The frustration was evident on Frank Ragnow's reddened face, and in his words. In fact, it was the only word Ragnow could find to depict his emotions after the Lions' loss to the Bills in which the offense bore as much blame as the defense for the team's costly start.
"It’s frustrating," Ragnow said. "We’re going to have to look at the tape, clean up whatever has gone wrong, me personally, can’t have all those penalties. Very frustrating. And then we’re just going to have to learn from it and move on."
For a team known for running the ball, the Lions couldn't run it a lick against the Bills. David Montgomery's first carry went for no gain. Jahmyr Gibbs' first carry went for a loss of two. It set the tone for the day, and now the Lions' tone-setter is done for the year. Montgomery tore his MCL in Detroit's 48-42 loss that included lots of offense in what Jared Goff called "garbage time."
Montgomery had four yards on five carries on a hobbled leg and is headed for season-ending surgery. Gibbs had 31 yards on eight carries. The Lions' most efficient rusher was Jared Goff, which tells the story. As a team, they failed to rush for 100 yards for the first time this season. They finished with 48 yards on the ground, and 3.2 per carry.
This was not a one-off, which is slightly concerning. The Lions averaged 3.3 yards per carry the week before in their win over the Packers, after averaging 4.8 up to that point of the season. Their offensive line isn't generating the same push off the ball. Their backs aren't hitting the same holes. Even their receivers and tight ends have missed blocks.
"We take a lot of pride in how we run the ball, and a few weeks in a row here where it’s not clicking is frustrating," said Ragnow.
"Yeah," said Gibbs, "we’re definitely not playing to our standard running the ball and we know that, so we’re trying to make it an emphasis getting that back up."
On Monday, Campbell was adamant that "we’re going to get our run game back on track, and that’s only going to make things better."
The run game sets up the Lions' offense, in particular the play-action pass. Goff is not the same quarterback without it. It also protects their defense, which has bee decimated by injuries. Asked where the operation has slipped, Gibbs pointed to "miscommunications" and said, "As a collective, we all gotta do a better job keying in on our details."
The Lions fell behind by two touchdowns out of the gate and spent the rest of Sunday's game playing catch-up. And "when that happens," said Gibbs, "we gotta try to get (back) into it throwing the ball because we know they're in a groove, too."
That's how Goff wound up attempting 59 passes and piling up nearly 500 yards. And that's how Allen and the Bills got 11 total possessions before kneeling on the ball at the end. That was not the script the Lions envisioned.
"We never got our run game going, which was going to be a point of emphasis," said Campbell, who believes in the run as much as any head coach in the NFL. "So that’s two weeks in a row. It’s not good enough. And it’s not them, it’s us, and that’s what’s frustrating, too. We’re better than that."
As Campbell explained Monday, "it’s one guy here, one guy there. It’s not the scheme, it’s (not) the same player who’s continuing to do it. It could be the receiver one play, the backside tackle one play, the tight end on one play, so we’re taking turns a little bit on some things right now.
"But I’m telling you, it’s all correctable. And we will get it corrected. And absolutely it’s going to help the defense. It’s going to help us offensively be more efficient, and then it’s going to help the defense because we can stay on the field, convert and then we gotta turn (those drives) into seven, not three."
Ragnow committed two holding penalties against Buffalo, though both of them came in pass protection. At first blush, he said has to be better with his hand placement. It's been an up-and-down season for the three-time Pro Bowl center, by his own standards. Graham Glasgow, the guard to Ragnow's left, was flagged for a face mask against the Bills, also in pass protection.
"Let’s hope that we take it on the chin," Ragnow said. "Let's learn from our mistakes, correct it and move forward. And hopefully it makes us better in the long run."
The Lions will have to lean harder than ever on their offense down the stretch and into the playoffs, even with Montgomery sidelined. Their defense is a shell of itself. Running the ball and controlling the clock is the best way to make up for it.
No, the sky is not falling, said Goff. And Detroit's offensive line is too proven for this funk to last much longer. With three games to go, and the top seed in the NFC on the line, the sooner the Lions snap out of it the better. The best way to reach their destination is by running.
"Everything is still in front of us, can’t let it tank us," said Ragnow. "But it’s frustrating, for sure."