For all the talk about the 49ers offense, their defense might be just as dangerous. The Lions have a giant to slay to reach the Super Bowl.
"This is a team with attitude," Dan Campbell said Tuesday on 97.1 The Ticket. "This is a hard-nosed team. They play a physical style, offense and defense."
The Lions can measure up with the Niners offensively. Both units are loaded with playmakers, and led by creative play-callers in Ben Johnson for Detroit and Kyle Shanahan for San Francisco. Defensively, the 49ers have a clear edge. They have one of the deepest pass-rushing fronts in the NFL, an elite duo of linebackers and a secondary full of ballhawks. And they get after you like they mean it.
"We really haven’t played a defense like this since the Jets last year," said Campbell. "The D-line has their rear up in the air, their face about an inch off the ground and they are just shooting the gaps, penetrating, all out. They’re not deviating. Disruption."
The Jets held the Lions to one of their lowest offensive outputs last season. Detroit escaped with a 20-17 win thanks to a late touchdown by Brock Wright on the exact same play the Lions ran for a key first down in last week's win over the Buccaneers. The similarities between last year's Jets and this year's 49ers are clear, especially in the way they attack up front. Namely, they don't blitz.
And they harass you all the same.
"This is an aggressive style defense," Campbell said. "These corners will get up in your receiver's face, they’re going to challenge you nonstop, they run, they hit. However, relative to what we saw last week with Tampa, this is a calm defense. It’s not near as, 'Alright, here comes the pressure this way, are they disguising this?' You have a pretty good idea of where they’re going to be at, they’re just saying they’re better than you and they’re going to play harder than you."
The 49ers, who finished third in the NFL this season in scoring defense, had the third lowest blitz rate (18.0 percent) -- and still finished seventh in sacks and third in quarterback hits. The Jets, who finished fourth in the NFL last season in scoring defense, had the lowest blitz rate -- and still finished sixth in sacks and first in quarterback hits. They indeed stand in stark contrast to the Buccaneers, who had the NFL's third highest blitz rate (40.1 percent) this season.
The Niners don't often blitz because they don't have to. They have game-wreckers galore up front, starting on the edges with reigning Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa and former Defensive Rookie of the Year Chase Young, a pair of second overall picks who combined for 18 sacks this season. They're also loaded on the interior with Javon Hargrave, Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw, who had 15.5 combined sacks. The Lions' elite offensive line, which will likely be missing guard Jonah Jackson, will have its hands full yet again.
Behind that D-line, San Fran has a two-headed monster at linebacker in All-Pro Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw, and a sticky secondary led by Pro Bowl corner Charvarius Ward that helped the 49ers produce 22 picks, most in the NFL. They pose problems at every level. The Ravens might be the closest defensive comparison the Lions have seen this season in terms of talent and scheme, and they held Detroit to a season-low six points back in October.
The Lions are diverse enough on offense to pose problems of their own, top five in both passing and rushing. Jared Goff will have to raise his game even further after two terrific performances against the Rams and the Bucs. So will his receivers. The Niners allowed the fewest yards per completion in the NFL and the fourth lowest passer raring (79.6). Including the playoffs, Goff has a rating this season of 99.4.
The Lions overcame the Jets last season thanks to some timely conversions and a defense that carried the day. Of course, that Jets offense was one of the worst in the NFL. This Niners offense is one of the best. Per Pro Football Focus, the 49ers had the No. 1 offense in the NFL this year, to go with the No. 2 defense. The Lions had the No. 2 offense ... and the 20th-ranked defense.
"It goes without saying, we know this, we’re going to have to play our best game," Campbell said. "We’re going to have to play our best game in all three phases to win this game, but that’s possible."