4 Signs of Progress Needed from the Lions in 2020 – Sports Illustrated

The Lions need to make a ton of progress in 2020 in order to make a significant improvement in the win-loss column from 2019.

It goes without mentioning that last season was not a good one for the organization.

Detroit, in its second year with Matt Patricia as its head coach, experienced a hugely dismal 3-12-1 campaign that resulted in a last-place finish in the NFC North.

Subsequently, the ship in Motown needs to be turned around quickly in order for Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn to survive past this upcoming season.

If they are to return in 2021, here are four signs of progress that need to be on display this fall:

1.) Cut down on the penalties

Patricia & Co. were called for seven or more penalties each week from Weeks 1-8 of the 2019 campaign.

His team also committed at least five penalties on a weekly basis from Weeks 9-13.

The Lions' Week 14 tilt with the NFC North divisional rival Vikings ended up being the first contest of the year in which four or less penalties were committed by the franchise.

The feat was accomplished again the following week against the Buccaneers (two penalties) and in Week 17 against the Packers (four penalties).

A total of 113 penalties and 900-plus yards of negative yardage (937) was racked up by the organization a year ago.

In a year of many shortcomings, this was a major one.

Patricia needs to get his team to cut down on the penalties and to play more disciplined football in 2020.

2.) Players staying healthy

No doubt, this was an issue last year.

The first guy whose health comes to mind is that of franchise passer Matthew Stafford's.

He played in only eight games in 2019, suffering a back injury in Week 9 against the Oakland Raiders.

Once he went down, the Lions went intoa tailspin. In fact, they lost their remaining eight games.

Stafford, who's entering his 12th year in the NFL, needs to stay healthy for the entirety of the upcoming season in order for the Lions to even have a shot at qualifying for the playoffs.

It'd also be nice to see the franchise's incumbent No. 1 running back Kerryon Johnson stay healthy for a full season for the first time in his career.

Johnson, who's entering his third year as a pro, played in just eight games a year ago, and suited up for only 10 as a rookie in 2018.

The health of both Stafford and Johnson is an integral element to the Lions being a competitive team on a week-to-week basis in 2020.

3.) Develop and sustain an effective ground game

This will be a paramount ingredient to the Lions having a more balanced attack in offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell's second year of calling plays for the franchise.

With Johnson as the lead back last season, Detroit rushed for a total of 1,649 yards and seven touchdowns -- good for 21st and 29th in the league, respectively.

D'Andre Swift has since been added to the backfield, via the 2020 NFL Draft. Quinn & Co. took him in the second round (No. 35 overall) out of Georgia.

His presence should allow Johnson's legs to maintain freshness as the season progresses, and hopefully, will lead to Johnson remaining healthy for the entire '20 campaign.

If so, Johnson and Swift have a legitimate shot at forming a very impactful 1-2 punch at running back -- and for many years to come.

4.) Give up less points in the fourth quarter

Here's another must for the franchise, as it gets ready to head into a new campaign and new decade.

Patricia's "bend-but-don't-break" defensive philosophy was far from effective a season ago.

His defense allowed the 26th-most points per game at 26.4. And a good amount of those points scored by opponents came in the fourth quarter.

In fact, the Lions allowed a total of 17 touchdowns in the fourth quarter -- the most TDs surrendered by the organization in a single quarter in 2019.

On top of that, the defense was hugely ineffective when Detroit was leading with less than 2:30 to go in regulation. In those late-game situations, it allowed the opposition to score four touchdowns.

Most notably, it permitted Kansas City to score with 23 seconds to play in Week 4, which gave Patrick Mahomes and the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs the 34-30 victory.

It was a microcosm of the defense's struggles the entire season.

And subsequently, the onus is now on Patricia to ensure that those fourth-quarter woes don't flare uponceagain in 2020.

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4 Signs of Progress Needed from the Lions in 2020 - Sports Illustrated