The Detroit Lions will look to rebound in Week 5 after a tough road loss to the Carolina Panthers in Week 4, when they will travel to State Farm Stadium to face the 1-3 Arizona Cardinals.
Detroit faces multiple key issues, but the most glaring is its inability to defend the pass. The unit surrendered 329 passing yards and two touchdowns to Panthers quarterback Bryce Young in their loss this past weekend, and also allowed wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan to go off for 14 receptions and 192 yards, along with both of Young’s touchdowns.
Along with failing to contain star receivers, the Lions’ defense has also struggled against tight ends. In a Week 3 victory, New York Jets rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq posted his first career 100-yard game and tallied seven catches and a touchdown. Detroit also let Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid haul in seven receptions for 95 yards and a score in a Week 2 loss.
It’s been a rough season for the Lions so far, and the road doesn’t get any easier this week with Trey McBride standing across the formation.
Lions Must Find a Way to Limit Trey McBride, and Dan Campbell Knows it
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
McBride has been one of the most productive tight ends in the NFL this year. The 26-year-old is third in the league in catches (33), 19th in receiving yards (242), and tied for 15th in receiving touchdowns (2). McBride is the engine of Arizona’s passing attack, and Lions head coach Dan Campbell knows the team has a serious challenge ahead in limiting the star playmaker.
While speaking on 97.1 The Ticket on Tuesday, Campbell said he wants to see a Detroit defender rise to the occasion and take on the challenge of covering McBride on Sunday and shutting him down.
“You know what I want? I want somebody to come in tomorrow and say, ‘I want McBride.’ That’s what I want. I want to know who that’s going to be on our defense,” Campbell said via Will Burchfield of 97.1 The Ticket.
It’s clear that Campbell is looking to light a fire in his flailing defense. The group has way too much talent to be the second-worst scoring defense in football, allowing 31.8 points per game.
Kelvin Sheppard’s defense has also given up the most passing yards per game (304.0), and it isn’t even close. The next closest is the Jacksonville Jaguars at 280.3 passing yards allowed per game.
If the Lions fail to shut down the Cardinals’ passing game, especially McBride, and continue playing at a subpar level, Campbell’s squad could be on upset alert in Week 5. The Lions need to find some type of solution in pass coverage before it is too late.
