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Edge rusher Za’Darius Smith
23 defensive snaps
It was a surprise for many that Smith had such a small role in the victory. Given there was no obvious sign of injury, I imagine the game plan was built around reserving the veteran for more obvious passing situations and leaning on Williams and Al-Quadian Muhammad to handle early downs with a focus on stopping the run.
Still, Smith came out swinging, recording a sack on the first defensive snap. Rushing from the left side of the defensive formation, he absorbed a chip from the tight end before putting the right tackle on skates with his bull rush, disengaging from the block as he drew level with Love in the pocket to drop the QB.
Smith would actually play the first three defensive snaps, bowling over the center and hitting Love on the third, which was ultimately negated by a pass interference flag against Branch.
The edge rusher remained impactful on third down the following drive, disengaging from the block of left guard Elgton Jenkins to clobber Love as he threw while rolling away from a collapsing pocket.
Smith caught a long breather after that play as the Packers turned it over two plays into their third series and went on a ground-and-pound session with their fourth drive, avoiding obvious pass-rush situations.
Receiving two snaps at the end of the fourth drive, Smith was flagged for hands to the face on the first before coming up with a first-and-goal run stop on the second after a 5-yard gain.
Smith continued a similar pattern in the second half, bouncing between inside and outside alignments, mostly on obvious passing downs. His biggest impact down the stretch came on Detroit’s final two defensive snaps.
On second-and-16, he split a double team when the coverage forced Love to hold the ball too long, and that pressure led to a throwaway. Then, on third down, Smith got pressure up the middle rushing from the inside, forcing the QB to scramble where he was stopped well short of the sticks, leading to a field goal try.
Concluding thoughts: After needing to play 55 snaps on Thanksgiving, the Lions were able to lighten Smith’s load with the addition of a couple larger-framed ends to the roster. The veteran continued to have an impact as a rusher, lining up all across the front.
Defensive lineman Myles Adams
19 defensive snaps
Adams told me coming into the game, he was slated to play more big end, but he logged more of his playing time as a 3-technique after McNeill went out. Adams was the last of the four newcomers to enter the game, getting his first action on Detroit’s second defensive series.
The initial snap wasn’t his best, with the left tackle driving Adams out of his gap, widening the lane for Jacobs to gain 5 yards on first down. The defender would go on to play seven snaps in the first half, including six run plays, but didn’t have much of an impact.
Adams didn’t take the field again until Green Bay’s third drive of the second half, getting credit for a QB hit on the failed flea flicker. With his rush initially stymied, he continued to fight, spinning away from his blocker to get late pressure on the play before taking a diving swipe at Love’s legs as the quarterback released his pass.
Adams was on the field for nearly the duration of Green Bay’s nine-play, game-tying drive late in the fourth quarter. It was evident he was settling in during the possession, particularly as a pass rusher.
On an early pass play from a 3-tech alignment, he works through two blockers and never loses his rush lane integrity, putting him in position to affect the pass when Jack Campbell’s blitz moves Love off his spot.
Concluding thoughts: Adams’ addition felt like a Mekhi Wingo replacement, and early impressions are he has the potential to actually be an upgrade there.
Adams plays with a strong set of fundamentals, staying low and square to the line of scrimmage when filling his run gaps. Of course, as an undersized interior defender, double teams can get him off his spots, no different than Wingo.
As a pass rusher, Adams' hands are active and he’s conscientious about not overrunning the pocket, helping prevent unnecessary escape lanes by mirroring the quarterback’s movements.
Linebacker Ezekiel Turner
17 defensive snaps
It's not a coincidence Turner played the same number of snaps as slot cornerback Amik Robertson. This is shaping up to be the veteran linebacker’s role. The Lions value his skill set on passing downs, with his speed in coverage and ability to affect the pocket as a blitzer when the running back stays in protection.
In a couple of the clips used to show O’Connor’s early impact as a pass rusher, you can see Turner (No. 47), similarly causing problems coming through the A gap on both plays. The linebacker is the one who got the third-down hit on the quarterback, forcing an incompletion to end the second drive.
Interestingly, there was a play early in the game where Turner is put in conflict between sticking with his coverage assignment or adjusting to address Love as a scramble threat. On that snap, Turner puts emphasis on coverage and the QB got loose for a 14-yard gain.
But on the Packers’ final defensive snap, when Turner faced the same decision, he committed to Love, dropping the QB in space and forcing the opponent to settle for a field goal.
Concluding thoughts: Turner is developing into a solid piece for the Lions. He utilizes a skill set he’s cultivated as a top special teamer across the past six seasons, which helps him avoid blocks on his path from point A to B. That's helpful when blitzing or on the rare run play when he’s on the field.
In coverage, he’s got excellent range and can quickly close space on a running back heading into the flat. As a former safety, he brings value in zone coverage, but his feel for those assignments closer to the line of scrimmage is a weakness, particularly when a play breaks down and he has to react to the offense's scramble rules. Of course, the tackle on Love at the end of the game was an encouraging sign.
Linebacker Kwon Alexander
17 defensive snaps
Alexander was on the field for the opening defensive snap, playing off-ball alongside Campbell. The veteran’s primary usage came on first and second downs throughout the contest.
What was evident immediately was Alexander’s confidence in his assignments, bred through familiarity with Glenn's scheme. That allowed the linebacker to trigger aggressively.
Alexander had an impact on his second and third snap, dropping Jacobs after a yard when the back tried a backside lane, before firing into the flat and being the first on the scene on a tunnel screen that was stopped for a gain of 3 on second-and-9.
Alexander continued to show his knack for filling run gaps on the Packers’ long drive in the second quarter with a pair of stops on gains of 3 and 1 yard.
We didn’t see a lot of Alexander in coverage, but he had one rough snap, when he was slow to recover to his zone drop after a play fake, allowing tight end Tucker Kraft to run into space for a big gain.
Concluding thoughts: In his debut, Alexander already felt like he was Detroit’s best run-defending linebacker outside of Campbell. That could nicely backfill the absence of Malcolm Rodriguez until Alex Anzalone comes back from a broken forearm.
Linebacker David Long Jr.
16 defensive snaps
Prior to Alexander’s addition, it felt like Long would be the leading candidate for early-down work off the ball. Instead, his first playing time didn’t come until the third series, when he was the fortunate benefactor of a fumble forced by Carlton Davis III.
Long was actually beaten in coverage on the snap, stumbling after jamming Kraft at the line of scrimmage, but the defender was able to scoop up the loose ball because he continued to pursue the ball with effort after the miscue.
On the Packers’ sustained ground march in the second quarter, Long got a lot of the early work during the drive and struggled, initially with shedding second-level blockers, followed by an overcommitment triggering on the lead blocker, vacating his gap on a 7-yard run.
Long’s work was limited to a handful of snaps deep in the red zone — where he added helpful size to the second level — until the Packers’ final drive in the fourth quarter. His gap-filling was much better during this possession, and he delivered a thunderous hit that sent Packers receiver Dontayvion Wicks to the sideline.
But Long also had a coverage gaffe, overlapping with Campbell while trying to pick up the back's release to the flat, vacating the middle of the field as Love found Wicks for a 26-yard gain.
Concluding thoughts: The sample size is small, but Long could have trouble holding off Alexander for defensive snaps, given the latter’s debut performance and familiarity with the coaching scheme.
If nothing else, Long’s size should keep him in the mix as a red-zone option.
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