FIRST DOWN: DEFENSIVE DAY
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray had a perfect passer rating (158.3) last week in a blowout win over the Rams. Fast forward one week and Murray (76.5) didn't even get halfway to a perfect rating against a Lions' defense that really stepped up to the challenge this week and helped Detroit rebound by beating the Cardinals on the road, 20-13.
"(Aaron Glenn) AG had a hell of a plan," Lions head coach Dan Campbell said after the win. "I thought those guys on defense really played outstanding. I thought the three-and-outs there in the second half, the sudden change after the turnover offensively, defense takes the field and gets a huge stop, the fourth-down stop, the turnover, all of it. It was good."
The Cardinals came into Sunday averaging 34.5 points per game but managed just 13 against the Lions and had just 277 yards of total offense, 77 yards rushing and were just 1-for-9 on third down.
"I think that was our best defensive game I've ever been a part of, just collectively," Lions edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson said. "It's not like we were sacking the quarterback that much. But I think, with what they were giving us, we executed the game plan really well."
After scoring 20 first-half points, the Lions' offense slowed down in the second half but the defense came through and allowed just three points, playing terrific complementary football.
"Our defense is playing really well right now," said quarterback Jared Goff, who finished 18-of-23 passing for 199 yards with two touchdowns and a passer rating of 113.6. "That's three straight games where they are doing some good things. We would love to stretch that game open and make it a three-score, four-score game and end it a lot earlier than that, but they held on and made some plays for us and picked us up when we needed it and at the end of the game, we (offense) were able to close it out."
This is looking like a top 10 defense in Detroit.
SECOND DOWN: DYNAMIC DUO
On the first drive of the game, David Montgomery ran the ball six times for 39 yards and the Lions ended the drive with a touchdown. Jahmyr Gibbs came in for the second Lions possession and ran nine times for 34 yards in another touchdown drive.
Detroit established the run early and often. When it was all said and done, the Lions amassed 187 rushing yards with Montgomery running 23 times for 105 yards (4.6 average) and Gibbs rushing 16 times for 83 yards (5.2 average).
Montgomery and Gibbs have been terrific for Detroit to start the season. They are the first running back duo since Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister in New Orleans in 2006 to each log 70-plus scrimmage yards in each of the first three games of a season.
"That was going to be a big thing for us," Campbell said of establishing the run early in this game and leaning on it throughout. "If we could get on them early and try to establish the run game, physical type battle, defense do what we needed to do, that was going to be our best chance here to have success and it worked out."
THIRD DOWN: HUTCHINSON'S STREAK
It may have taken nearly 55 minutes in a 60-minute ball game, but Hutchinson was able to get to Murray for a sack after a mostly frustrating day of battling chips and double teams.
It was a big play because it forced a late field goal with the Lions holding on to a 10-point lead that put the Cardinals behind the eight ball. They never got the ball back.
It was sack number 6.5 for Hutchinson on the year. He's now recorded a sack in five straight regular-season contests, which sets a new franchise record.
"It's great," Hutchinson said of the record. "I feel like a lot of my glory goes to God because it's just the right place at the right time. I think it's that and your teammates all rushing hard. I think that's really what it comes down to. It's a blessing for sure. We're just going to keep it going week by week."
Hutchinson finished the game with seven tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack and two quarterback hits.
"It's special, man," Goff said of watching Hutchinson play right now. "He's fun to watch in practice. You can see he took his game to the next level this whole offseason. His whole body changed. You can see he's growing mentally and physically and coming into his own as a player, certainly. I'm glad he's on our side."
FOURTH DOWN: CREATIVE PLAY CALLS
All three Lions coordinators deserve a lot of credit for the win as the Lions played good complementary football Sunday in all three phases. Glenn was particularly good putting Detroit's defensive game plan together that limited the Cardinals' offense.
Offensively, coordinator Ben Johnson reached into the playbook a little bit at some opportune times.
Starting with the touchdown play on the lateral from Amon-Ra St. Brown to Gibbs for the second touchdown, to the 3rd & 12 run call to Gibbs that gained 14 yards in the second half, right down to the quarterback boot on 2nd & 7 with less than two minutes remaining that gained eight yards and sealed the game.
"It's been in since training camp," St. Brown said of the lateral play to Gibbs. "I don't know if you guys remember we ran it in training camp in a scrimmage against our defense and it worked then. It's been up ever since, but this week it was actually up in one of our special plays and he called it."
