The Detroit Lions kick off the 2015 campaign today with a west coast tilt against the San Diego Chargers.
Coming off a season that ended in utter disappointment after a heartbreaking playoff loss in Dallas against the Cowboys, expectations for the Lions remain up despite the loss of all-pro defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.
Aside from Suh though there are still plenty of other questions heading into week one.
The Lions had the No. 2 defense in the NFL last season, can that success carry over to week one of this season? And with the loss of Suh who emerges as that impact player on the defense?
Likewise, who’s the impact player for the Lions on their perceived hight powered offense?
What looks better: the run game or the run defense?
Jason Bray: Tough to say, but for now I’ll say the rush defense. The run game is a work in progress and has potential with a new center, left guard and running back in Ameer Abdullah. For now the rush defense is the key to the success of this team. Ngata will fill in nicely plugging the middle capitalizing off the return of Stephen Tulloch.
Who will be the best player on offense?
Jason Bray: A lot of fans are going to say Calvin Johnson and while this isn’t a bad choice, it has to be Matthew Stafford. This team goes as far as he does as the play from No. 9 dictates if this is an eight win team or an 11 win team. We’ve seen Megatron be the best player on the Lions and even the best player in the league and you can’t win like that. Stafford has to be the guy in order to make up for the defense taking a step back.
Who will be the best player on defense?
Adam Hernandez: With DeAndre Levy probably out with an injury, Stephen Tulloch will need to step up and do his best to offset that loss. And speaking of offsetting a loss, it’s going to be up to Tulloch to give a little extra support to that defensive line who’ll be without arguably last season’s best player on defense Ndamukong Suh.
How does T.J Jones do as the new return man?
Jason Bray: TJ should be fine and with the job Jeremy Ross did last year just learning when to take the knee eight yards deep only to get to the 15 should be huge. Jones features 4.4 speed and has a shot at stealing a slot receiver job. Ross never looked comfortable in that aspect but Jones should be able to do both. On punt returns I’m not shocked if we see a little of Golden Tate at times, especially if teams are punting deep in their own zone.
If the Lions win, how does the first five weeks of the season go from here?
Jason Bray: Overall I see the Lions starting 3-2. I have the Vikings and Seahawks on the road as losses and San Diego, Denver and Arizona as wins. Back-to-back on the road is a lock of the week loss at Minnesota. I also think Peyton Manning doesn’t have anything left in Denver,
Meanwhile the Seahawks are the class of the NFL, and Arizona doesn’t have anything that makes me worry, especially when it’s a home game.
Bonus Question: The biggest concern to the Lions?
Jason Bray: The pass rush. The Lions lost a lot in terms of getting after the passer. George Johnson, Suh, Fairley all had a knack for getting sacks. Jason Jones isn’t known for getting in the backfield as much as he is known as a decent run stopper. The Lions are banking on Ziggy Ansah taking that next step and Tyrunn Walker being a find and adding interior pressure. It’s concerning that virtual unknown Phillip Hunt might be their 2nd best edge rusher.