The Detroit Lions are back in the friendly confines of Ford Field this afternoon as they welcome in Aaron Glenn and the New York Jets in an interconference showdown between 1-1 football teams in Week 3.

Here are five things to watch out for in today's matchup:

1. LIMITING EXPLOSIVES

Detroit's defense has struggled limiting explosive plays in both the run and pass games the first two weeks of the season.

Limiting explosives was a point of emphasis for Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard coming into the season and the 23 explosives his unit has allowed against New Orleans and Buffalo the first two weeks are too many.

Sheppard took the opportunity Monday to get all the defensive coaches and players in the same room, watch the film and discuss the issues.

"Let's turn on the tape, turn on all 23 and just go down the list. Let's bang away. Tell me what you're doing. Tell me what you're supposed to be doing," Sheppard said. "Coaches, don't say a word. Let's let them talk because right now guys, there's a gap. There's a clear gap from meetings and practice, what's taking place at 222 Republic and then gameday."

The result of that film study, according to Sheppard, was 75 percent of those explosives allowed were self-induced.

"That was a time for us to look at ourselves and see the mistakes we've made," veteran cornerback Roger McCreary said. "We didn't like the outcome, and we have to correct ourselves and that's exactly what happened.

"We looked at our mistakes, talked about as a group, we didn't go to separate position groups, we talked about it as a defense. Talked about what we were thinking in the moment so everyone can be on the same page, and I feel like everything was laid out there for everybody."

We'll get our first look today at how much that meeting Monday fixed some of the issues on defense.

2. OFFENSIVE LINE HEALTH

Detroit's still without center Cade Mays, who has at least two more games left on Reserve/Injured with a wrist injury before he's eligible to return, but starting right tackle Blake Miller and starting left guard Christian Mahogany are trending toward being back in the lineup today after missing last Thursday's game in Buffalo due to injuries.

That's big for Detroit's offense. Miller and Mahogany combined to allow just one pressure in the Lions' Week 1 win over New Orleans and helped plow the way for 165 yards on the ground. Detroit rushed for just 66 yards in Buffalo Week 2.

A particularly fun matchup to watch today will be between Miller and fellow rookie David Bailey. The Jets' outside linebacker was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. NextGen Stats graded Bailey with six quarterback pressures in New York's Week 1 win over Tennessee and five more vs. Green Bay in a Week 2 loss. He's just the second player in the NGS era to register five-plus pressures in each of his first two career games (Joey Bosa in 2016). His 24 percent pressure rate leads all players through their first two career games. Bailey is a little bit different rusher than Miller has faced in training camp and Week 1 because of his speed off the edge.

3. ST. BROWN'S HOT START

Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has been terrific to start the year as he leads the NFL with 19 receptions and is tied for the NFL lead with four touchdown receptions. Only Herman Moore (20 - 1996) caught more passes in the first two games of a season in Lions history.

St. Brown's 209 receiving yards rank fifth in the league entering Week 3 and he needs only 39 receiving yards today against the Jets to pass Johnnie Morton for third most in team history.

St. Brown and Detroit face a familiar foe on the opposite sideline in Glenn, who knows St. Brown and the Lions' offensive weapons all too well from his four seasons running Detroit's defense. The Jets come into today's matchup No. 1 in the NFL in total defense, No. 1 against the run and No. 2 against the pass.

The Jets have done a good job through their first two contests limiting opposing wide receivers. Green Bay's top pass catcher last week against the Jets was Matthew Golden with four catches for 58 yards. The week before that, it was Wan'Dale Robinson for Tennessee with five receptions for 38 yards.

4. THIRD DOWN

New York comes to town with the No. 2 ranked third-down defense in the league, holding their first two opponents to just a 23.8 percent conversion rate on third down. Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing talked this week about the importance of keeping themselves in third and manageable situations against this defense.

"I think staying in third and manageable is a huge part of this game," Petzing said. "When you're in known pass in the NFL with the way that d-lines can rush and the way that coordinators can scheme things, I think you make the game very hard on yourself."

Detroit's offense comes into today's matchup ranked 18th in third-down at 37.5 percent.

Defensively, getting off the field on third down has been a problem for the Lions so far this season. They've allowed opponents to convert 58.6 percent of their third downs, which ranks 30th. New York's offense ranks 25th on third down at 32.3 percent.

5. RUN GAME

It's been a little bit of an uneven start to the year for running back Jahmyr Gibbs and the Lions' rushing attack. After rushing for 154 yards with a 5.4-yard average per rush and two touchdowns in the win Week 1 vs. New Orleans, Gibbs was limited to just 52 yards on the ground on 16 attempts (3.3 avg.) with no rushing touchdowns in the loss at Buffalo Week 2.

"I felt like we ran the ball really well in the first game. Efficiently it wasn't there in the second game in my opinion," Petzing said this week. "So, the consistency of that is always going to be something we strive for."

This has been a stingy Jets defense against the run to start the year as they come in allowing on average just 65.5 rushing yards, which is best in the NFL.

The Lions are at their best offensively when they can establish Gibbs and the run game and let their play-action pass game develop off it.