Lions head coach Dan Campell will have to be like Batman and break his one big rule to beat the Cowboys
The Lions should not try set the tone with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery in this one.
The Dallas Cowboys are hot right now, but the thing about hot streaks is that they always end. The Detroit Lions should know that. They went on a four-game hot streak earlier this season, and then it ended. The question is, does the Cowboys’ hot streak end this week against the Lions, or does it end next week or the week after that?
Dallas is a team led mostly by its offense, and we’ve already broken down multiple ways the Lions can attack it. Stopping the run and attacking from the edges will be the way to go. But what about this Dallas defense? It’s ranked 31st in defensive DVOA this season, and it has allowed the third most points in the league. So why are people worried about them?
The Cowboys have been playing better since the trade deadline, when they traded for Quinnen Williams and some other defensive help. So, how do the Lions attack this defense? Well, it will require that Lions head coach Dan Campbell go against something he loves to do a lot, according to our Cowboys beat writer, Mauricio Rodriguez.
The Lions need to go away from running the ball on the early downs and pass instead
“Firstly, I’d force the Cowboys to tackle in the flats. The Kansas City Chiefs were successful in Thanksgiving early on, doing exactly that. Additionally, I’d focus on passing the football on early downs. The Cowboys want to get into their five-man front on early downs. That allows them to wreck opponents’ run games and to generate pass rush with one-on-ones. But this leaves their secondary vulnerable, as it’s one fewer player in coverage or a DE dropping into a zone.”
There you go, right there. If there’s one thing the Cowboys are expecting from this Lions offense, it’s that they want to bring out Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery to run the ball to set up the pass. The Lions have started the majority of their downs this season with a run play. It’s had some success. They’re averaging five yards per carry, but this plays right into the Cowboys’ hands.
You have to go after the defense that’s allowed the third most passing yards in the league this year. Especially when you’re completing 73.6% of your passes on first down and 72.6% on second down. Attack the defense and get them out of their rhythm, and then you can beat them up with the run game off of that.
It’s not typically what Campbell likes to do, but I guarantee he hates losing a lot more than this. Let’s see what happens on Thursday when the Lions have the ball for the first time. They can set the tone in this one with a big pass.
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