The Detroit Lions have talked about finding new ways to use interior defender Alim McNeill, especially after adding beef to the rotation in Isaiah Buggs and Benito Jones.
McNeill saw an increase in snaps during Detroit’s 28-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 3. The second-year defender played a career-high 58 snaps and 81% of the defensive reps. The only defensive lineman with more snaps against the Vikings was edge rusher Charles Harris.
Aidan Hutchinson’s snaps dipped while dealing with his thigh/quad injury, with the prized rookie still seeing 79% of the defensive work. Harris led the group, coming off the field for only six plays in Minneapolis. McNeill, Hutchinson and Michael Brockers each hit Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins. There were no sacks. Harris added two quarterback hits, including one tackle for loss. Jones played 13 snaps while Buggs handled much of the work inside with McNeill moving around. Buggs missed one tackle while grading poorly, much like Jones, in Week 3.
Related: Inside the locker room: How the Vikings adjusted with Lions stifling WR Justin Jefferson
Related: Lions blame ‘miscommunication’ for busted coverage on Vikings’ game-winning TD
PFF has McNeill ranked fourth in the pass-rushing department among all interior defenders in Week 3. He’s credited with creating four pressures, including one quarterback hit. McNeill is the team’s second-highest graded defender for the week, with linebacker Chris Board delivering another strong game at the back of the rotation.
Amani Oruwariye and Mike Hughes were the two-worst graded defenders in the loss. Oruwariye was flagged six times. Hughes was involved in the late-game miscommunication with safety JuJu Hughes. Hutchinson and rookie linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez also joined the bottom five graded defenders, with brutal grades against the run.
See below for the full rundown of the snap counts after more observations from those and the Week 2 grades from Pro Football Focus:
-- Jeff Okudah is shining through as one of the bright spots after the Detroit Lions’ 28-24 last-minute loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The third-year cornerback handled the tough task of star Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson impressively. Pro Football Focus had Okudah allowing Jefferson with two grabs for 9 yards, allowing a 56.3 passer rating when targeted. Jefferson entered with 15 receptions for 232 yards and two touchdowns, not to mention 30 catches for 439 yards and one score through his last three games against the Lions. Okudah also played every defensive snap for the second time in his young career. The cornerback had left in Detroit’s first two games due to cramping, so it’s a welcome sight to see that issue taken care of, especially when on the road for the first time in 2022. His ho-hum overall defensive (58.0) and coverage grade (61.3) is much lower than expected from Week 3.
-- Evan Brown started at right guard, with Frank Ragnowb back at center. That bumped Logan Stenberg out of the starting lineup after two tough showings in pass protection, giving the Lions what they feel is their “best five” of the bodies available. Dan Skipper got another start at left guard. The Lions averaged 4 yards per carry and didn’t allow a sack, while Jared Goff ate only two hits. But Skipper and Brown each allowed three pressures while grading poorly in pass protection. Skipper ranked among the 10 worst guards in pass blocking. While Brown was second-worst while still graded with the centers in that department. Left tackle Taylor Decker and center Frank Ragnow were solid, not spectacular in pass protection. Right tackle Penei Sewell was the team’s top-graded offensive lineman.
-- Jamaal Williams saw his touches and snaps increase with D’Andre Swift dealing with an ankle injury and a shoulder sprain. Williams ran 20 times for 87 yards and two touchdowns while leading the room with 35 reps. Swift had seven carries for 31 yards while playing 32 offensive plays. PFF ranks Williams first among all running backs for his work. He added 55 of his rushing yards after contact, forcing three missed tackles.
-- Jared Goff slots in the middle of the pack among Week 3 quarterbacks, per the analytics site. He was docked for two turnover-worthy throws and a ho-hum NFL passer rating of 79.0. Goff completed 25 of 41 passes for 277 yards with one touchdown and one interception on a desperation heave. He averaged 5.6 completed air yards per throw and 9.5 intended air yards per attempt.
OFFENSE
QB Jared Goff -- 78 (100%)
T Taylor Decker -- 78 (100%)
T Penei Sewell -- 78 (100%)
C Frank Ragnow -- 78 (100%)
OL Dan Skipper -- 78 (100%)
OL Evan Brown -- 78 (100%)
WR DJ Chark - 62 (79%)
WR Josh Reynolds -- 62 (79%)
TE T.J. Hockenson -- 59 (76%)
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown -- 57 (73%)
RB Jamaal Williams -- 35 (45%)
RB D’Andre Swift -- 32 (41%)
TE Brock Wright --30 (38%)
OL Matt Nelson -- 14 (18%)
RB Craig Reynolds -- 13 (17%)
WR Kalif Raymond -- 13 (17%)
WR Quintez Cephus -- 10 (13%)
TE Shane Zylstra -- 3 (4%)
DEFENSE
S DeShon Elliott -- 72 (100%)
CB Jeff Okudah -- 72 (100%)
LB Alex Anzalone -- 71 (99%)
CB Amani Oruwariye -- 71 (99%)
DE Charles Harris -- 66 (92%)
S JuJu Hughes -- 63 (88%)
DL Alim McNeill -- 58 (81%)
DE Aidan Hutchinson -- 57 (79%)
LB Malcolm Rodriguez -- 55 (76%)
CB Mike Hughes -- 44 (61%)
DL Isaiah Buggs -- 38 (53%)
LB Chris Board -- 23 (32%)
CB Will Harris -- 20 (28%)
DE Julian Okwara -- 20 (28%)
DE Austin Bryant -- 19 (26%)
DL Michael Brockers -- 19 (26%)
DL Benito Jones -- 13 (18%)
S Tracy Walker -- 8 (11%)
LB Anthony Pittman -- 2 (3%)
SPECIAL TEAMS
Anthony Pittman -- 22 (79%)
Bobby Price -- 22 (79%)
Chris Board -- 22 (79%)
Will Harris -- 17 (61%)
Josh Woods -- 16 (57%)
Justin Jackson -- 16 (57%)
Kerby Joseph -- 14 (50%)
Derrick Barnes -- 13 (46%)
JuJu Hughes -- 13 (46%)
K Austin Seibert -- 11 (39%)
Shane Zylstra -- 11 (39%)
Quintez Cephus -- 11 (39%)
Brock Wright -- 11 (39%)
Mike Hughes -- 10 (36%)
P Jack Fox -- 9 (32%)
LS Scott Daly -- 9 (32%)
Craig Reynolds -- 8 (29%)
Matt Nelson -- 6 (21%)
Kayode Awosika -- 6 (21%)
Logan Stenberg -- 6 (21%)
Aidan Hutchinson -- 6 (21%)
Benito Jones -- 6 (21%)
Charles Harris -- 6 (21%)
Alex Anzalone -- 6 (21%)
Penei Sewell -- 6 (21%)
Evan Brown -- 6 (21%)
Dan Skipper -- 6 (21%)
Malcolm Rodriguez -- 3 (11%)
Kalif Raymond -- 3 (11%)
Austin Bryant -- 2 (21%)
Tracy Walker -- 1 (4%)
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