Halftime analysis: Lions allow staggering 240 rushing yards in historically bad half

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Detroit Lions have one of the most-improved run defenses in the league. They allowed just 50 yards last week in New York. The week before that, they held Dalvin Cook and the Minnesota Vikings to just 22 yards on the ground.

Then they took the field on Saturday in Carolina, and immediately were gashed for 65 yards on their first two plays. Carolina didn’t even have to pass the ball to go 83 yards on five plays and sprint to a quick 7-0 lead.

It hasn’t gotten any better.

The Lions were gashed for a staggering 240 rushing yards while falling behind 24-7 at halftime of their Christmas Eve game against the Panthers. That’s already their second-worst game defending the run this season, and there are still two more quarters to go.

Detroit allowed 100 rushing yards just once in its last five games. In the first half today, it allowed two players to rush for 100. It allowed 10.9 yards per carry — that’s a first down every time Carolina has handed off the football — and 364 yards of offense overall, more yards than anyone has ever allowed in one half of football against the Panthers.

Hard to win like that. Won’t without some improvements, either.

Detroit’s defense has been popped for runs of 21, 21, 30, 32, 35 and 38 yards already today. If you’re looking to assign blame, well, something like that is an all-systems failure. Linebackers Alex Anzalone and Malcolm Rodriguez have both struggled to fill lanes, while Alim McNeill and Josh Paschal are getting shoved around up front. But the missed tackles in the back end have turned chunk plays into explosives, with Jerry Jacobs, Jeff Okudah and Kerby Joseph all struggling to wrap up.

On Carolina’s longest run of the day, Jacobs had a missed tackle in the backfield before Joseph had another at the second level of the defense, turning a potential negative play into a 38-yarder. That led to a 3-yard touchdown run by Sam Darnold, and a 14-7 lead.

Detroit hasn’t been in control since, although it has had its opportunities, including driving deep inside Panthers territory in the second quarter. But Jared Goff and Frank Ragnow fumbled the snap, blowing an opportunity to take any early lead.

Now they trail big, and are at risk of blowing an opportunity to strengthen their playoff chances.

Especially if they can’t figure out what has happened to their run defense.

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