JUNGLE RULERS

BY Mark Halpern

    The Lions faced the Carolina Panthers this past weekend, and from the kickoff, it was all about the Lions. The Lions were unanimous favorites against the Panthers and didn’t disappoint.

    Jared Goff, time and time again this season, has shown us why we all need to believe in this team. Goff had an errorless day to go along with his three touchdown passes and his 236 yards. His execution, time in the pocket, and excellent decision-making helped drive the Lions up and down the gridiron. David Montgomery has been one of the best running backs since his injury in the second week. Montgomery opened the scoring with a 42-yard scamper that he made a nice move to weave in and to the outside and took it to the house. Montgomery rushed for 109 yards and a score, making it look easy against a defense that has been stingy in the run game. Due to a hamstring injury, St. Brown was ruled out, but Josh Reynolds stepped up big time for 76 yards and a score, and Sam Laporta, showing why his name needs to be praised, had another stellar day with 47 yards and two touchdowns. Goff has found his new safety valve, and Laporta keeps improving each week. 

    The Lion’s defense wasn’t perfect, but it kept the Panthers off the board until it didn’t matter. Rookie quarterback Bryce Young didn’t have a bad day passing himself with 237 yards, 3 TDs, but two ints. Jerry Jacobs is making a play at being one of the best secondary players in the NFL by recording yet another interception. Jacobs has been one of the more vocal players on and off the field and is a great team player in helping his teammates and being willing to learn from them. The defense, if it had a weakness, was the inability to sack the QB like they have been doing over recent weeks. The Carolina offensive line did its best to stop this powerful defense and gave the rookie some time to throw, but the secondary closed any gaps that would open.

    The Lions are just getting better and better with each passing week. The Lions face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this Sunday, and while the Tampa defense might give some issues, the Lions should have no problem grabbing their fifth win of the season.