Jason_R

Zero gain.

The pressure is all on SF. Let’s see if they can handle it.

The mad scientist Ben Johnson has been keeping something in his back pocket for the exact right time.

LFG JAYMO!!!!!

Running on second down? Morans!

I have the Lions, 29-26.

Reversion to the mean.

And one of the last four Super Bowls. The way I see it, all of the pressure is on SF. If they don’t crack under it, more power to them. But I think they’ll crack, especially if Detroit can bottle up CMC in the first half.

I’m feeling good about today, fellas. Detroit has the better and more experienced QB. He has been here before. Now he is here again, but all the pressure is on Purdy to live up to the #1 seed, at home. Detroit’s coaching staff is also fearless. They were not supposed to bring this team to this game. They were supposed to wait until next year to contend. They were not supposed to be able to overcome their defensive deficiencies. But here they are. Shanahan has all the questions and pressure on him. The collapse as Atlanta OC in the Super Bowl, giving up 21 fourth quarter points to KC in Super Bowl 54, giving up 13 fourth quarter points to the Rams in their Super Bowl season. When it is close in the 4th quarter, all of these collapses will be fresh in the memory of the 49ers.

Cowboys are the most valuable franchise, worth $9B. Lions are 31st at $3.6B. Average franchise is valued around $4.6B and only four franchises are worth less than $4B. Is it possible that the 2024 Lions valuation will be closer to that $4B range? It’s not out of the question that Holmes and Campbell might be responsible for having added hundreds of millions, maybe almost half a billion in valuation already. Who knows what that figure will be when they are done.

And he’s going to replace JA-RED GOFF JA-RED GOFF?

The most important part of the QB’s job, by far, is done before the play. The outcomes we see from the plays themselves are entirely derivative of what is done before the play. As fans we have zero understanding of what the QB job requires before the snap, beyond the very basic elements of communicating play calls, identifying defenses, setting protections, calling audibles, and managing game situations. So, OK, Hendon Hooker can run around back there and whip the ball around a bit. Let me know when he is ready to manage an offense pre-snap so efficiently that he can achieve an 80% completion percentage in a playoff game.

Agreed. I like to think this is the team of destiny and that nothing can stop them from burying the notion of the SOL so deep it can never be resurrected. Even if they lose, we still have the NFL executive of the year at the helm. We still have a candidate for coach of the year at the helm. We still have Pro Bowl players and candidates for offensive and defensive ROY. And we have fans at the Wings game chanting the name of our QB! But if they win, we will see one of the most epic celebrations in sports history.

Pay the man.

Yes, there’s no such thing as a sure thing in hiring a head coach. Even Harbaugh struggled at Michigan, and had to take a pay cut. This was in spite of the fact that Harbaugh had success as a quarterback in college and in the pros, then paid his coaching dues in college and the pros before getting progressively larger head coaching gigs. Harbaugh was head coach of three different teams for over a decade before landing at Michigan, almost flaming out, and finally finding the QB who could let his team compete at the highest level. Moore has nothing remotely similar on his resume. Hopefully the national championship, and maybe the ripple effect of Saban’s retirement, helps him land some five star recruits to build around. But this is a big big job for any head coach, let alone a first timer.

There’s a long way between being a great people person and being the face of one of the biggest sports franchises in the country. I hope it works out but if it does, I will be surprised.

Yeah, there is no conspiracy and there is no fix. The Lions have simply been a punching bag for the last five decades. They were not respected, they did not get the benefit of any doubt. But I think the blown call in the Dallas game might have forced NFL officials to realize that these are not the same old Lions. These lions are actually good and a successful play does not mean that they got away with something. It might be harder for officials to throw a marginal flag, or to pick up a legitimate flag, now that one of their own has been so thoroughly and publicly humiliated for what had been routine treatment of the Lions.

Shame. Those blue domes are awesome.

Killer blue helmets too?

I don’t know about this, but I suspect Ben Johnson has about half a dozen plays featuring Jaymo that he’s kept in his back pocket for a big game. Just like the play yesterday to Brock and the one to Skipper in Dallas, I bet he has a few that will make us come out of our seats.

Yes, I am rooting hard for the Chiefs.

As I recall, Detroit started by featuring Montgomery into Mount Vea. That didn’t work so in the second half they spent more time attacking the edges with Gibbs. This also lets the team lean on Sewell’s athleticism. But clearly the Gibbs TD run broke the game open. Only a handful of RBs in the NFL are capable of scoring on that play.

Chris Simms talked about Green Bay’s success in taking away the intermediate passing game that Shanahan has used to allow Purdy to rack up big numbers with YAC. Said he suspects AG will do something similar. The key question is whether Detroit can pressure Purdy into a few turnovers. I was glad Detroit went away from Montgomery yesterday. Vita Vea is a mountain and hard to run against. I like his odds better against SF.

Maybe but arguably, the offenses were helped by the rain rather than hurt by it. Green Bay had at least two long completions due to San Francisco defensive back slipping on the turf.

Green Bay held SF to 24 points. Can AG's Detroit Lions do it? SF could not stop GB's between the tackles running game. Can it stop Detroit's?