It’s yet another “big game” week for the Dallas Cowboys as they’re ready to take on the 3-1 Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium for Week 6 of the 2024 NFL regular season.
To get ready for the game and get a better grasp of the Lions, I went behind enemy lines and reached out to fellow A to Z Sports writer Mike Payton, who covers Detroit.
He provided some interesting insight, starting with my first question, with him explaining people might be overstating the Lions’ biggest weakness due to missing context. Let’s dive in.
1. It appears some of the secondary issues have persisted in Detroit, ranking 21st in dropback EPA/play and some big performances to top receivers. Where are the Lions the most vulnerable and how do you expect them to deal with CeeDee Lamb?
Payton: I think there’s some context that’s being left out with the Lions secondary right now. They’re currently the second most passed on secondary in the NFL. Only one spot behind the Minnesota Vikings, who everyone considers to be the best defense in the league right now. Their secondary numbers mostly the same or worse. When you’re getting thrown on more, some are going to get through. It’s important to note that most teams are passing against the Lions because they struggled to run the ball on them. With all that in mind, the Lions have still only allowed five passing touchdowns this year and two of those were in one game.
2. The Lions offense remains one of the league’s best in the NFL and seem to have overcome their early red zone woes. Who should the Cowboys be concerned about the most when Detroit is inside the 20-yard line?
Payton: If you would have asked me this after Week 2, I would have said maybe not. But since then the Lions have had seven red zone opportunities and they’ve scored touchdowns on all seven of them. They’re a dangerous team when they get down there with David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.
3. We know Aiden Hutchinson is one of the best edge rushers in the league and looks like the DPOY favorite so far. Do you expect him to move around against a weak duo of offensive tackles or will he tee off on one side specifically? Who else is a concern on that defensive line?
Payton: The Lions like to move him around a lot, so I wouldn’t expect him to just hang out on one side. It’s crazy what he’s doing this season. He has 40 pressures in four games. The next closest guy to him has 29 in five games. Hutch is mad man.
4. The Lions are road favorites for this one. What do you think is their best path to beating the Cowboys?
Payton: I think they have to get that ground game going early and set the tone on this one. Take advantage of Demarcus Lawrence, Micah Parsons and Marshawn Kneeland being out for this one.