Paul’s Pivotal Plays: Commanders at Lions
September 21, 2022
By Paul Francis
Welcome to the Week 2 installment of Paul’s Pivotal Plays, where I select a single critical play from each quarter of the game and overanalyze it, while also providing some team commentary.
Overall, this game was a tale-of-two-halves. The Commanders dug themselves into a hole the first half by playing awful football in all three phases, but then played much better after halftime. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late. The Lions deserved to win this one. Given how well Detroit played the Eagles the week before, I don’t think this is the same kind of pushover Lions team we are used to (although against Washington, no one can be called a “pushover”). But for the Commanders, it was a choppy and inconsistent game. They had a hard time finding momentum, and then sustaining it once they did. That is reflected in this week’s selection of pivotal plays.
1st Quarter – Commanders ball. 2nd and 8 at the Washington 4. 3:21.
Washington is down 3-0 and backed up against their own end zone. With the Commanders showing a 4-receiver set and a running back in the backfield, the Lions drop 7 men into coverage and rush only 4. Lions defensive lineman Charles Harris comes around Carson Wentz’s blindside, chopping his arm. The ball tumbles out the back of the end zone for a strip-sack safety.
This one is hard to explain. Charles Leno typically does a good job holding his own in pass-protection, but here he just gets beat. I don’t think Carson Wentz held the ball too long, given that Harris gets home in barely three seconds and Wentz’s arm is already in motion. Despite being down early and looking shaky, Washington had just turned the momentum with a 4th and goal stand to get the ball back. That momentum was short lived after this play. Down 5-0, the Commanders short kick the ball back to the Lions, who return it 59 yards, setting up a quick touchdown to boost the lead to 12-0 within a minute.
The failure of the offensive line to deal with a simple 4-man rush was indicative of the line’s poor play throughout the half. Wentz looked harassed and uncomfortable in the pocket, and the running game was non-existent. After getting worked over last week by Travon Walker, the offensive line was getting bested by another rookie Aiden Hutchinson before he got hobbled. Wentz has shown the ability to deliver in the passing game when he has time, so the offensive line is going to come under more scrutiny as teams will focus on coming after him. This will be a unit to watch going forward.
2nd Quarter – Lions ball. 3rd and 4 at the Detroit 24. 2:56.
With the Lions up 22-0 and firmly in control of the game, the Commanders are desperate for a spark. Jared Goff drops back and throws an ill-advised short pass to heavily-covered D.J. Chark right at the first down line. With three Commanders in the area, slot-corner Benjamin St-Juste makes a nice break on the ball but simply cannot make the catch and misses the interception.
While the pass breakup halts the Lions drive and forces a punt, this play was pivotal for what almost happened. Had St-Juste made the interception, he could have had a pick-6. At the very least the Commanders would have the ball deep in Lions territory with almost 3 minutes and three timeouts. Instead, the Lions punt puts the Commanders back at their own 20-yard line. The Commanders do nothing with the possession and go into halftime down 22-0.
St-Juste missed a big opportunity for the team and himself. This was the closest thing the Commanders defense got to a turnover in a game where they (again) lost the turnover battle. Furthermore, St. Juste was one of the young players with glowing reports coming out of camp but has yet to show out with a big-play performance. With none of the Commanders cornerbacks playing particularly well at the moment, let’s hope that performance comes sooner rather than later.
3rd Quarter – Lions ball. 3rd and 15 at Commanders 22. 1:38.
At this point in the game, the Commanders have fought their way back into the game with the score 22-15. With the Lions facing third and long, the Commanders rush 6 and drop 5 deep into coverage to defend the 1st down marker, leaving wide open space in the middle of the field. Jamin Davis rushes untouched up the middle, forcing Goff into a desperation pass to D’Andre Swift in the flat. Montez Sweat tips the pass, but Swift makes a good adjustment to catch the fluttering ball, losing his footing in the process. Laying on the turf in the no-man’s land between the deep coverage and the pass-rushers, Swift has time to get up, dust himself off and then zig-zag past 4 flailing defenders on his way to the endzone.
This one is hard to watch. The Commanders defense was about to execute this play perfectly…until they didn’t. Instead of holding the Lions to a field goal attempt, they give up a wonky touchdown gifting extra momentum back to the Lions after having scored 15 unanswered points. Credit D’Andre Swift for making a great play, but these were the kinds of defensive gaffes that haunted the Commanders all day. Just when it seemed like they were standing tall, they got gashed.
The final stats reveal that 227 of the 425 yards of offense produced by the Lions came on 6 plays. In his post-game press conference, Ron Rivera specifically lamented the “chunk plays” surrendered on defense and this was a big one. For all the work that the Commanders have supposedly done trying to clean up schematic and communication breakdowns, plays like this (and games like this) indicate that there’s still a lot of work to do.
4th Quarter – Lions ball. 3rd and 2 at the Commanders 36. 7:51.
The Commanders are hanging tough, down by only 1 score with a chance to get the Lions offense off the field and enough time to work on another comeback. The Lions spread 5-wide with Goff in the shotgun. I guess the Commanders were not expecting this formation since they have subbed in David Mayo, who typically enters in run-support packages. Goff has been watching his film, because once the ball gets snapped, he knows exactly what to do. Picking out tight end Brock Wright, Goff lofts an easy completion over David Mayo’s head. Wright proceeds to not only get the first down but carry three defenders with him to the Commanders 11-yard line. On the very next play, the Lions score another touchdown to go up by 15.
On the day, the Lions were only 4 of 13 on third down conversions, but the ones they converted, such as this one, were critical. If the defense holds, they can force a 50-ish yard field goal and get the ball with a good chunk of the 4th quarter remaining. It’s not just that the Commanders got beat here on third down, but how it happened that really stings – a slow-footed linebacker losing coverage over the middle. Clearly the Commanders got caught in the wrong defense on the wrong play and paid for it.
This play highlights some of the coaching, schematic and personnel problems that have dogged the linebacking corps over the past couple seasons. Why was David Mayo out there? Why didn’t a coach notice David Mayo lining up in coverage and call a timeout to get the right group in? Why can’t we sign some linebacking depth who can cover a tight end? It’s not like the Commanders aren’t aware of this recurring gap in their defense; they just haven’t adequately addressed it, leaving lots of questions with few answers.
In Closing…
This is the kind of game that I walk away from feeling like the Commanders coulda-shoulda-woulda, if they had not gotten off to such a slow start. A loss to a beatable team never feels good, but there were silver linings particularly in the way the Commanders fought back with offensive production in the second half. Still, too many pivotal plays (or lack thereof for the Commanders) like the ones highlighted here cost the team dearly. Fingers-crossed that critical lessons can be learned in preparation for our first divisional game of the season against the Eagles. Onward.
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