Lions head coach Dan Campbell spoke to the media Monday a day after Detroit fell 29-24 to the Pittsburgh Steelers at home. Now the Lions head to Minnesota to play the Vikings on a short week on Christmas Thursday.
Here are all the key questions from Monday's press conference:
What do the Lions have to do differently this time around against the Vikings?
Detroit lost their first matchup against the Vikings, 27-24, Week 9 at Ford Field. It started a 3-5 stretch.
"We had some penalties that killed us. A lot of MAs (missed assignments). We turned the ball over. Had a blocked field goal. There were a number of things we did in that game that were self-induced," Campbell said.
He said this time around they must be more disciplined, especially on the road in a loud environment like U.S. Bank Stadium. The things the Lions can control, they need to do a better job controlling this time around.
"Everything you can do wrong in all three phases we did them and then some," Campbell said of that first meeting. "That was probably collectively our worst game we've played on the season. Everybody had a hand in that."
What is the latest on St. Brown's knee injury?
Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown caught four passes for 54 yards against the Steelers and did not leave the game due to injury, but he showed up on Monday's estimated practice report (the Lions conducted a walkthrough) with a knee injury as a non-participant.
Campbell said he'd know more about the severity of the injury later Monday night and into Tuesday as it was something that popped up when St. Brown came into the Meijer Performance Center to start preparation for the Vikings on Monday. The hope is it's a minor irritation from the game, but Campbell will have a better idea on Tuesday.
Why has the run game on both sides of the ball been so lopsided in favor of the opponent the last two weeks?
For a second straight week, the Lions lost the battle at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the football. Week 15 in a loss to the Rams, the Lions lost the rushing battle 159 to 70. Sunday against Pittsburgh, the Steelers had a commanding 230 to 15 advantage on the ground.
Campbell said there were a couple runs from a scheme perspective he wants back as they didn't give their running back much of a chance. A couple unblocked defenders Sunday ended up wrecking some runs. There were also some missed assignments and bad run fits.
Campbell talked about wanting to limit some exposure on the outside in the passing game leading up to the Steelers matchup and doing that left them with some lighter boxes that Pittsburgh's offense took advantage of.
Campbell said it's vital these last two weeks to recapture their identity and edge in the run game and get back to being a physically imposing team upfront.
What has been the biggest issue with the front seven on defense in particular the last five games?
Detroit's 2-3 over their last five games and have allowed on average 458.6 total yards of offense per game with 145.4 of those coming on the ground.
Playing good defense in this league usually comes down to teams finding a way to marry their rush and coverage and Campbell said Detroit hasn't done a good job of that over the last five weeks.
Campbell pointed to some missed tackles and missed run fits and not being on the same page with support players in the run game. He admitted the way they've played defense the last five weeks is not sustainable moving forward but hopes some of their young players are growing from the recent rut.
What did Campbell think of the play of center Kingsley Eguakun?
Eguakun made his first career start for the injured Graham Glasgow (knee) and Campbell liked the tape after reviewing it Monday. Eguakun did not give up any sacks or quarterback hits and was credited with allowing just one total pressure all game.
"I thought it was really encouraging. I really did," Campbell said. "For his first game, I thought he competed. I thought he fought. I thought he played fast. It was very encouraging."
