Allen Park — The Detroit Lions had one of the NFL’s best offenses in 2022, ranking top-five in both yards and points, wildly exceeding expectations under first-year coordinator Ben Johnson.
Returning the majority of the personnel that contributed to the success, and bolstering the talent in the backfield and at tight end, there’s little reason to expect regression. Here are five questions we have that could hold the key to equal or better results in 2023.
▶ Encore for a pay day
There are still people who aren’t sold on quarterback Jared Goff, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find detractors in the building — and fewer than ever among the fan base — after the quarterback’s 2022 performance.
Shaking off a sluggish beginning to the season (six interceptions and four lost fumbles during a 1-5 start), Goff played the best football of his career down the stretch, particularly when it came to ball security. It’s not unfair to suggest the veteran has had his share of turnover issues during his career, but he ended the campaign on a remarkable 324-pass streak without an interception. That’s not only the franchise’s best mark, but is within striking distance of Aaron Rodgers’ NFL record of 402 consecutive throws without a pick.
Additionally, Goff shook his propensity to rely on the check down, better using his weapons at all depths, ranking in the top half of the league in pass attempts and completions that traveled 20 or more yards beyond the line of scrimmage. All totaled, Goff’s passer rating and QBR, which better reflects situational success, were in line with career bests. That’s the type of performance you expect and need from a franchise quarterback.
Of course, the NFL remains a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business, and with two years remaining on his contract, Goff once again is positioned to have to prove himself. But doing so will rubber stamp Detroit’s pending decision on offering him a contract extension, which undoubtedly will cost the team north of $40 million per season, and very well could check in closer to $50 million per with a performance resembling anything close to last season, especially if it also results in a division title and/or playoff win.
▶ Can the O-line finally catch a break?
For two seasons, we’ve spent the offseason praising the potential of Detroit’s starting offensive line, only to see the projected starting five never share the field due to a revolving door of injuries. All five have missed at least one game since 2021, and four of the five have missed multiple.
But that disappointing run of bad luck should come to an end with Taylor Decker, Jonah Jackson, Frank Ragnow, Halapoulivaati Vaitai and Penei Sewell all in good health heading into the opener against Kansas City.
Regardless, in a scenario where team runs into another unfortunate issue, particularly with some continued concern around Ragnow’s foot after two years of troubles, the team has reinforced its depth, adding a quality, experienced veteran in Graham Glasgow. Whether it’s Vaitai or Glasgow who ultimately emerge victorious for the starting right guard job, the team is in better shape this year in any of their interior players need to miss time.
Offensive tackle depth is a bit more dicey. Matt Nelson is in line to back up Decker and Sewell, and he’s struggled when called upon in the past. An alternative approach might be moving Vaitai to right tackle in that hypothetical situation, given his previous experience, and success playing that position.
▶ Who takes the top off the defense early?
While it wasn’t a full-on aerial assault, we noted above that the Lions had a more effective and potent downfield passing attack last season. But to begin this season, the team will be without its leading deep threats from a year ago; DJ Chark and Jameson Williams.
Chark departed in free agency, signing with the Carolina Panthers, while Williams is suspended the first six games for violating the league’s gambling policy. It begs the question, who steps up to help the offense stretch the field and keep defenses honest in the early going?
No one has more speed to be a solution than Kalif Raymond, but the 5-foot-8, 182-pounder doesn’t offer much in terms of catch radius, requiring him to get a few steps on a defender and Goff to have better-than-average accuracy to be effective. Meanwhile, Josh Reynolds brings the size, but isn’t known for generating consistent downfield separation.
Then there’s Amon-Ra St. Brown, who offered next to nothing in the vertical passing game during a highly productive, Pro Bowl season in 2022. After the season, he made it known he wants to be more involved downfield next year. He had some success in that area in college, and few are more driven to succeed. If he can unlock the ability to contribute in that department, it would elevate him into the conversation as one of the league’s elite receivers.
▶ What will Jamo bring to the table?
It’s unquestionably been a rocky start to Williams’ career. He missed most of his rookie season rehabbing from a torn ACL, has battled hamstring issues this offseason, and has the looming six-game suspension. On top of it all, he’s shown consistent struggles with his hands during OTAs and training camp.
But with his rare speed, few in the league offer his kind of big-play potential. We got glimpses of it last season when he got behind the defense for a 41-yard touchdown on his lone catch in six games. He also added 40 yards on a reverse, giving him a staggering 40.5-yard average per touch.
Drops might always be an issue, but if he’s going to deliver an explosive play every other game, you learn to live with that, just hoping it doesn’t show up at a critical point. That said, will we see him living up to those lofty expectations this season. The start-stop nature of his offseason has further stunted his development, which is most apparent when you watch him trying to do too much running routes in practice, completely throwing off the timing with the quarterback.
Maybe the addition of Teddy Bridgewater, and the promise of bonus throwing sessions after practice, help get Williams right sooner than later. His potent playmaking potential could be the key to taking Detroit’s offense to the next level.
▶ Can rookies fill big shoes?
The Lions made two key additions to the offense with the first 34 picks of the draft, selecting running back Jahmyr Gibbs No. 12 overall, followed by tight end Sam LaPorta at the top of the second round. The duo effectively replace D’Andre Swift and T.J. Hockenson, with the pathway to provide similar production in Year 1.
Like Swift, Gibbs is an explosive, dual-threat back capable of taking it to the house every time the ball gets in his hands. A more refined pass-catcher than the man he’s replacing, Gibbs should see plenty of action out the gate, including an anticipated increase in two-back formations. If he proves to be more durable than the oft-injured Swift, it should be a massive upgrade to the season-long potency of Detroit’s backfield.
LaPorta, arguably the only bright spot for Iowa’s bumbling offense in 2022, has proven to be a savvy route runner who should immediately end up being Detroit’s primary target recipient at the tight end spot. Hockenson averaged 4.3 catches for 45.4 yards during his nearly four seasons with the Lions and that’s a good barometer for LaPorta’s first-year ceiling.
Where LaPorta could have a bigger impact than Hockenson is after the catch. For all his positive contributions in a Lions uniform, Hockenson had a tendency to waste yardage post-reception, while LaPorta has shown signs of being more elusive in the open field.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers