Lions still struggle running the ball

Nov 22, 2017 - 10:18 PM ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- They have opened up their passing game and are finally healthy in the trenches, but the Detroit Lions still have one glaring weakness on offense heading into the season's final six games: A sputtering rushing attack that's trending down for the fourth straight season.

The Lions enter Thursday's Thanksgiving showdown with the Minnesota Vikings averaging only 80.8 yards rushing per game. That's the lowest total of the Jim Caldwell era, and a big red flag for everyone who wonders if the Lions have the goods for an extended playoff run.

"I want it to be better," running back Ameer Abdullah said. "But I just got to be better, that's the main thing. That's the thing I keep telling myself, just try to do better. Just try to do better. Just keep going hard."

Abdullah, the Lions' lead running back, has just 491 yards rushing through 10 games, but he's far from the only drag on a one-dimensional offense.

The Lions have struggled with their blocking, particularly on the offensive line. They're one of the worst short-yardage teams in the NFL. And lately, they've had to answer questions about the viability of their running scheme.

"I mean, it's not always (on) a player's shoes. It's sometimes we may not be dialing the right thing at certain times," Abdullah said. "But at the same time, it's just about bringing a good attitude, bringing an attitude of just executing your job, really. I think that's really what it comes down to if you ask me. It comes down to guys just saying, 'Hey, I'm going to be better than the next guy that's playing.'"

The Lions haven't said that often in the running game this year.

They've topped 100 yards rushing just twice all season, in a Week 2 win over the New York Giants and two weeks ago in a victory over the Cleveland Browns, and their 3.4-yards-per-carry average is tied for 29th in the league.

Abdullah did have the best game of his career in a Week 4 win over the Vikings, when he rushed for 94 yards on 20 carries and missed most of the fourth quarter with an ankle injury. But he hasn't come close to approximating that production since.

Lions head coach Jim Caldwell has defended Abdullah all season while calling the running game "inconsistent," and on Tuesday he downplayed concerns that his team's feeble rushing offense will end up costing it in a big game.

"All I'm concerned with is winning. That's it," Caldwell said. "Sometimes it comes different ways. You got to figure out ways to win it when certain parts of your game aren't going great. A couple weeks ago we ran for a 100-and-some yards, this week 24 times for 70-something-odd yards or whatever it was.

"It wasn't quite what we'd like to have happen, but what they hold me to, what Mrs. (owner Martha) Ford expects, (president) Rod (Wood) expects, (general manager) Bob (Quinn) expects, they expect victories. And it doesn't have to be always a blueprint. We got to find a way to win, so sometimes we have to do it a little differently. It's not always perfect."

SERIES HISTORY: 113th regular-season meeting. Vikings lead series, 71-39-2, but the Lions have won three straight. This is the fifth time the Lions and Vikings have met on Thanksgiving, with each team winning two games. In the most memorable of those games, the Lions beat the Vikings, 44-38, in 1995 when Scott Mitchell threw for 410 yards and four touchdowns and three Lions receivers -- Brett Perriman, Herman Moore and Johnnie Morton - topped 100 yards.

--Linebacker Tahir Whitehead said he did not intentionally step on the leg of Chicago Bears offensive tackle Charles Leno after a first-quarter running play in Sunday's win at Soldier Field.

Replays showed Whitehead stepping over teammate Anthony Zettel and onto Leno's leg, prompting Leno to kick his foot at Whitehead in retaliation.

The NFL was reviewing the play on Tuesday, but Whitehead said he apologized to Leno on the field after it happened and does not expect so much as a fine.

"I know who I am," Whitehead said. "Everyone who knows me knows I play the game as clean as you can play the game of football, but I'm not out there trying to hurt anybody. I think we're all out here trying to take care of our families and provide for our families. I ain't trying to do anything like that intentional."

--Jarrad Davis has been a staple at middle linebacker when healthy for the Lions, but the rookie hasn't had quite the impact many expected as a first-round pick.

Davis ranks just fourth on the team with 35 tackles, and he's experienced some season-long struggles in pass coverage.

Still, Lions head coach Jim Caldwell said he's not at all displeased with Davis' play.

"I think anytime you're a rookie in this league and you're playing early, it's not going to be pretty the entire time," Caldwell said. "You're going to have some good times and really good games. You're going to have some that where you're not as productive as you'd like to be. He's been effective for us. He runs around. He makes plays, but he's not perfect. But does a good job in terms of leadership, and he's learning every week. I think that's the valuable thing. So, he's getting an opportunity to get out there and do it, and he's done a lot of really, really good things for us."

NOTES: DE Ziggy Ansah is expected back in the lineup Thursday after missing two straight games with a back injury. Ansah has had a disappointing season with just four sacks, but he's played well against the run and the Lions desperately need him back in the lineup after allowing 423 yards rushing the last two weeks. ... KR/PR Jamal Agnew is not expected to play Thursday because of the knee injury he suffered in the fourth quarter of last week's win over the Bears. With Agnew out, the Lions could use Ameer Abdullah or TJ Jones on kickoff returns, and Jones, Jace Billingsley or Golden Tate on punts. ... QB Matthew Stafford needs just 123 yards to pass Peyton Manning for the most passing yards by a quarterback before the age of 30. Stafford has thrown for 33,063 yards in 119 career games.