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    • Jack Campbell wants the Detroit Lions to have the “best defense in the NFL.”
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    Jack Campbell wants the Detroit Lions to have the “best defense in the NFL.”

    Eira Gwyneth Posted on

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    Jack Campbell wants the Detroit Lions to be considered “the NFL’s best defense” this season, and three games into the year they’re at least in the conversation.

    Campbell, the second-year linebacker who could see himself playing a bigger role with Derrick Barnes out with a knee injury, said he evaluates the defense based on a few statistical categories.

    “I just feel like I want to be first in every situation,” Campbell said. “It’s hard to be first in everything, but you look at third down, you look at the red zone, I would say you look at rush yards per attempt and then you look at pass yards per attempt and then to the yards per play. I feel like it’s obviously hard. “I want to be No. 1 in all of this, but I feel like if you want to get to where you want to go, you kind of set these standards for yourself.”

    The Lions rank third in the NFL in third-down percentage (25.8%), fourth in rushing yards allowed per attempt (3.59), and top 15 in red zone defense and the passing game and the total number of yards per play.

    The Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Chargers are the only other teams ranked in the top 15 in all five categories.

    BIRKETT: The Detroit Lions defense has gone from one of the worst in the NFL to an explosive performance in three games in 2024

    Campbell praised the Lions’ run defense so far this year – “When you look back at last year, you know what to expect from us. We’re going to play downhill and not allow you to run the ball,” he said – and said the team’s defensive efficiency needs to improve in the red zone.

    In last week’s win over the Arizona Cardinals, the Lions allowed a touchdown on their only defensive possession in the red zone, but held the Cardinals to 1 of 9 on third downs.

    “I feel like last week as a collective group was probably one of the better games I’ve been a part of since I’ve been here, just from the defensive line to the linebackers to the secondary lines, all on one “We were on the side,” and everyone goes out there and does their job, plays in and out,” Campbell said. “And I feel like we kind of have to take ownership of that, but now it’s just these little details that we have to get better at.”

    DJ and JJ Watts

    DJ Reader has played a little less than half of the Lions’ defensive snaps (48%) since returning from a quad tendon injury in Week 2, which is slightly below the 60% mark he played during his time with the Cincinnati Bengals maintained.

    The reader said he was feeling “good” health-wise, but admitted he was still in the process of achieving his full workload.

    “I feel like we’ve reached our goal,” he said. “When you’re out there for the first time, I mean maybe just for me, maybe not for everyone, but I felt a little bit like a baby giraffe out there. I actually called JJ (Watt) after the game and talked to him about it.”, I just texted him about it… He says, “It’s just part of it, you get your feet up.” But there are pieces , which make me feel great, so I start to feel really, really good.”

    Reader, who said he was less sore after 25 snaps Sunday against the Cardinals than he was the week before against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, remains close to Watt, his former Houston Texans teammate and current analyst for CBS.

    “My locker was right next to his (in Houston),” Reader said. “When I came into the league it was kind of crazy. When you walk in there you’re like, ‘Damn, this guy is a three-time Defensive Player of the Year. This is JJ Watt.’ When I was 21, I was leaving college and my locker was right next to him. So he had a pretty big influence on my life.

    Dave Birkett is the author of the new book “Detroit Lions: An Illustrated Timeline.” Pre-order it now from Reedy Press.

    Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on X and Instagram at @davebirkett.

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    Eira Gwyneth
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