Tate Ratledge Calls Out Lions: Week 1 Mistakes Must Vanish to Beat Packers
The Detroit Lions got their 2025 season off to a bad start in Week 1 when they were humbled by the Green Bay Packers. From start to finish, everything felt off in the frustrating loss.
Arguably the biggest problem was the offensive line. The group didn't help Detroit get the run game going with just 46 yards on the ground. Additionally, protection of Jared Goff was suspect, and the offense was blanked most of the day.
Since, the Lions have recovered, but things have certainly not been perfect. Dan Campbell has taken over play calling duties and the offense remains inconsistent at times. That sets up a potential disaster situation for Thanksgiving Day.
Guard Tate Ratledge knows the Lions have to have a better performance to win this time, and understands that the challenge Green Bay provides will be massive. In spite of that, he also knows there are things the Lions can improve on their end to make life easier.
"That's a good front. I mean, it's a good defense in general. They did a good job of nullifying our run game and making us throw it. But other than that, we got to communicate better this time around and take over the game."
Not only do the Lions have to run the ball more effectively, but the protection of Goff will be imperative as well. In Week 11, the Lions allowed three sacks of Goff, and Ratledge understands a clean pocket is key to an offensive explosion as well.
"You got to keep Jared (Goff) clean. I mean, that's where it starts every game. You got to keep him clean. If you keep him clean, he's going to do good things."
The Lions have explosive pieces on offense, but none of that will matter if the protection suffers. Though he is a rookie, Ratledge shows wisdom in recognizing the game starts and ends with improved communication and play from the offensive line.
Dan Campbell relishes opportunity to play Packers again after Week 1
Offensively, the Lions will have a game plan ready, and Campbell will be tasked with helping the players to execute it when the time comes on Thursday. Until then, the head coach himself is thinking about how to right the ship after the ugly first week performance.
Fortunately, as Campbell knows, this game is an opportunity to clean the slate against a quality opponent and make the frustration of the past feel like a distant memory.
"Nobody likes losing. We don't like losing to anybody, but you open the year and we go out to their place and they gave it to us pretty good. Division opponent, you don't want to start that way. I think any chance you get another opportunity, it's one of the the blessings of of playing somebody in your division twice, right? You get another opportunity. We've got another opportunity in front of us at our place on a short week and we're looking forward to it."
As Ratledge said, Detroit's line has to be better at communication this time around and elevate their game. It might only take them remembering the frustration of the season opener in order to get over that hump and play much better.
Scoring a win this week to get to 8-4 will help the Lions take the next step in the NFC North race and perhaps give them an inside track to a playoff birth. It will represent quite the turnaround from Week 1.
Zac Taylor's hot seat keeps getting hotter after latest Bengals rumors
The Cincinnati Bengals might finally be running out of patience with head coach Zac Taylor, as the combination of a three-win 2025 season and their complete defensive capitulation has put the Bengals in a position where a firing might be necessary.
The movement to kick Taylor out of town is not just the byproduct of frustrated Bengals fans who want to see their losing ways reversed. It seems like many of the powers that be in the NFL are keeping an eye on Cincinnati in case Taylor does end up shaking free.
ESPN's Dan Graziano is reporting that the NFL is keeping a close eye on the Bengals, in addition to the Las Vegas Raiders and Atlanta Falcons, as a team that could end up making some changes to their head coaching staff.
Even though Taylor has been able to take this team with inches of a Lombardi trophy, it's very hard to take a look at this 2025 squad and claim they should run it back with many of the same personnel in key leadership roles.
ESPN reports NFL is watching if Bengals will fire head coach Zac Taylor
Taylor defenders will point to the notion that Burrow's injury sunk the season to the point where it became impossible to field a winning team while calling out Duke Tobin for providing him with perhaps the worst top-down defensive roster in the game today.
However, Taylor's decision to hire Al Golden as defensive coordinator to run that defense and the fact that he lit three games on fire by starting Jake Browning were both choices that he made, and he appears to have rolled snake eyes in both of them. Taylor can't keep living off 2021 and 2022 forever.
One thing that Taylor, who has gone 49-58-1 in Cincinnati and 5-2 in the playoffs, has going in his favor is the fact that Mike Brown and the Bengals are notoriously loyal when it comes to head coaches. Those playoff runs with a healthy Burrow might convince ownership that such success is right around the corner if No. 9 isn't on the mend.
While that isn't a crazy notion, sometimes it's just time for a change. Taylor will be remembered fondly for getting this team as close to a Super Bowl win as possible, but 2025 might be all that Cincinnati needs to show the NFL that some new blood is needed in the worst way.
