Takeaways from the Lions Week 17 loss to the Cowboys

Linebacker Derrick Barnes had a clean shot at sacking Cowboys QB Dak Prescott on Dallas’ second offensive drive. It might have resulted in a safety. At worst, a sack on 3rd-and-13 just outside the Dallas end zone would have resulted in a tough punt and a great opportunity for Detroit to build upon a 3-0 lead.

Barnes is untouched toward Prescott on a brilliant blitz call. But instead of trying to sack the quarterback, Barnes drops his shoulder and just rams into Prescott. No attempt to wrap him up, no hand usage to try and corral him or go for the ball. Prescott bounces off the lame effort from Barnes, steps up, and finds CeeDee Lamb in single coverage over the top for a 92-yard catch-and-run touchdown. What should have been a 5-0 Lions lead and the first two Dallas offensive possessions ending in sheer calamity for the Cowboys instead sees the Lions fall behind 7-3.

This is one of several nits to pick with Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who had an overall lousy game. This one stands out because this is under his complete control.

Dallas runs a 3-3-5 base front and it’s light across the box. Downhill, physical style of runners have given the Cowboys fits for weeks now, and the Lions happen to have a very good one of those in David Montgomery. “Monty” played well, too; 65 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown, as well as some impressive pass protection pickups.

But in this game, Johnson leaned more on rookie Jahmyr Gibbs. No. 26 wound up with 15 carries for 43 yards, and nearly all of that production (33 yards) came on one second-quarter drive. Gibbs also dropped a pass and had at least one whiff in pass protection.

Against a defense tailor-made for Montgomery to thrive, Johnson opted to give an ineffective Gibbs more action. That is a controllable variable that the coordinator got wrong.

In Week 16, the Lions allowed 16 yards on 10 carries to Minnesota running backs. Dallas jumped up to 51 yards on 18 carries by RBs on Saturday night. That figure was heavily propped up by an 18-yard Tony Pollard run where both Alex Anzalone and Ifeatu Melifonwu missed early tackle opportunities, too.

On 1st-and-10. the Cowboys gained 21 yards on 11 carries. That includes three negative runs. That’s outstanding run defense by the Detroit front against what is generally regarded as one of the NFL’s best offensive lines.

I haven’t seen the PFF game grades yet, but I would venture a guess that the two bottom offensive grades belong to Graham Glasgow and Jonah Jackson. The Lions guard tandem really struggled with the speed-based odd-man front Dallas threw at them.

For Jackson, it’s somewhat understandable. He’s playing through a wrist injury that doesn’t allow him to grab defenders or get a fully powerful punch. Glasgow doesn’t have that context; he simply played a very bad game in pass protection.

Center Frank Ragnow also had a poor game by his Pro Bowl standards, though he did settle in after his shaky start. The Lions haven’t seen a defensive front or rush scheme like that all year, and the interior line was woefully overmatched and underprepared for what hit them.

The final Lions scoring drive never should have even been a reality. The Lions can thank a spectacularly egregious drive by the Cowboys and head coach/offensive play-caller Mike McCarthy.

With a 17-13 lead and the ball after a terrible Jared Goff INT (more on that later) and barely two minutes remaining, the Cowboys were in excellent position to drain the clock and exhaust Detroit’s final two timeouts. A weird tripping penalty (one Cowboys fans will tell you is a very bad call) on first down set up 1st-and-25 at the Detroit 44-yard line.

A quick-hit pass play to Lamb forced the Lions to call a timeout. Then McCarthy opts to take a low-percentage end zone shot that Prescott sails out of bounds under heavy pressure. Instead of forcing the Lions to burn their final timeout, the decision gave them life. Detroit got the third-down stop and was able to call timeout before the Cowboys kicked a field goal. McCarthy’s strange choice saved some 30 seconds for the Lions.

Goff threw two interceptions and both were of the “oh my God” type of bad throws. The first was a slow-developing screen pass thrown across the formation, one that was pretty easy for the Cowboys to read, thanks to the way the action flowed. Cowboys CB Jourdan Lewis dove in front of Montgomery and caught the zip-less throw from Goff, ending a possession inside the Dallas 40-yard line.

Goff’s second interception was a critical one. Right after the Lions defense held strong with under three minutes to play, Goff threw a quick out to Sam LaPorta that was neither quick enough nor out enough. Safety Donovan Wilson undercut the route and hauled in the pick.

Not all of the blame should fall on Goff here, even though he’s the one throwing the ball. Johnson’s calls, especially the second interception, are asking Goff to make throws he’s consistently not very good at making — out-breaking routes against man coverage.

The Lions were pressed for time on the Wilson INT, but did have timeouts and the two-minute warning to work with while down four points. The middle of the field was still a viable option.

Goff needs to make better throws, no question. However, asking him to play to his weaknesses and ignoring his strengths was a recurring issue throughout this game.

3rd star: RB David Montgomery – 65 rushing yards on 14 carries and a touchdown

2nd star: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown – six catches on eight targets for 90 yards and one carry for 11 yards

1st star: EDGE Aidan Hutchinson – three sacks, four total tackles for loss, one forced fumble and five credited QB hits. Monster game from No. 97.

–The fake punt pass from Jalen Reeves-Maybin to Khalil Dorsey was football artwork. They clearly practiced that one a lot and the Lions special teams executed it perfectly.

–I would’ve gone for the extra point and overtime after the controversial 2-pt. conversion penalty. I understand playing for the win, but the way the Lions defense was playing, I would’ve trusted them to get a stop more than I trust the offense getting the conversion from the 7-yard line.

–There were numerous instances of uncalled holding and illegal hands-to-the-face on both sides. Micah Parsons and Aidan Hutchinson probably each should have earned 10 calls but got none. At least it was consistent.

–Cam Sutton had a very rough night in coverage on Lamb. Clearly hobbled with his injured toe, Sutton just couldn’t cover the Cowboys’ record-setting receiver. He might’ve struggled even if healthy; Lamb’s quickness and precision are the type that Sutton has issues with when he’s at full speed.

Coordinator Aaron Glenn didn’t send much help his way, and the safeties not named Kerby Joseph (decent game from No. 31) weren’t quick to provide it, either. Glenn’s scheme demands having outside CBs who can play on an island a lot, but in Dallas he didn’t have anyone who could play, period. If Glenn returns as the DC, outside corner is far and away the biggest defensive need on the defense.

–I really dislike the final 2-pt. conversion attempt, the shallow out to third-string TE James Mitchell. It’s a throw Goff had struggled with all night, intended for a player who hadn’t seen a ball thrown his way since 2022 until earlier in the game, and it’s designed to be thrown short of the end zone. So many things wrong with that. Having said that, if Goff throws the ball where Mitchell is going instead of behind him, it still might’ve worked.

–The Lions tackling was unusually poor in this one, far beyond Barnes’ abysmal whiff. Particularly rough for Anzalone, Melifonwu and Sutton.

–Loved the deep shot to Jameson Williams. Perfect throw from Goff on that one, too.