Scouting report: Can Lions get revenge against 49ers?

In a rematch of last season’s NFC Championship game, the Lions want revenge against another team that wronged them.

The 2024 Detroit Lions are a team that doesn’t forget. They remember what went wrong in the two losses this season, and rebounded the following week with a big win. They also don’t forget about what happened to them the year before. They remember losing to the Seattle Seahawks in overtime, ruining Thanksgiving by losing to the Green Bay Packers , getting hosed by the officials against the Dallas Cowboys , and most importantly, losing the NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers .

Not only does this team want to win to potentially help them out for the playoffs , but they want revenge for what happened last season. While the 49ers aren’t the same team they were last year due to injuries, that isn’t an excuse when the Lions have the most banged-up roster in the NFL. The team remembers blowing the 24-7 halftime lead, and just like the examples I mentioned earlier, this team doesn’t forget. They got their revenge against the Seahawks, Cowboys, and Packers this year, and they’ll aim to finish the revenge story against the 49ers on Monday Night Football.

Let’s look at 49ers in our Week 17 scouting report for the 2024 season.

San Francisco 49ers

2024 season thus far (6-9)

Week 1: Defeated New York Jets , 32-19
Week 2: Lost to Minnesota Vikings , 23-17
Week 3: Lost to Los Angeles Rams , 27-24
Week 4: Defeated New England Patriots , 30-13
Week 5: Lost to Arizona Cardinals , 24-23
Week 6: Defeated Seattle Seahawks, 36-24
Week 7: Lost to Kansas City Chiefs , 28-18
Week 8: Defeated Dallas Cowboys, 30-24
Week 9: BYE
Week 10: Defeated Tampa Bay Buccaneers , 23-20
Week 11: Lost to Seattle Seahawks, 20-17
Week 12: Lost to Green Bay Packers, 38-10
Week 13: Lost to Buffalo Bills , 35-10
Week 14: Defeated Chicago Bears , 38-13
Week 15: Lost to Los Angeles Rams, 12-6
Week 16: Lost to Miami Dolphins , 29-17

Stats:

• 16th in points scored, 19th in points allowed
• 11th in DVOA
• 10th in offensive DVOA (8th in pass DVOA, 13th in run DVOA)
• 7th in defensive DVOA (5th pass DVOA, 24th in run DVOA)
• 31st in special teams DVOA

What a complete shift it has been for this franchise. After losing in overtime of the Super Bowl last season, the 49ers came into this season with high hopes and expectations. Despite the offseason drama of star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and left tackle Trent Williams dealing with contract issues, as well as rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall getting shot , the team was mostly back together. They were favorites to win the NFC until things started to unravel. First, running back Christian McCaffrey missed the first nine weeks with Achilles Tendinitis in both feet, only to return and play in four games before injuring his PCL and ending his season.

In the nine weeks without McCaffrey, the 49ers went 4-4 and struggled to win without scoring at least 30 points. Even when McCaffrey returned things didn’t improve as greatly as everyone hoped, with the team going 1-3 with him and despite beating the Bears to be 6-7, the 49ers have lost two straight and are officially eliminated from the playoffs. They won’t have a chance to defend their NFC crown and are just looking towards the future and looking to get this season of injuries, distractions, and mistakes, over with.

Quarterback Brock Purdy seems to have taken a step back from his almost MVP season in 2023, throwing for 3,487 yards, a completion percentage of 65%, 17 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He has used his legs more than ever this year, rushing 63 times for 311 yards and four touchdowns, all career-highs.

With McCaffrey out, the team leaned on Jordan Mason and it appeared they found lighting in a bottle as he ran for 789 yards and three touchdowns. Unfortunately, Mason would also get injured and is out for the season.

The receiving game for the 49ers has heavily involved tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Jauan Jennings, with Brandon Aiyuk also landing on injured reserve. Kittle leads the team in every receiving category with 68 catches for 987 yards and eight touchdowns. Jennings is right behind him though with 63 (catches), 856 (yards), and six (touchdowns). Wide receiver Deebo Samuel is still getting involved though with 50 (catches), 665 (yards), and two (touchdowns), but he also has 39 carries for 120 yards and a score as well.

Defensively, the 49ers have held their own despite a few bumps and bruises on the injury front. The defensive line is led by defensive ends Leonard Floyd and Nick Bosa, who have combined for 15.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, an interception, and a fumble recovery. Linebacker Fred Warner has continued to play at a very high level, leading the team in tackles with 117, forced fumbles with four, and is tied for first in interceptions with two, even returning one for a touchdown.

