Defense's struggles mean no Detroit Lions lead is safe and offense needs to get on track 
Published: Sunday, September 19, 2010, 8:45 PM Updated: Sunday, September 19, 2010, 9:52 PM
Tom Kowalski

[img_r]http://media.mlive.com/lions_impact/photo/ndamukong-suh-19jpg-b2c29b3ed4dfd136_large.jpg[/img_r]DETROIT -- Now that it's pretty clear Detroit Lions rookie Jahvid Best is as good as advertised -- three more touchdowns this week -- there are some other issues that must be addressed in the wake of Detroit's 35-32 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday at Ford Field.

Schwartz made right call

Lions coach Jim Schwartz made the right call in going for it on fourth-and-one early in the fourth quarter. Some people will try to add two and two -- or 32 and three -- and figure a field goal there would have resulted in a tie game and overtime.

Not really. First, Schwartz wasn't really worried about the long field goal attempt or Jason Hanson's ability to make it. Hanson had already hit a 49-yarder earlier in the game (and it would've been good from 60 yards out).

No, Schwartz knew that three points probably wasn't going to be enough. The Eagles had already tacked on 28 points against this defense in three quarters and he had to believe that, if pressed, they were capable of scoring again. (They were.) The Lions needed touchdowns, not field goals.

The reason the Lions were able to score those last two touchdowns so quickly is because the Eagles went to a prevent defense, believing they could bleed the clock before the Lions could catch up. While the game got a little tighter than they had hoped, the Eagles' strategy worked.

Where's Calvin?

Before the Eagles went to that prevent defense, Lions receiver Calvin Johnson had two catches for 13 yards and the Lions have to start taking ownership of this problem.

Yeah, he's getting double-covered a lot, but that excuse can't linger. The Lions need to get more creative in getting Johnson open across the middle, weaving him through some traffic to get open. People know how to defend all of these deep fades and post patterns. Those routes certainly need to be part of the overall package, but the Lions need to dial up something a little different to spring Johnson free.

Missed opportunity

One of the most crucial plays in the game came midway through the second quarter. The Lions were winning 17-7 and the Eagles were driving. Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick threw a deep post to receiver DeSean Jackson and Detroit cornerback Jonathan Wade played it perfectly. He beat Jackson to the pass and had an easy interception. But he dropped it.

Instead of the Lions taking possession and keeping momentum firmly on their side, the Eagles took advantage of the mistake and eventually scored a touchdown to cut the lead and steal momentum. And then they scored another touchdown to steal the lead as well.

"When (Vick) throws balls up, our secondary has to be able to convert,'' Schwartz said.

"We've got to make the plays that we have,'' Wade said. "I've got to make my interception, C.C. Brown's got to make his, we have to capitalize. I just took my eyes off it. That's my fault, I've got to catch the ball first. That's the most important thing. It gets us off the field.''

Defense's struggles

When you're not good enough, the best game plan in the world isn't going to help much. That's the situation Lions defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham found himself in during Sunday's game.

The Lions didn't blitz Vick much early in the game and he was buying time with his legs and finding receivers open downfield. The Lions couldn't let that keep happening, so they had to bring the blitz and hope they could sack Vick or pressure him into some bad throws. It's a game of chicken: Can we hit you before you hit our secondary?

It worked perfectly for Detroit. The Lions had several players running into the backfield unblocked with nothing between them and Vick but air and opportunity.

The Lions missed almost every time. Some were brilliant plays by Vick while others were just whiffs. That's the difference between fourth-and-18 and first-and-10 and Vick simply ran away from the best defensive strategy the Lions had.

Remember, this is what we talked about at the beginning of the season and it unfolded during this game. The Lions need their offense to win shootouts because their defense is vulnerable and no lead is safe. The Lions came close to pulling it off but, in a maddening trend you're likely to see for most of this season, they fell short.

That's why the original prediction of 4-12 remains intact.