Detroit Lions Weblog

2010 Lions Personnel Evaluation: The Defensive Line

If any one playing group had a larger impact than the Lions defensive line did for them, on any other NFL team during the 2010 NFL season, I would be surprised. The Lions defensive line made the Lions defense (16th in passing defense, 24th rushing defense, 21st in total defense) both imposing and viable, while presenting match-up problems that neutralized Lions opponents ability to take advantage of their undermanned back seven.

The 2010 Lions were coming off of a run of seasons where they were ranked historically among the all-time worst NFL defenses. There was little reason to expect that the Lions would have made the gains that they were able to make during this season.

The Lions made several bold strokes this off-season, in an attempt to improve their lot. Jim Schwartz actively recruited his former Titans player, DE Kyle Vanden Bosch and was able to convince him to sign with the Lions at the opening of free agency.

The Lions also had the best NFL prospect of the 2010 draft fortuitously fall into their laps, DT Ndamukong Suh. Boy howdy, did Suh deliver, too. Suh, a “Shuh-In” for NFL Defensive Rookie of the year, was a true difference maker and force to be reckoned with (likely, for years to come, too).

Vanden Bosch and Suh delivered both a presence and attitude, while devastating opposing offensive lines and QB’s. Vanden Bosch, who unfortunately missed the final five games, brought an unmatched effort and toughness that seemingly brought the entire defense along with him.

Vanden Bosch Delivered Credibility, Toughness...and Crushing Blows, From Day One

If the additions of Vanden Bosch and Suh were all that the Lions front office accrued during the off-season, it would have been notable. Where Martin Mayhew truly pulled off a remarkable coup, in moves that made a huge difference for the Lions defense, was in his low cost acquisitions of DT Corey Williams (and a 2010 7th round pick for a Lions 2010 5th round pick) and DE Lawrence Jackson (6th rounder in 2011).

Run, Chubby Man, Run! Corey Williams Intercepts Brett Favre

Those improvements, along with the progress made by players like DT Sammie Lee Hill and DE Cliff “Kompared to Kalimba No More!” Avril, along with valuable depth provided by versatile DE Turk McBride and DT Andre Fluellen, made the Lions defensive front comparable with the league’s best.

Kris Kocurek Benefited From the Additions of Ndamukong Suh, Kyle Vanden Bosch and Co.

One change that went highly unrecognized, was the retirement of Bob Karmelowicz (who has since deceased) and promotion of a young, fiery defensive line coach named Kris Kocurek. Kocurek had a great deal of success, with admittedly, a lot of resources to work with.

A lasting image for me of the 2010 season will always be of Kocurek, wearing a headset and sporting a chaw in his cheek, slapping his defensive linemen’s backs as they leave the field, after another big defensive stop.

The Lions defensive coaching staff seemingly willed the Lions defense to become competitive. Lions defense Gunther Cunningham, always a fiery and aggressive presence, truly utilized his defensive front four to his advantage.

Last season, Cunningham would continually dial up blitzes, out of desperation. This season, the Lions front four generated enough pass rushing pressure that often the Lions could rush four and drop seven into coverage. That being said, whenever the attacking tendencies of Cunningham were needed, he was able to more thoughtfully sprinkle in blitzes to disrupt opponents, rather than as a means of preventing opposing QB’s from picking apart the Lions defense.

The Lions were 6th in the NFL with 44 sacks. Of which, 37 were produced by the Lions front four (Lawrence “Lo-Jack” Jackson 6.0, Ndamukong Suh 10.0, Kyle Vanden Bosch 4.0, Cliff Avril 8.5, Sammie Lee Hill 2.5, Andre Fluellen 1.0, Turk McBride 5.0)!

Avril Has Become a Force, After Showing Promise

Something we are not fully capable of measureing is how often the Lions defensive line impacted (and altered) opponents offensive game plans by forcing them into third and long distances. We will never know how often opponents had fewer pass catching options due to max-protect blocking schemes (keeping tight ends and backs out of pass routes to block) or how many checked down, dump off passes were made as a result of oncoming pressure. Lastly, we will not know how many incomplete passes came as a result of poorly thrown balls that were awkwardly rushed in response to the pressure of the Lions front four.