Injury notes

Key players ruled out: WR Brandon Aiyuk (IR/ACL/MCL), C Jon Feliciano (IR/knee), DT Javon Hargrave (IR/tricep), RB Jordan Mason (IR/ankle), RB Christian McCaffrey (IR/PCL), RB Elijah Mitchell (IR/hamstring), LB De’Vondre Campbell (suspended), LT Trent Williams (ankle), LG Aaron Banks (MCL), LT Jaylon Moore (quad)

Key players to monitor: OT Spencer Buford (calf), RB Isaac Guerendo (foot), LB Dre Greenlaw (calf), LB Dee Winters (chest), S Ji’Ayir Brown (ankle)

The 49ers have had troubles with injuries like the Lions this season. They have lost star players on both sides of the ball due to injuries. Their running back room is almost empty as their top three options are on IR and their fourth-stringer Isaac Guerendo is dealing with a foot injury and missed the game last week. If he can’t go, expect wide receiver Deebo Samuel to get more carries in the backfield, but Patrick Taylor Jr. to get the start. Aiyuk tore his ACL earlier this season, knocking a key piece out of the passing game.

The offensive line is in shambles as starting left tackle Williams is out, and his backup Jaylon Moore is dealing with a hip injury, potentially leaving it up to Spencer Buford, who is dealing with a calf injury. Starting left guard Aaron Banks is out but with their backup guard Ben Bartch already on IR, Nick Zakelj might take over. Starting center Jon Feliciano is also on injured reserve.

The defense isn’t healthy either as the linebacker room is the most banged up. Dre Greenlaw returned from his torn ACL last season, hasn’t looked the same and could be out on Monday. If he can’t go, Dee Winters will take over, but he is dealing with a chest injury so his status is unknown. Former starter De’Vondre Campbell quit on the 49ers and has been suspended for the rest of the season. Safety Ji’Ayir Brown suffered an ankle injury last week and his status is also unknown.

Biggest strength: Secondary

While the defensive line for the 49ers gets the most attention, the part of the team that’s quietly doing well is in the secondary. With the second-highest coverage grade in the NFL according to PFF (89.7), the 49ers are only behind the Philadelphia Eagles , the biggest non-NFC North threat to Detroit. The 49ers have allowed the second-fewest passing yards this season (2,931), the third-fewest yards per attempt (6.6), tied for fifth-fewest touchdowns allowed (18), eighth-lowest QB rating allowed (86.1), and have allowed the fewest 20+ passing yard plays with 31.

It’s going to be hard to pass the ball on the 49ers overall. They don’t allow many deep shots, or big plays, and make you earn every yard you want through the air. The cornerback duo of Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green has been very helpful for this 49ers defense in keeping them in some of these games. Green has the highest coverage grade on the team (76.5), tied with Lenoir for most pass deflections with nine, an interception, and a forced fumble.

Lenoir has a 74.2 coverage grade, two interceptions, and a forced fumble as well, continuing to improve in his career. These two will lead the 49ers, being the main focal points of the secondary, covering Lions wide receivers Jameson Williams and Amon-Ra St. Brown. If the Lions can capitalize on this secondary, it could be a long day for San Francisco.

Biggest weakness: Offensive line

While running back is a depleted position, no unit on the team is facing a bigger challenge than the offensive line. The offensive line is important for whoever is running behind them to make a hole and help move the ball forward. Even if you have the best running back in the NFL, playing behind a bad offensive line won’t matter.

The thing is this offensive line really isn’t bad, it’s just really banged up and we don’t know who will be playing and where. The team is ranked 14th in pass blocking, and first in run blocking according to PFF. That though, includes the multiple players that won’t be playing on Monday.

If Buford plays at left tackle, expect some pressure from Detroit as he has the lowest run-blocking grade on the team (53), and the third-lowest pass-blocking grade (64). Zakelj has only played 22 snaps this season, and while his grades aren’t bad, he has yet to start and play a full game in the NFL. The inexperience of Zakelj and the poor performance of Buford could be a disaster for the 49ers and force their offense to change gears and lean on the right side of the offensive line.

Key matchup: Lions defensive line vs. 49ers offensive line

A banged-up offensive line takes on a banged-up defensive line. The good thing that favors Detroit here though, is their depth is better than the 49ers’ depth. Detroit is down three of their four starters but replaced a starter with another in defensive end Za’Darius Smith. The 49ers will play with a third or fourth-string tackle and a fourth-string left guard. Last week, the Lions played against the worst offensive line in the NFL in the Chicago Bears and only came away with two sacks when facing a backup tackle and center.

The difference in this game is they will be playing an inferior talent, but Purdy is more experienced than Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. If the Lions get pressure on Purdy, he will know when to throw it away instead of trying to keep plays alive, or just take the sack and move on. With the 49ers having to lean on their passing game, the pass rush for Detroit has to hit home and be an effective unit.

If the 49ers can keep Purdy upright and hold off the Lions’ defensive line, that will be a big confidence killer for this unit. Facing up against third-stringers with little experience shouldn’t be difficult for the Lions’ defensive line that has experience, despite not being the original starters. Detroit must take advantage of this mismatch and build the confidence of the players before the season finale against the Vikings.

Vegas line for Sunday: Lions favored by 3.5 points