Review of Dolphins Vs Lions: How did Detroit Collapse Again?!
The Detroit Lions continued their disappointing losing streak, as they dropped another contest to the Miami Dolphins 31-27 at home. An extremely disappointing loss considering they looked sharp the first half and their play took a complete 180 in the second half. Let’s take a look at what happened and what it means.
Fast Start
Detroit roared out the gates taking a 14-0 lead within the first ten minutes of the game. Rookie Kerby Joseph has continued to improve week by week and caused a fumble that kept the Dolphins scoreless. The Dolphins answered with a couple touchdowns by Jaylen Waddle, but Detroit would counter with field goals by Michael Bagley as Detroit was looking great heading into halftime.
The second half woes continue
After putting up 27 in the first half, it seemed as if the Lions hit the showers early, as they didn’t look the same at all over the final 30 minutes of play. The offense was getting first downs but struggled mightily to push the ball down the field. The defense looked bad but did as much as they could considering what we’ve seen from them this year. Miami’s speed caused havoc for the Lions in the latter stages of the game as they looked disjointed and out of breath down the stretch.
The Lions were up multiple scores again and still found a way to lose. If they’re tanking on purpose they’re doing a really good job of it. They currently have the number one pick and are making a habit of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory week in week out.
This is the third straight week the Lions haven’t scored in the second half, and that’s absolutely unacceptable no matter what the team is trying to accomplish the rest of the season. Many people are against QB Jared Goff being replaced by a first round quarterback because of how bad the defense is, but the team will continue to go nowhere if they don’t find their franchise QB to build around. Rookie quarterbacks need to develop over time, so starting next year for this team would ideally fit their current timeline.
A very disappointing ending to the week, but promising signs show that the team’s needed upgrades are standing out. If nothing else they’ll have a better understanding of who to get rid of and positions are still lacking, which will make Brad Holmes more comfortable and aggressive soon. We had higher expectations than what we’re seeing, but hopefully there will be significant changes that can increase the positivity in the Detroit Lions organization.
The Lions play host to the Packers this week in a divisional showdown. While there’s likely a good portion of the fanbase who have already mailed in this season, some signs of life against Green Bay wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
Campbell & Co. need to show that they’re progressing with this team, and a lot of that comes down to simply eliminating the mistakes fans are seeing each week. If they’re not able to do so, then it doesn’t matter who the Lions select in the first round this offseason as 2023 could prove equally as disastrous.
-Robert Martin
Twitter: @Defense_Rob
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.