The Lions finished the 2023 season tied for the ninth-fewest sacks (41) in the league.
It’s a number that most teams would want to greatly improve heading into the next year, but head coach Dan Campbell believes there are more important things to focus on.
According to si.com, Campbell said he “absolutely” would rather have sacks, but that they “aren’t that big of a deal” if the pressure the defense creates has an impact on opposing offenses.
Detroit’s defense was able to do just that a year ago, finishing with the third-most pressures and fourth-best rate of creating pressure in the entire league.
Campbell acknowledged that while discussing his team’s pass rush last week.
“We watched a couple clips this morning in front of the team,” Campbell said. “Quarterback is wanting to step up. He can’t step up, the throw is high. He’s flipping to his right, and he can’t get his hips around. Throw a pick. These things that end up in negative plays as incomplete, as turnovers, whatever, I’ll take those all day long.”
Of course, sacks are important and create negative plays for opposing offenses, but Campbell has a point.
The defense is not going to be able to get a sack on every play, making the pressure it creates on the quarterback arguably more valuable throughout a game.
The Lions seem to have the players to continue their dominance on defense. Edge rusher Aiden Hutchinson ranked second in the league in pressures while recording 11.5 sacks last season, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he repeated or improved those numbers heading into his third season in the NFL.
Detroit also added a couple of veterans in edge rusher Marcus Davenport and defensive tackle D.J. Reader, who could help improve the team’s sack and pressure total.
The Lions shocked a lot of teams last season by making it to the NFC Championship game. They have a chance to pick up right where they left off thanks to their defense, which is focusing on putting a ton of pressure on opposing offenses once again.