The Detroit Lions have become unstoppable in the NFC this season, once again marching toward the playoffs. But this time with an improved 7-1 record. Even the mighty Packers didn’t stand a chance against them last Sunday. However, for teams about to face the Jared Goff-led squad, Tom Brady has some pointers — pointers that helped his Patriots defeat one of their biggest rivals, the Colts.
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During his appearance on ‘The Herd with Colin Cowherd’ on Wednesday, Brady made a couple of very notable observations about the NFC North team. While doing so, he also recalled the Patriots defense taking on the Colts offense, a roster that was filled to the brim with talents.
“Those early Colts offenses we faced. They had [Jeff] Saturday, they had Tarik Glenn. They had [Marcus] Pollard, they had at times Dallas Clark. They had Marvin [Harrison], they had Reggie [Wayne], they had [Brandon] Stokley, they had Edgerrin [James].”
That’s about as good as an offense can get. And surely, the Lions can relate. However, if the Colts can fall, so can the Lions.
After discussing the jam-packed Colts roster from the 2000s, TB12 explained what the Patriots did to slow down the Peyton Manning-led offense. Of course, with Bill Belichick leading the way.
“Belichick would say, ‘Guys, listen. They are gonna move the ball on us. They’re too good. They’ve got so many guys, they’re gonna go up and down. We need to play good red area defense. And we’re gonna work on red area defense on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday because that’s gonna decide the game.'”
‘Practice makes perfect’ must have been the Patriots’ motto back then, as it showed results, we all know. Along the same lines, Brady argued that practicing red-zone defense plays to slow down the Lions would be key. The help of the offense is mandatory as well, he added, noting that they will have to show up every time the ball is turned over.
The offense will need to be steady, not rushed. They must maintain possession of the ball, even if it results in a low-scoring, low-touchdown game.
“So, when you play the Lions, the only way to beat them, is to play a style where the offense complements the defense and then the kicking game does their job. Sometimes when you punt, you play great field position. Offensively, the best defense against the Lions to me is possess the football. You don’t want to make it a track meet.”
The early returns on Brady as a live color commentator and analyst for Fox have been decidedly negative, but he seems to have hit the nail on the head here with this analysis. The Lions have been excellent in the red zone. In a recent win, they scored 52 points despite their QB putting up just 85 yards. They are tied for 4th in the NFL with 21 red zone TDs, and tied for 8th with a 63.6 success rate in the red area.
They’ve also been a dominant offense between the 20s. They’re gaining the 7th-most total yards per game, the 5th-most yards per play, and their five turnovers are tied for the 4th-fewest in the league.
The parallels between the key players for the 2004 Colts and the 2024 Lions offenses are uncanny as well:
- Veteran QBs in the MVP conversation (Goff and Manning)
- All-Pro running back who’s just as effective on the ground as he is through the air (Jahmyr Gibbs and James)
- Perennial All-Pro at center (Frank Ragnow and Saturday)
- Multi-time Pro Bowl tackle (Penei Sewell and Glenn)
- A pair of electric wideouts (Jameson Williams & Amon-Ra St. Brown and Marvin Harrison & Reggie Wayne)
- TD machine at tight end (Sam LaPorta and Pollard)
The Lions have +500 odds to win the Super Bowl and are currently riding a six-game winning streak — both marks only bested by the defending champions, the Kansas City Chiefs. To put the brakes on this MoTown freight train, opponents—starting with the Houston Texans in Week 10—should take a long, hard listen to what Tom Brady had to say.