If I were to grade the Lions defensive line collectively, I’d give them an “A-“. They could have earned an “A” grade, had they not accumulated so many encroachment and costly personal foul penalties, a season long bug-a-boo.

Kyle Vanden Bosch: B+ (A+ for effort)
Ndamukong Suh: A- (he was still a rookie, after all)
Corey Williams: A- (penalties, nearly unblockable at times)
Cliff Avril: A (for proving me wrong (the death of his Kalimba Part Deux nickname) and becoming a force…now deliver for seasons to come!)

Turk McBride: A (excellent job as a fill-in and player who made big steps forward this season)
Andre Fluellen: B (serviceable, but Corey Williams playing so well made him the least acknowledged member of the Lions defensive line, in the playing group)
Sammie Lee Hill: B+ (easily could have been starter, if not for the presence of Suh)
Willie Young: INC (a project, who may or may not have a future with the organization. “Hawaii Five-Oh”, who?)
Lawrence “Lo-Jack” Jackson: A- (as a former first rounder, had high expectations. Still excellent production from a backup)

A 2010 Lions Post-Mortem, Of Sorts

To say that the Lions performance in their last four games changed my perspective significantly, in regard to my assessment of their overall performance, would be an understatement.

At 2-10, with several painful close losses in tow, I was becoming concerned that helming the Lions may be a larger task than Lions head coach Jim Schwartz would be capable of. I had begun to believe that he would not be able to reverse their fortunes, nor would he be able to help them to be able to win the close games that they were routinely losing as the season wore on.

Jim Schwartz Had Several Heated Tete-A-Tete's With Referees This Season

Even with the questionable losses and penalties stacking up, making it easily one of the more interesting (and painful) Lions seasons ever in many regards, this Lions team appeared to be comprised of a different substance than the one’s who failed so miserably during season’s past.

I legitimately savored the Lions four-game winning streak as the season wore down. Those four wins, two of them against legit playoff contenders, and the way in which the Lions had to fight to come out on top in each perilous victory, are a good sign for the program of Jim Schwartz and his coaching staff.

Even if Vanden Bosch was Unable to Complete the 2010 Season, His Tenacious Presence May Have Been the Lions Single Biggest Off-Season Addition.

Those hard-fought victories could be the first tenuous baby steps being made by the generally agreed upon, worst franchise in all of professional sports. These Lions are not going to be taken for granted by their opponents, for the foreseeable future, that’s for certain.

That being said, four wins can present a blinding allure. If the Lions don’t have a strong off-season, improving as players within the organization and making the correct decisions in their off-season roster re-tooling (trades, draft, free agency), then any measureable gains which the organization has seemingly made, could quickly erode and devolve into the moribund, losing comfort zone which has permeated the Lions organizational culture for far too long.

The “Big Buck” Stares at the Uneasy
Precipice Which the Lions Find Themselves
Currently Hanging Over

In many ways, Jim Schwartz finds himself in an unenviable position. He could easily become one of the best and most important head coaches in Lions history, if he can build upon the Lions four-game winning stretch. This is precisely where Lions head coaches (Rod Marinelli and Wayne Fontes) have so often failed during seasons past.

One thing that is uncontestable, the Lions are an improved team who are at a crucial developmental stage, holding the 13th pick in the April draft. The Lions aren’t necessarily in a familiar position, either.

They currently have some talent and depth, so unlike years past, they won’t just close their eyes and just take the best player available to them. They have some clear postions of need, which they will need to focus upon during the off-season. That fact alone, will put additional pressure upon the Lions front office. They know what they need, and can ill afford to miss in their evaluations.

