The Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals faced off Thursday night in a rainy showdown, with Detroit falling 16-14 after being unable to make one last-ditch effort at a comeback.
Overall, I liked how the game went for Detroit. There were certainly some mistakes, but I believe the positives outweighed the negatives. Cincinnati rolled out its starters for the entire first quarter, and Detroit’s backups held their own, which gives me some positive reinforcement about Kelvin Sheppard entering his second year as the Lions’ defensive coordinator.
We know the end result, but what about the stats and Pro Football Focus grades? I’ve got the offense covered in this analytical rundown.
Offense
Luke Altmyer
Altmyer went 13-of-22 with one touchdown and two interceptions. I really only fault Altmyer for one of the interceptions, as the other came on a pass to Isaac Teslaa that bounced off his facemask and resulted in a Cincinnati pick.
Altmyer was responsible for the Lions’ only touchdown, which came late in the fourth quarter. The thing that impressed me most about Altmyer was that he didn’t seem flustered or out of place. He looked very composed, worked through his progressions, looked off his first option and showed the ability to progress through his reads.
Altmyer finished with a 64.5 PFF grade.
Running Backs
With Isaiah Pacheco dealing with a sprained MCL and Sione Vaki out with a broken nose, Jacob Saylors, Kyle Robichaux and Raheem Blackshear handled the workload.
As a group, the trio finished with 21 carries for 119 yards, averaging 5.66 yards per carry.
Saylors was the first back to play, carrying the ball eight times for 55 yards. He also had the longest run of the game, a 27-yard burst. Saylors was active in the passing game as well, catching three of five targets for 28 yards.
Saylors finished with the highest offensive grade on the team at 87.1.
Blackshear, the newest member of the Lions’ running back room, had five carries for 33 yards, including a 24-yard run. He finished with a 52.9 PFF grade.
Robichaux also had eight carries but finished with just 31 yards, with a long of 23 yards. He finished with a 64.6 PFF grade.
Wide Receivers
Dominic Lovett dominated the target share, seeing a team-high eight targets. However, he brought in only three of them for 28 yards. Lovett finished with a 64.4 PFF grade and played 32 snaps.
Cedrick Wilson played just 15 snaps and recorded one catch for 23 yards on his only target.
Isaac Teslaa was perhaps the most surprising player of the group. He had two drops, including one that resulted in an interception and another that could have converted a fourth-down attempt into a first down. Teslaa saw three targets and played just 17 snaps. He finished with the third-worst PFF grade on offense at 42.0.
Tarik Black caught one of two targets, recording the lone touchdown for the Lions.
Greg Dortch appeared briefly, earning one target while playing just seven snaps.
Offensive Line
Blake Miller was the star of the show on the offensive line, holding his own while playing 39 snaps. He logged 24 pass-blocking snaps and 15 run-blocking snaps, finishing with a 66.5 PFF grade.
Unfortunately, the exact opposite can be said for Miles Frazier. Frazier played the entire game, logging 66 snaps, but was called for two holding penalties and finished with the team’s lowest offensive PFF grade at 37.7.
Christian Mahogany logged 39 snaps and earned a 55.8 grade.
Undrafted rookie Melvin Priestley played 27 snaps and finished with the best grade among all Lions offensive linemen at 66.9.
With Cade Mays expected to miss 8-10 weeks with a wrist injury, all eyes will be on Seth McLaughlin and Michael Niese as they compete with Juice Scruggs for the interim center position.
McLaughlin played 39 snaps compared to Niese’s 27. Niese had two bad snaps that resulted in fumbles and finished with the second-worst offensive grade at 38.6. McLaughlin, meanwhile, finished with a 62.1 grade.
Larry Borom was also active and played 39 snaps, but not at right tackle, where he is competing with Miller. Borom was slotted in at left tackle and finished with a 43.3 grade.