Dan Campbell and Lions Urged to Fix This 1 Problem Going Into 2026
The Detroit Lions rounded out their 2025-26 season in last place in the NFC North, and that was just one year removed from the team ending their regular season in first place in the division.
So, what happened? Ben Johnson happened. But, now that the team has a new offensive coordinator in Drew Petzing, perhaps a quick and study rebuild is on the way.
It’s hard to ignore that the Detroit Lions’ offense is still elite. Jared Goff had a strong 2025 season, tossing for 4,564 yards, 34 touchdowns, and just eight interceptions, so it’s not his fault.
In a feature out on Tuesday, May 12, about each NFL team’s biggest weakness at this point in the season, Christian D’Andrea of USA Today’s for the Win says that the Lions have to work on their “offensive line integrity.”
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“The Lions once had one of the NFL’s most reliable, punishing offensive lines,” she states in the feature. “Time took an ax to that, leaving the group to rely on young replacements (Blake Miller, Christian Mahogany) and questionable veteran imports (Cade Mays, Juice Scruggs, Larry Borom).”
D’Andrea notes that even with the “explosive run game, Detroit ranked in the bottom 10 when it came to run play stuff rate,” and they were also just outside the bottom 10 in run game success rate.
She adds: “It also led to a career low in pocket time for Jared Goff, manifesting in the lowest average target distance of his life (6.0 yards downfield, second-lowest in the league ahead of only Aaron Rodgers among full-time starters).”
My Take: Detroit Lions’ Offense is Strong But Needs Tweaking in 2026
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The Detroit Lions’ offense is elite, and they have the players to back it. There’s absolutely nothing to fix when it comes to their offensive roster, or at least nothing big, but the coaching and playcalling is going to be the difference-maker this season. So, Lions fans’ hope is on Petzing having some good playcalling skills, so long as Dan Campbell lets him take the reins.
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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 1:25 PM.