What's Behind the Detroit Lions' 3rd-Down Struggles?

Among a host of issues with the Detroit Lions' underwhelming offense this season, one of the more glaring struggles is converting third downs.

After the thrilling 24-23 comeback win over New Orleans, the Lions rank a respectable 15th in the league in third-down conversion percentage, at 41.2 percent. The rather average number glosses over a dubious run that extended from the second quarter of the Week 4 game against the New York Jets to halftime of Sunday's victory.

Opponent	Conversions	Attempts	Percentage
Jets	4	13	30.1
Bills	1	11	9
Vikings	1	13	7.7
Saints	1	6	16
Total	7	43	16.3

That's a wretched 16 percent clip, a figure that would rank dead last extrapolated over the season. The Titans currently rank last in the league with a figure nearly double that, at 31.3 percent. 

Detroit's very first third-down opportunity against New Orleans highlighted the malaise. With 3rd-and-1, offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi opted for a stretch run off left tackle by Reggie Bush. 

The next two attempts belong on Peter Griffin's "What Grinds My Gears" segment on Family Guy.

On 3rd-and-6, the Lions run two receivers on deeper routes and two stick shorter. Matthew Stafford gets under some pressure and immediately checks down to Brandon Pettigrew. Even though the throw is inaccurate—primarily due to the pressure—look at where the target is. Now look at the yellow line needed for the conversion.

NFL Game Rewind

There is no chance the plodding Pettigrew is going to convert that route into a first down. None. It's a pointless throw, but half of Stafford's options on this particular play are pointless because they would fail to achieve the goal of the play. 

"

Bad throw by Stafford, poor catch effort by Bush, poor play call to run a 2-yard route on 3rd-&-4. Bad all around

— Jeff Risdon (@JeffRisdon) October 19, 2014"

The same thing happens far too frequently. Here's a failed attempt from the Minnesota game where three of the five receivers are not going to pick up the first down even if they catch the ball.

NFL Game Rewind

Stafford chooses to throw to the shallowest option, Joique Bell releasing out of the backfield. He has ample time in the pocket on this play but hurries a throw behind a target he shouldn't even be considering at that stage of the play. 

The blame falls on both Lombardi and Stafford in these situations. The play schematics need to give more options for success, but the quarterback must also be willing to choose those options instead of abandoning them for routes that require the receiver to make magic happen to pick up the first down. 

The unwillingness to take more aggressive options in the passing game isn't just a problem on third down. It's an issue plaguing the Lions offense on earlier downs, often creating longer yardage on those third attempts. 

In some cases Stafford isn't even looking.

"

Stafford is going to watch that last play and see Ross WIDE OPEN. Not seeing the field. #NOvsDET

— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) October 19, 2014"

Obviously the decline in offensive line play from last season weighs in. Stafford isn't getting as much time to survey deeper options. Yet there are times when the play call seems out of sorts with the goal.

This play from the Saints game is a good example. With one minute, 46 seconds left in the first half, the Lions have driven into New Orleans territory. A meandering Reggie Bush 4-yard loss and a sack leave Stafford facing 3rd-and-22 at the New Orleans 43.

The goal here is to get enough yards to attempt a field goal. I know, insert snicker here about Detroit's kicking ineptitude. Still, there's a real chance to pick up some points before halftime. Ideally the Lions need to pick up 10 yards. 

Instead, a rushed screen pass to Jeremy Ross loses a yard. It was an easy read for Curtis Lofton and the New Orleans defense. Just like that, a scoring chance goes by the wayside with poor situational football. 

This decline in yards per pass attempt shows on the stat sheet.

	Yards Per Attempt	Rank	Air Yards Per Attempt	Rank	Air Yards %	Rank
2014	6.9	16th	4.1	19th	54.6	22nd

Stafford has arguably the strongest arm in the league, yet he's not testing it nearly as often as he should be. While it has cut back on the interceptions and awkward forces, it's also allowed opposing defenses to shrink the field. That makes yards harder to come by on first and second down, which in turn produces more difficult third-down attempts.

Some of this is a function of not having Calvin Johnson for most of the last four weeks. Johnson is one of the best downfield targets in the league, and the Lions surely miss his size and amazing athletic ability on longer throws. 

Johnson finished 10th in 2013 in yards per catch at 17.7. Only one player ranked above him had even 60 percent of his receptions, as shown on Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

One silver lining is that Johnson will return, perhaps this Sunday against Atlanta but more likely following the ensuing bye week. Tight ends Eric Ebron and Joseph Fauria will also provide bigger targets with the ability to stretch the defense once they return from various injuries. 

Another silver lining is the Lions finished strong against New Orleans. Detroit converted five of its final six third downs in rallying to beat the Saints, and the one failure did produce a fourth-down conversion when the Lions were clearly in four-down territory. Two of those successes came via New Orleans penalties, but two others wound up as touchdowns. 

Perhaps the impressive rally at the end of the New Orleans game will snap the Lions out of the third-down funk. This unit finished sixth in 2013 and ninth in 2012 in third-down conversion percentage with less overall talent, after all. Better play-calling, situational awareness and a return to a more aggressive Matthew Stafford can get the Lions back up to that more successful range. 

All rankings and statistics are from Team Rankings unless otherwise indicated.