Lions Defense Turns Heads With Surprising Performance in Week 7 Win Over Packers
For most of Dan Campbell’s tenure, the Detroit Lions have had an offense good enough to win a Super Bowl and a defense that held them back.
That narrative may finally be changing.
After a 20-17 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday at Ford Field, the Lions’ defense earned an unexpected designation from NFL.com. One of the site’s biggest takeaways from Week 7 was that Detroit’s defense “suddenly isn’t terrible.”
It’s high praise considering where this unit was just a few weeks ago. Detroit entered the Packers game with the league’s worst pass defense.
Against Green Bay, they weren’t perfect — Jordan Love threw for 274 yards and 2 touchdowns — but they made key stops when it mattered. The Lions forced a field goal on the Packers’ opening drive, turned them over on downs in the red zone, forced two three-and-outs, and got a stop immediately after Dan Campbell’s aggressive decision to go for it from his own 24-yard line.
The return of safety Brian Branch was huge. In his first game back, Branch played 43 snaps (66.2%) and came down with a crucial fourth-quarter interception.
“We were good in the red zone. I was proud of those guys,” Campbell said after the game, noting that his defense had chances for three other interceptions and that Aidan Hutchinson’s early sack set the tone.
After back-to-back strong performances against Arizona and Green Bay, the Lions’ defense is gaining confidence at the right time, with a Week 8 showdown against the undefeated Minnesota Vikings looming.
