Lions vs. Panthers: Breaking Down Detroit's Game Plan

A pair of Week 1 winners square off in Charlotte as the Detroit Lions visit the Carolina Panthers. The Lions clawed the New York Giants, 35-14, in Detroit, while the Panthers scored a 20-14 divisional road win in Tampa Bay. 

The Lions have their work cut out for them with the Panthers. The defending NFC South champs have a strong defensive front to balance a dangerous offense spearheaded by Cam Newton. 

As each team has played just one game so far, and the Panthers did so with backup quarterback Derek Anderson at the helm, we'll turn to last year's numbers to help analyze this week's matchup.

	Yards per rush	Def. yards per rush	QB Rating	QB Rating allowed	Turnover margin
Lions	4.0	4.2	84.2	85.0	-12
Panthers	4.2	3.9	88.5	81.4	+11

If Detroit is to nab the road win, they must attack Carolina's vulnerabilities while playing smart football. Here are three ways the Lions can find success in the cat fight. 

Play Some Donkey Kong

Newton provided some strange bulletin board fodder earlier this week by referring to Ndamukong Suh as "Donkey Kong" in his weekly press conference. 

Hopefully the Lions bring a sack of quarters with them to Bank of America stadium to keep Suh powered up. Even though it's illegal to deploy a flaming barrel to throw at Newton like in the classic video game, Suh can still drop the hammer on Newton.

Carolina's starting quarterback missed last week with a rib injury. You can bet that puts a target on his midsection, one which Suh and his fellow linemates will doggedly pursue. Newton's derisive words fired up the unit:

"

CJ Mosley asked if nickname "Donkey Kong" is a sign of lack of respect: "That's not a nickname, a nickname is cool. That's just terrible"

— Denny Kapp (@DennyKapp) September 11, 2014"

The key is for the Lions to finish the plays where they get a good pass rush. Newton is often lethal when he escapes pressure, and the Detroit defensive line must prevent him from breaking out and exploiting a vulnerable secondary. 

The Panthers often scheme plays where Newton gets outside the edge and has the option to run or pass. They even left it in the playbook last week for Anderson, a veteran not noted for his spryness. 

NFL Game Rewind

Carolina sets up in trips formation left, with only tight end Greg Olsen tightly flanking on the right side. The offset running back is also to the left, which serves to hold the linebacker to the overloaded side. 

Olsen takes one step forward off the snap before breaking sharply across the middle on a shallow drag. The corner drags with him (hence the route name), while the middle linebacker drops back to help in coverage to assist against the triplet receivers.

NFL Game Rewind

A good edge block by right tackle Nate Chandler creates a massive hole around the end. Anderson sees the wide open greenery in front of him and takes off. There is not a defender within 20 yards of him once he passes the left defensive end. 

Now picture Newton running that play instead of Anderson. It's like those hacked versions of PacMan where the ghosts are at normal speed by PacMan darts around the screen on double time. 

It's imperative for the ends, Jason Jones and Ezekiel Ansah, to establish and hold the edges. Just as important, the defensive line must keep Newton from escaping containment and buying extra time. Detroit's undermanned secondary cannot be expected to stick in coverage for that long.  

Exploit Matchups with Megatron

The Lions have the best offensive weapon in the NFL today in Calvin Johnson. He was his typical awesome self against the Giants, hauling in two touchdowns among his seven receptions and 164 yards. 

One of Megatron's best qualities is his versatility. The Lions can line him up at any receiver spot in order to create, and often dictate, matchup advantages. 

Bleacher Report's Matt Bowen highlights one such way in his excellent breakdown. He extrapolates on how Johnson can operate from the slot and free up other options. 

Where the Lions can really strike gold is by moving Megatron around. Bowen puts him as the H (slot), but in the opener Johnson lined up as both the X and Z. 

Because the Panthers will surely dedicate extra coverage to Johnson, Golden Tate and the tight ends figure to have a numbers of opportunities.

Carolina is expected to mix coverages to try and keep the Lions guessing. As corner Melvin White told Joseph Person of The Charlotte Observer this week, "You’ve got to mix it up with him. You just can’t go with one (technique) and try to do that the whole game. You’ve got to give him different looks to look at, to worry about."

Quarterback Matthew Stafford needs to make the correct reads and exploit the varying coverages. If Johnson gets isolated in single-man coverage, Stafford must feed him the ball. But when the Panthers both bracket Megatron and focus safety help in his direction, the Lions quarterback must make them pay with Tate, Eric Ebron or one of his other upgraded weapons. 

Tate and Reggie Bush could have big games if Johnson is occupied. Here's what they did against the Giants:

	Catches	Targets	Yards	Long
Tate	6	6	93	44
Bush	6	6	49	24

Positive Big-Play Ratio

Games are often decided by big plays, and this one could very well come down to which team makes the most of those game-changing moments. 

Turnovers are the biggest key, but they are not the only big plays that could determine the outcome. Neither team gave the ball away in Week 1, and the Panthers forced three takeaways while Detroit netted two. 

Taking advantage of defensive mistakes is going to be key for Detroit. While it's unlikely Johnson will ever be as open as he was on his first touchdown last week...

...the Panthers defense did show some vulnerability to being overaggressive. Here's a play on which Tampa Bay made them pay. 

The Buccaneers are backed up in the shadow of their own goalposts, and the Panthers smell blood. They're gunning for the big play, but instead surrender one. 

The man running 54 yards there is 258-pound fullback Jorvorskie Lane. Imagine Joique Bell or Reggie Bush spurting through that kind of hole. Bush might still be running with that much room. 

Of course, picking off Newton and getting a big return would be monumental. Newton doesn't have much experience with his completely overhauled receiver corps, and it's shown in practice. Jonathan Jones of The Charlotte Observer noted:

"

His timing on the field Wednesday was off, too. In the portion of practice open to the media, Newton couldn’t connect with three receivers in the span of four throws on out routes.

First he threw high and wide to rookie Kelvin Benjamin. Then he was quick and short to Jerricho Cotchery. After a completion to Brenton Bersin, Newton missed long to Jason Avant.

"

As mentioned earlier, Detroit's secondary has some injury issues. Newton will be tempted to challenge it, and the Lions must capitalize and notch some takeaways. They need to use the lack of chemistry between and his receivers against him.