Lions 40 Patriots 9: Five numbers to sum up the game
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| Tom Brady intercepted on a pass intended for second rounder Aaron Dobson |
Nearly all of the blame belonged to the Patriots offense, who couldn't keep the ball and constantly put their defense in a poor situation. The Patriots were without Danny Amendola, but the Lions didn't have Calvin Johnson. It seems like Amendola's absence hurt the Patriots more than Calvin Johnson's hurt the Lions as Detroit cruised to a 40-9 victory at Ford Field.
Here's five numbers that will tell you everything you needed to know about this game.
4 - The Patriots had four turnovers with their starting offense in the first half. Three of those came from some poor ball security with Zach Sudfeld, Brandon Bolden and Shane Vereen all fumbling the ball. That's one sure fire way to find yourself in Bill Belichick's doghouse, not the best thing to happen with roster cuts coming soon. None of those players saw much action after their fumbles.
Tom Brady also threw an interception on a ball intended for rookie Aaron Dobson. Dobson got bumped off of his route, leaving Brady's ball to go right into the hands of Lions DB Chris Houston.
Ryan Mallet looked good in the second half and Tim Tebow saw no playing time.
2 - Tom Brady was sacked two times, while the Lions made five total tackles for losses in that first half. They ended the game getting a total of six hits on Patriots quarterbacks.
The Lions talented defensive line absolutely dominated the Patriots up front. It always seemed like the Patriots line was being pushed backwards, forcing Brady into some rushed throws and smothering the team's running game. Stevan Ridley was held to just six yards on his nine carries.
The weak showing by the offensive line coupled with the turnovers led to a pretty rough day for the vaunted Patriots offense. That ended up putting the Patriots defense in a lot of bad situations.
3 - The Patriots starting defense had three red zone stops in that first half. The starters on defense held up very well considering the fact that the Lions offense was starting with good field position most of the time. The Lions offense was only 2 /9 on third down in that first half. Particularly impressive was Aqib Talib who was spared the task of matching up against Calvin Johnson. Logan Ryan also got some significant looks and held his own. In total, the Patriots had three quarterback hits by the end of the night.
Despite all the turnovers, the Patriots kept it a 16-3 game at the half.
They weren't without their fair share of mistakes though. New Lions runningback Reggie Bush had 103 yards receiving, including a 67 yard scamper on a screen pass. It was a lot of that same bend-don't break defense we've gotten so used to begrudgingly seeing.
The Lions poured on most of their points when the subs came in in the second half.
6 - Kenbrell Thompkins had 6 catches for 93 yards with Tom Brady under center. Thompkins was really the lone bright spot on offense. Many wondered how the Pats would fill the void left by Danny Amendola's injury and they did it with the impressive undrafted rookie receiver. Thompkins has been turning heads at camp and finally showed what he can do in a game. The great thing about Thompkins is he's versatile enough to line up anywhere. He was even able to get a lot of separation on deep routes, which is a very good sign for a team that's seen almost none of that in three years.
Thompkins ended the night with eight catches for 116 yards.
2011 - In the third preseason game of 2011, the Patriots looked awful as they lost to the Lions on the road 34-10. Brady threw an interception and was sacked twice in that game as well.
That Patriots team went on to go to the Super Bowl. Just saying.
