Our Detroit Lions Week 13 stock report: Risers and Fallers on Thanksgiving.
The Detroit Lions overcame a bottomless pit of defensive injuries to fend off the Chicago Bears , 23-20. It was almost very different, with the Bears driving against a hampered defense but shooting themselves in the foot to end the game. In spite of the late surge by the Bears, the Lions defense had several players step up. Let’s check out this week’s movers.
Stock up: Al-Quadin Muhammad, EDGE
Stats: 1 tackle, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, 1 pass defended, 1 QB hit
Al-Quadin Muhammad was signed as a last-ditch effort for some pass rush help following the loss of Aidan Hutchinson. In his three active games entering today, Muhammad posted a completely blank stat sheet. Thanksgiving Day, however, he popped off the screen and came up huge for the Lions late in the game.
With three minutes left in the fourth quarter, Al-Quadin Muhammad brought down Bears QB Caleb Williams for a sack. Five plays later, he dropped into coverage and made a perfectly timed read to force an incompletion. That’s two critical stops on the Bears’ final drive of the game, and they couldn’t have come at a better time.
Stock up: Za’Darius Smith, EDGE
Stats: 3 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1.5 sacks, 3 QB hits
Smith continues to show why the Lions gave up assets to get him midseason. He finished the game with multiple sacks and was consistently collapsing the pocket against the Bears. Similar to Muhammad, Smith could not have had better timing. His first sack of the day came at the two-minute warning, and his second would come with 36 seconds left in the game to keep the clock running and eventually lead to the Bears’ last-second meltdown.
Stock neutral: Jahmyr Gibbs, RB
Stats: 9 rushes, 87 yards; 2 rec, 17 yards
Gibbs continues to show an increased ability to put his head down and gain yards after contact, which is great to see and offers a nice complement to David Montgomery. It would have been a stock up for Gibbs on Thursday had he not fumbled the ball in the red zone at the end of an otherwise beautiful catch and run. With the Lions up 16-0 at the time of the fumble, it seemed like it would be trivial in the grand scheme of things. However, it almost came back to bite the Lions, like many of their other mistakes on the day.
Stock up: DJ Reader, DT
Stats: 4 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 3 QB hits
Reader earned a stock up last week for his strong presence in both run and pass defense, and he earns another this week. He continues to plug the interior efficiently, and more importantly supplement a weakened pass rush unit, this time with two sacks. That would be impressive for a guy of his stature in a normal week, but to do so against someone as elusive as Caleb Williams is the cherry on top.
Stock up: Ezekiel Turner, LB
Stats: 1 tackle, 0.5 sacks, 1 QB hit
It caught me by surprise when Malcolm Rodriguez went down with an injury Thursday that we saw Ezekiel Turner fill in rather than David Long Jr. That bodes well for Turner, and he took advantage of the opportunity to join Za’Darius Smith for a sack at the two minute warning.
Stock down: Josh Paschal, DL
Stats: 1 tackle, 1 tackle for loss
Paschal had a strong outing last week, but struggled to follow it up with an encore this week. Instead, we saw Paschal leaving and re-entering the game with injuries for what felt like the 20th time this season. The best ability is availability, and Paschal continues to have a spotty track record when it comes to that.
Quick hits
Stock up
Malcolm Rodriguez, LB: Rodrigo had another strong outing before he left with an injury. His fourth down pass breakup on D’Andre Swift was well-timed to avoid a pass interference penalty and force a turnover.
Kerby Joseph, S: Kerby almost came away with another highlight-reel interception but couldn’t secure the ball on his diving attempt.
Stock down
Jake Bates, K: Bates had his first miss of the season, which, all things considered, was overdue. However, in a game this close, it almost proved costly.