The frequency illusion that is Lions cornerback Terrion Arnold’s 2025 season
We need to start paying more attention to everything Arnold is doing
Look, I’m just as guilty as everyone else for this. Going back to Week 2, after the Detroit Lions’ win over the Bears, I wrote a story about how there was a concerning trend with Terrion Arnold. At the time, he had been targeted 15 times and had allowed 10 catches for 175 yards and a touchdown. On top of that, he kept getting bad penalties called against him.
Then, the next day, I did a film study on Arnold and really zeroed in on his play, and I realized how wrong I was about him. Since then, I still keep getting comments like this one.
Can we talk about Arnold, not good.
— ProudDetroiter (@detroitstrong.bsky.social) October 6, 2025 at 9:02 AM
It seems like this is the only take there is on Arnold right now, and I can’t understand why. Then, I started to think back on my little obsession with psychology, and I realized what is happening.
Everyone is wrong about Terrion Arnold, and it’s all just a frequency illusion
Let’s start here. What is a frequency illusion? Here’s a quick definition for you: The frequency illusion, also known as the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, is a cognitive bias in which a person, after first noticing something new, begins to see it frequently in their environment, leading them to mistakenly believe it has suddenly become more common.
So basically, you see Arnold give up one big play, and you think that’s all he’s doing and that it’s happening all the time. Two weeks ago, against the Ravens, Arnold gave up two catches for 44 yards in the first half. So you think, that’s it. He’s just getting burnt. He got targeted three times in the second half and allowed one catch for 14 yards. Everyone ignored that because the only thing on their minds was the two catches in the first half. That defined his entire game.
Nobody paid attention or said much about Arnold allowing just two catches for 22 yards against the Browns. All the focus was put on the two penalties he had. I’m guilty of this, too. I put way too much emphasis on the penalties. They are bad, but in my mind, they’re always really bad timing and costly. That’s not really the case.
But that didn’t sway anyone after the Lions’ win over the Bengals. Arnold got called for holding on Aidan Hutchinson’s safety sack, and everyone Baader-Meinhofed themselves right there. That was Arnold’s contribution to this game, and nothing else happened. Just move right past the fact that he had a pass breakup on the next play and then another one two plays later. He was targeted six times and allowed three catches for 28 yards. Like, are we really going to keep ignoring that?
What about when Arnold went out of this game with a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter? Do you know what happened a couple of plays later? Amik Robertson, in Arnold’s place, got beat for a 62-yard Ja’Marr Chase touchdown. Then, Tee Higgins found the end zone later. With Arnold in, the Bengals scored 10 points. With him out, they brought the score up to 24.
We have to stop this idea that he is not a good player. Does he need to get better? Yes, he needs to get better. He’s not a finished product. But he has been good in the last three weeks. This isn’t just a one-game sample. We have to stop looking at only the bad stuff and focus on everything that’s happening with him, and I include myself in that “we.”
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