Good, Bad and Ugly From Lions Loss to Panthers

Good

Quarterback Play

Jared Goff had a very strong game. There were issues with ball placement at points, alongside his receivers having drops, but Goff managed what he could. The quarterback spread the ball well, with four pass catchers over 75 yards. 

Goff kept the Lions in the game after Carolina was able to bottle the run, something they previously had not done all season. This came in spite of a defensive interior that was aggressive and able to bat down multiple balls after getting a push against the Lions interior offensive line. 

Receiver Play

The receiving trio of Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa, and Amon-Ra St. Brown had their first ever game where they each went over 75 yards. On top of catching the ball well, there were strong downfield blocks and adjustments that helped keep Detroit in the game. 

Williams rallied from an early concentration lapse to grab a ball before half that gave the Lions a game-tying field goal. TeSlaa had a career day, including a career-long 57-yard catch. St. Brown provided multiple clutch first downs as the Lions tried to rally. 

In the end, all three receivers had a ‘what if’ day, as they were open a few more times when the football got deflected at the line of scrimmage.

Special Teams

The special teams unit got a lot of time on Sunday, kicking four field goals and being brought out to punt multiple times. Jake Bates was perfect on field goals and extra points, Jack Fox had strong punts, and the Lions shined while the Panthers missed two extra points.

The lone mark against the Lions occurs from a running into the kicker penalty on a late punt, but that was a desperation block attempt. 

Bad

Interior Offensive Line

The Lions struggled on the interior of their offensive line today. The front three could not get a push against Carolina, which held Jahmyr Gibbs in check. The back finished under 50 yards. 

The lone Goff sack of the day occurred via a rush up the gut. In addition to the sack, Juice Scruggs was whistled for holding, Tate Ratledge was whistled for a false start, and Christian Mahogany got pushed into Goff multiple times. All three were the primary blocking lineman on plays where their defensive tackle batted the ball down after surrendering ground blocking the pass.

Linebackers

The linebacker play was subpar on Sunday. Jimmy Rolder recording a tackle for loss during some of his first defensive snaps, but was otherwise a nonfactor. Jack Campbell continues to not make much of an impact, also recording two missed tackles during the game that resulted in first downs on scoring drives.

Derrick Barnes and Malcolm Rodriguez lacked any noticeable plays on the game, and the linebacker unit was exposed by the Carolina RPO scheme on multiple occasions. The last linebacker from the group to play, Trevor Nowaske, had his most memorable play occur when he was held on special teams.

Ugly

Secondary

The secondary’s tape was unwatchable for the fourth week in a row. Ennis Rakestraw had a solid game last week, but that was not the case on Sunday. Rakestraw, Roger McCreary, DJ Reed, and Jalen Mills all struggled. Christian Izien got burnt a few times.

Reed entered the game allowing over 20 yards per catch, and he was the lone man in coverage on the opening touchdown drive. During the contest, it was noted that the Lions could not play man or zone with their struggles.

After the game, former head coach Mike Tomlin discussed that the Lions had to figure a way to “slow down their dying.” When asked about the comments after, he did not walk them back. The Lions’ secondary is killing any chance of postseason thoughts in Motown.

The disturbing fact for the Lions is that they have only faced one top quarterback in the league. They have looked abysmal against the likes of Geno Smith, Tyler Shough, and Bryce Young. 

Defensive Line

The line started strong for Detroit, with multiple Alim McNeill run stuffs and a McNeill sack. Aidan Hutchinson was disruptive and forced a few pressures and throwaways. DJ Wonnum finished off a chase down run for no gain. Besides that, the defensive line was tossed around on Sunday.

On most RPOs, there was a positive gain awaiting Carolina no matter what Bryce Young chose. Chuba Hubbard ran for over 120 yards, including multiple runs for over 20 yards when he did not have any in the 2025 season. 

Young was not flushed from the pocket much by anyone besides McNeill and Hutchinson. Derrick Moore rarely made an impact as a second-round pick. Skyler Gill-Howard lined up offsides. Tyler Lacy’s lone contribution was a run stuff. 

The secondary’s struggle amplified matters, but allowing Hubbard’s massive day on the ground while not recording much pressure in an ugly day.