Every week during the regular season Tim Twentyman will answer 10 good questions from his X account @ttwentyman in a feature we call “10 Questions with Twentyman.”
20man: Za’Darius Smith was scheduled to be on his bye this week in Cleveland before the trade. The Lions absolutely did the right thing to give him some days off. Dan Campbell said he’ll be back at the Meijer Performance Center Friday, but I’m not positive he plays this week. The Lions may choose to let him get his bye week, rest and be refreshed for Jacksonville at Ford Field next Sunday. We’ll know more later today when the final injury report comes out.
20man: The back seven has vastly improved. MIKE LB Jack Campbell is really coming into his own. The completely revamped secondary is one of the better units in football through the first two months of the season. Carlton Davis III and Terrion Arnold have been serious upgrades at cornerback, and Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch, who have 10 interceptions between them, are the best safety duo in football.
Detroit’s defense ranks third in takeaways (16), fourth in red-zone efficiency (43.5 percent) and first in third-down defense (29.9). Those are the three most important statistics to winning in this league and Detroit’s defense is top five in all three.
With this offense playing the way it is, this is a Super Bowl caliber team with how well they are playing complementary football in all three phases.
20man: In a win over Houston last Thursday, the New York Jets had eight sacks and hit Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud 11 times. The 31 sacks allowed by the Texans this season are the second most in the NFL. It had Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans answering questions this week about replacements up front.
It’s big the Lions get Josh Paschal back this week. Alim McNeill has also been on a really good tear of late. Like I talked about above, I don’t think Smith is guaranteed to play Sunday, but even without him, I expect Detroit’s pass rush to look much more disruptive than it did last week in Green Bay when they had no sacks and just two quarterback hits.
20man: What a great matchup this week. This is a really good Texans’ defense that ranks second in total defense (281.7) and third against the pass (167.4). A big storyline in Houston this week is the health of second-year edge rusher Will Anderson Jr., who is dealing with an ankle injury and has missed practice time. He’s one half of a terrific edge duo alongside Danielle Hunter, who Lions fans know really well. The two have 13 sacks between them. If Anderson can’t go, that’s a big loss for the Texans’ defense.
Detroit’s offense has looked pretty unstoppable the last month and half and the big advantage they have Sunday is in the red zone. For how good Houston’s defense has been, they’ve struggled for whatever reason in the red zone. They rank 30th in the NFL, allowing a touchdown 69.6 percent of the time when teams get inside the 20. Detroit is Top 10 in red-zone offense (63.6) despite the 1-for-7 showing in the red zone in their one loss to Tampa Bay. I still like Detroit’s offense in what should be a great matchup of strength on strength.
20man: It was good to see the Lions start Ifeatu Melifonwu’s 21-day practice window on Wednesday. We’ll have to see how he looks and progresses from the ankle injury that’s kept him out of the lineup since training camp. If he’s able to return in the coming weeks, he adds another versatile player for defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to factor into the game plan.
There could be some creative packages developed with him, Joseph and Branch on the field together. He also provides great depth at the safety position if needed. He’s a great blitzer (3.0 sacks last year) with good ball skills (two interceptions and eight passes defended in 2023). He’s a playmaker and teams can never have too many of those on defense.
20man: What’s been so great about this Detroit Lions football team this season, and the reason why they are 7-1, is how all three phases have made Lions fans cheer at multiple points throughout the year. That’s the mark of a good football team.
I expect the offense to continue humming along Sunday night as there hasn’t been much that can slow them down. I’m sure offensive coordinator Ben Johnson will have some surprises in store for us with a national audience tuning in. Getting wide receiver Jameson Williams back is big too. Just another thing Houston’s defense will have to worry about.
20man: General manager Brad Holmes did his due diligence. Smith fits the play style and skillset on the edge for this defense.
I didn’t think Holmes would part with a first or second-round pick. He values them too much, and for good reason with what he’s been able to turn them into in terms of young, core players. Getting Paschal back helps, and the Lions are confident they now have what they need to be more consistent rushing the passer with the addition of Smith.
20man: Good problem to have, right? Once Smith is up and running, I expect him to get a lot of snaps on the edge and to even move inside on some third downs to create some favorable matchups. He has that kind of versatility. Paschal will go back to his normal snap count. Glenn can also go back to playing Levi Onwuzurike both inside and along the edge as a matchup piece. Mekhi Wingo is back off injury and should work back into the rotation inside with McNeill and DJ Reader.
With health and trade additions comes depth and the ability to keep players fresh upfront. That will be big heading into the stretch run the second half of the season.
20man: I say don’t mess with a good thing. We don’t see it that often because the Lions are very deliberate about alternating series between the two and keeping them fresh. It’s such an advantage the Lions have over most teams, having two starting-caliber running backs who they keep fresh all game. Most other teams have backs that carry the football 20-25 times a game. Eventually, they wear down.
David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs seem to get stronger as the game goes on. That’s a huge edge Detroit shouldn’t be so willing to give up by playing them both together more. Detroit has too many weapons they are trying to get the football to the way it is right now.
20man: Emmanuel Moseley tore his pectoral during the joint practices with the New York Giants in August. That was three months ago. Don’t forget last year C.J. Gardner-Johnson tore his pec Week 2 and returned the last couple weeks of the regular season and the playoffs. It’s a 3–4-month injury, so Moseley is right in line with that. He was competing with Amik Robertson for the starting nickel job at the time of the injury and his return will provide even more depth at an already deep position for the Lions.
