Detroit’s first win over the Packers was a catalyst for major stat changes

In Week 9, the Detroit Lions were facing the Green Bay Packers again for the first time. They were 1-6 and had the worst record in all of league. This is how it ended. collapse against the Miami Dolphins It was not easy to look for positive things when facing the Packers in Ford Field.

The Lions rose up, and won. That first Packers game was the catalyst for Detroit’s epic turnaround from the poor start to the season. Detroit won 15-9This kicks off a run of 8-8 and could lead to a winning season in the Week 18 match.

These Lions are a completely different team to the one that won in Week 9. Of course, the Packers are too; the first matchup dropped their record to 3-6 and they’ve risen to 8-8 as well. That’s why Sunday night’s matchup figures to be a big challenge for Dan Campbell’s resurgent team.

Here are some important measurements for the Lions before and after their first Packers match.

Scoring defense

The season-long scoring defense total isn’t very impressive for the Lions. Detroit is 29th in terms of allowed points per game at 25.7 However, the Packers game was a clear demarcation point.

The Lions gave up an average of 32.1 point per game in their first seven games. Detroit didn’t give up less than 24 in any game.

They held the Packers to nine points, which is the lowest total allowed by the Lions. The Lions have averaged just 20.7 points per contest in the nine games since their 1-6 season. This figure would rank the Lions at 10th place in a full season, tied with the Broncos.

Sacks

The pass rush is a key reason that the scoring defense has improved. The pass rush was a key reason Detroit accumulated 12 sacks over the seven first games. The sack production was boosted by the addition of James Houston, a dynamic rookie, and Josh Paschal, a healthy lineman.

In their last nine games, the Lions have had 25 sacks. As with the scoring defense soaring up the charts from the bottom, Detroit’s sack production starting in Week 9 would rank in the top 10 if the average played out over the full season. The average of 2.8 sacks per week in the nine last games would rank seventh, tied with the New York Jets.

Turnover

Here’s one where the Lions offense and defense have worked in tandem to get a lot better.

Detroit’s turnover rate was -5 following the Dolphins’ Week 8 defeat. Only the Colts had worse ratios at that point. The Lions had 11 offensive giveaways, and six takeaways on defense during the first seven matches.

Both units have made tremendous progress.

The Lions’ turnover margin is +11 over the last nine games. Detroit’s offense has just four giveaways in those nine games, the lowest total in the league. The 14 takeaways on defense are the result of a surge in defense since Week 8. This surge was triggered by three takeaways against Green Bay.

Story originally appeared on Lions Wire

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