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Week Four: Detroit Lions (2-1) @ Green Bay Packers (2-1)


MichiganCardinal

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3 hours ago, Mr.TaterSalad said:

Don't we all agree though that the HB dives and draw plays on second down for a handful of yards, 2-3 per carry, gets predictable and annoying at times? It seems we have this wide open, unpredictable, creative offense 75% of the time. Then 2nd down rolls around and sometimes, but not always, we end up with a humdrum, predictable handoff to a RB for little to no gain. If we can call and predict the next play on 2nd down from our couches, you know opposing DC's and teams are reading it on the field.

Sometimes it feels like we are running the ball out of obligation on 2nd down. Feeling like we are surrendering 2nd down at times. Yes, clearly, there are multiple instances this season and last that you can point to under Ben Johnson were we had big gains on 2nd down. Yes, clearly, Ben Johnson is lightyears ahead of any OC we've had in recent memory from Linehan to Lombardi to JBC to Bevell. I'd like to see the Lions and Ben Johnson's stats on 2nd down compared to other teams. How efficient are we on 2nd downs converting firsts. Yards per play we get on 2nd down. Run vs. pass play call on 2nd down, etc. Maybe it isn't as bad as some of us think and we're making a mountain out of a molehill.

I think it is perfectly fair to recognize and appreciate that Ben Johnson has turned Jared Goff and this offense around and made us a dynamic offensive team as a whole. Doing that, while recognizing that there are play calls and instances where we feel he could change things up or do things differently. We don't have to be jumping off a cliff or blasting Ben Johnson out of a cannon with an overaction. However, we can still look at individual play calling instances or a perceived pattern of play calling, like on 2nd down, analyze, discuss, and criticize it.

I like this quote in total and especially what I bolded.

What I also consider is what appears to be definite objective of play calling is pound your opponent into submission. I think it goes directly back to kneecaps. The thinking is, you may stop me some, but every time I do this it takes a piece out of you and will eventually wear you down to the point you can no longer stop me. Nice side benefit is at that point Lions are controlling the clock, eating up time.  

Final thought is I saw 'creativity' in a couple offensive plays KC ran in game 1.  I don't recall all the specifics, but one was around the Lions 5 and they handed the ball off like 3 times in a run play. Creative as crap, resulted in no gain or a small loss.

What we are seeing now is intentional playcalling.  All designed for some overall objective that may not be fully evident until late in the game. Maybe boring to some, but it has produced and this team looks good!

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4 minutes ago, Tenacious D said:

Why?  What’s the rush?  He doesn’t strike me as the type to let it affect his play this season.  

Price is gonna keep going up.  You have hooker. The extension will be 2 or 3 years. It’s clear, Goff is really good.  You keep waiting and it’s gonna get more expensive.  

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