and Jackson combined for just 85 yards and one touchdown — the second game in a row that the two combined to rush for less than 100 yards.
The Ravens rushing offense is struggling, which is an issue because it is their offensive idendity.
If they wish to get back into contention for a Super Bowl, these struggles need to get cleaned up quick.
TRICK SHOT
Amon-Ra St. Brown had a spectacular game for the Lions on Monday, getting involved early.
“He is the focal point here,” Scott said.
“Even if the defense is focused on Amon-Ra, he’s going to get open.”
St. Brown scored on an awesome deep ball from Goff, thanks to some great route running.
The wide receiver started running a go route before hitting the brakes and turning back towards Goff.
That caused his defenders to slow down, before St. Brown got back on the gas and sprinted towards the end zone.
Goff dropped a perfect ball into the end zone for St. Brown, resulting in the score.
PITCH PERFECT
The Lions’ rushing game was working so well that they started running trick plays on the Ravens.
Dan Campbell‘s offense was able to draw up a modified version of a speed option, a play usually involving a QB run.
However, the Lions handed the ball off to St. Brown, allowing him to run the option himself.
Once the Ravens defenders swarmed St. Brown on the handoff, he pitched the ball back to Gibbs who skirted around the edge and into the end zone.
“There’s no beating this play for the Ravens,” Scott said.
The Ravens sent so many players on a blitz that there was no way for them to get out to Gibbs in time to stop the touchdown.
MADE HIS MARK
Mark Andrews finally broke out this season, but it wasn’t enough to get the Ravens a win.
In the first two games of the season, he had just two receptions for seven yards.
On Monday night, he had six receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns.
Andrews has been on a rough stretch between last season and the start of this season, but he showed why he is considered a top tight end in the NFL in this game.
Andrews pulled in a couple tough catches and ran some beautiful routes in the end zone, hopefully giving him some more confidence in himself.
He is a top tight end, and the Ravens need to continue utilizing him like one.
GOFF SCRIPT
If you look at the comparison between Jackson’s and Goff’s stats, you’d probably say that Jackson had the better game.
He threw for 288 yards with three touchdowns while Goff threw for 202 yards with one touchdown.
However, the eye test really shows that Goff had the better game.
“Jared Goff won the game, and he looked a lot better doing it in my opinion,” Scott said.
Based on the script that the Lions were in, he didn’t need to force the ball down the field as much, resulting in less yards.
He also made less mistakes during the contest, helping his team keep the lead.
Goff is a natural leader and is great at utilizing the talent around him.
His ability to manage the game is why the Lions are currently Super Bowl contenders.
