Detroit Lions Must Regain Offensive Balance, Rediscover Running Game

The Detroit Lions didn't run the ball poorly against the Minnesota Vikings. That would imply they actually ran it at all.

There are plenty of ways to describe the appalling performance, but Kyle Meinke of Mlive Media Group summed it up well here:

"

When your quarterback leads you in rushing, and your quarterback is a beat-up Matthew Stafford, you've got problems.

— Kyle Meinke (@kmeinke) September 20, 2015"

Matthew Stafford would go on to finish as the team's leading rusher with 20 yards on four carries. No other Lion had more than Ameer Abdullah's nine, and the team finished with 38 yards on 16 carries.

Meanwhile, the Vikings were able to roll up 199 yards on the ground, making Teddy Bridgewater's job simple. The difference between the two attacks was directly responsible for Minnesota's surprisingly easy win.

Detroit's offensive line and the rushing game was supposed to be the focus of this past offseason. Through two games, the Lions have yet to realize any return on their investment.

Al Pereira/Getty Images

Insistence on Outside Zones

We won't dive too deep into the play-calling here because offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi's insistence on continuously running the outside zone is mind-boggling.

Obviously, he's a believer in the zone-blocking scheme. That's the system he installed, and the Lions are going to run zone runs. That much is understandable.

Yet it doesn't make sense why Lombardi runs the long-developing play behind an overmatched Cornelius Lucas. The play requires him to hold a block much longer than he's capable, resulting in negative or neutral gains.

Not that dive plays were working wonderfully, either, but even Theo Riddick was able to pick up five yards before he fumbled.

If the distress caused by the above is concerning, Detroit's play choice on its two-point conversion is alarming. Lombardi opted to run Joique Bell—he of the half-yard average—out of the shotgun. It's still entirely inexplicable.

"

Unbelievably bad play call. I don't say that all that often, but Lions haven't come close to having a run game today.

— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) September 20, 2015"

Odd Carry Distribution

After Abdullah's electrifying preseason debut against the New York Jets, the conversation around water coolers and across Twitter focused on his role in the offense.

Would he be the starter? Would he be given a workload commiserate with this talent advantage?

Abdullah did receive six carries to Bell's five (including the failed two-point conversion) against the Vikings and led the team with seven last week. However, the team's preference for spreading the ball around is somewhat baffling.

"

Apparently, the #Lions rookie hazing of Ameer Abdullah is to make him stay on the sidelines during key parts of the game.

— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) September 20, 2015"

It's tough to dig too much into the numbers when there have only been 27 rushing attempts by running backs in two games. But it's worth wondering why the Lions won't feed their most explosive and reliable player at the expense of getting Bell, Riddick and Zach Zenner work.

That's not a knock on the other guys. They all have a role to play. Yet their combined roles should pale in comparison to Abdullah's, and that simply hasn't been the case.

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

No Shots Downfield

Offenses are like a stool: If one of the legs is shorter than the other, it won't function properly.

And because defenses have not had to respect Detroit's deep passing game, it's removed the margin of error for the shorter throws and the running game since the defense is able to crowd the line of scrimmage.

Of course, taking the time to throw a ball downfield against the Vikings might have gotten Stafford killed. The blood on his jersey was well earned as Minnesota repeatedly overwhelmed his protection and put him on the run.

It really is a Catch-22.

The only way the Lions can loosen up the defense with deep shots is to give Stafford time. The only way to do that is to establish a running game, creating shorter down-distance combinations that keep the entire playbook available.

We knew the defense wouldn't be as good this season. The hope for Detroit was that the offense would pick up the slack behind an improved rushing game. The Lions had better find traction on the ground soon or else that hope—and the season—will be lost.

Brandon Alisoglu is a Detroit Lions Featured Columnist who has written about the Lions on multiple sites. He also co-hosts a Lions-centric podcast, Lions Central Radio. Yell at him on Twitter about how wrong he is @BrandonAlisoglu.