These Lions Fans Aren't Concerned About The Team's Immediate Future

As a Lions fan, I believe now is the time to appreciate the steps that have been made, look favorably upon a season that was salvaged from the crossroads of abject failure. It was not a perfect result, but the signs of encouragement are not to be ignored. If the NFL’s labor situation doesn’t defuse the Lions momentum, a quality off-season maybe all that separates them from becoming playoff contenders.

Should Ndamukong Suh Receive Defensive Player of the Year Consideration?

The Lions Congregation is a roundtable of Lions bloggers who comment upon a topic or topics, nearly every week. Here is my response to the question of whether or not Ndamukong Suh is likely to win NFC Defensive Player of the Year, on top of his near shoo-in selection for NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year:

Suh Brought Aggressiveness to the Lions Front Four

Q: Should Ndamukong Suh also be getting strong consideration for Defensive Player of the Year, not just Defensive Rookie of the year? Will he win one or both? Thoughts?

Should Ndamukong Suh receive consideration for NFC Defensive Player of the Year? Hell, Yes!

Let the results speak for themselves:

Suh has:9 sacks (1st for DT’s)
60 combined tackles (3rd most for interior linemen, 1st DT)
1 interception returned for 20 yards
1 fumble recovery returned for a TD

Individual defensive statistics can be misleading, but let’s look at some of the changes in Lions team defensive statistics from 09′ to ‘10:

The Lions Total Team Defense was ranked 32nd in ‘09, and is currently 22nd in ‘10. They are allowing 39.7 fewer yards per game (392.1 to 352.4) and .5 yards fewer per play (6.1 to 5.6).

The most noticeable improvements have been made in team pass defense:

Opp. Pass Comp Pct: 68.1 to 63.8
Opp. Passing Yards: 4, 249 to 3, 361 (a decrease of 888 yards)
Avg: 8.1 to 7.5 (a decrease of .6 yards per pass)
Opp. Yd/G: 265.6 to 224.1 (a decrease of 41.5 yds/g)
TD/INT: 35/9 to 23/13 (12 fewer TD’s, 4 more INT’s)

Suh's 10 Sacks Made Him One of Two Rookies in NFL History to Accomplish That Feat

Here is where Suh, and I believe the performance of the entire Lions defensive line has made it’s biggest difference.

Completed Passes of 20 yards or more: 54 to 41
Completed Passes of 40 yards or more: 41 to 9
Sacks: 26 to 41 (+15!)
Opp. Qb Rating: 107.0 to 91.1

Opponents are being pressured to deliver shorter, quicker passes. Opposing Qb’s are not being allowed to find a rhythm, nor are they able to exploit the weaknesses still lurking in the Lions secondary.

The Lions defense is still far from dominant, but even after injuries and roster deficiencies are accounted for, this team could not have possibly improved this much defensively solely because of another year of tutelage under Jim Schwartz and Gunther Cunningham.

The Lions defensive line has been the single biggest factor which has made this team competitive and appearing on the verge of better things to come. An argument can be made for Corey Williams being the most dominant DT on the Lions roster, but no Lions defensive lineman has exhibited the playmaking and difference-making ability of Ndamukong Suh.

Suh’s pernicious attitude on the field, which has consistently drawn double teams from opponents, has been infectiously influential upon the entire defense. The Lions defense is playing with a chip upon it’s shoulder and not allowing opposing QB’s to become comfortable.

In all likelihood, Suh will not receive legitimate consideration for the NFC Defensive Player of the Year. He has yet to establish the kind of pedigree or track record necessary to receive that kind of notice. That being said, watching one of the league’s all-time worst pass defenses become viable and respectable, albeit still residing in the middle of the pack, largely has to be attributed to the Lions biggest off-season addition, Ndamukong Suh.

Ndamukong Suh Gives the Lions Some Cause For Optimism

Suh is a shoo-in for NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year, and is a top five finalist for NFC Defensive Player of the Year. If nothing else, no one off-season addition can be considered to be remotely as propitious as the Lions draft selection of Suh, who has changed the face of the entire franchise.

Read More Here.