National Football League

Why the Lions' offense reminds Tom Brady of 2000s Colts

Updated Nov. 6, 2024 5:56 p.m. ET

Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs and Amon-Ra St. Brown, among many others, headline a high-flying and well-balanced Detroit Lions offense that leads the NFL in scoring (32.3 points per game), helping Detroit sport an NFC-best 7-1 record.

Tom Brady has made no secret of his admiration for Detroit's dynamic attack during the two Lions games he's broadcast as FOX Sports' lead NFL analyst. There's a good reason for that — the Lions' offense reminds Brady of one of his old rivals with the New England Patriots, he explained on Wednesday's edition of "The Herd."

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"I would say the early Colts offense we faced [is the only comparison I can make]" Brady told Colin Cowherd. "…They were so good, and I'm lucky I didn't have to go against them [as a defensive player]. [Then-Patriots coach Bill] Belichick would say 'Guys, listen, understand this, they are going to move the ball on us. They're too good. They got so many guys. They're going to go up and down [the field]. We need to play good red-area defense, and we're going to work on red-area defense on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday because that's going to decide the game.'"

Of course, that overpowering offense was led by seven-time All-Pro and Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning and featured a number of other different perennial Pro Bowlers who Brady listed, such as offensive linemen Jeff Saturday and Tarik Glenn, tight ends Marcus Pollard and Dallas Clark, receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Reggie Wayne, and running back Edgerrin James.

With Manning under center from 1998-2010, the Colts posted 10-plus wins in 11 seasons, won seven AFC South titles and, most notably, won Super Bowl XLI after a comeback from down 21-3 against Brady's Patriots in that year's AFC Championship Game.

The players that Brady referenced, along with Manning, combined for 42 Pro Bowl nods and three Pro Football Hall of Fame busts in Canton, Ohio.

Detroit appears to have built a similarly loaded core to lead its team out of the wilderness. The Lions followed a 3-13-1 campaign in 2021, their first season with head coach Dan Campbell with a 9-8 season that saw them win eight of their last 11 games. Last season, they won the NFC North at 12-5 and advanced to the NFC Championship Game.

On the ground, Gibbs and David Montgomery have combined for 1,144 yards and 14 touchdowns, with Gibbs rushing for an NFL-best 6.4 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Goff has totaled 1,840 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, four interceptions and a 115.0 passer rating, while completing an NFL-high 74.9% of his passes, vaulting him into the early NFL MVP conversation.

As for those who Goff is throwing to, St. Brown, a two-time Pro Bowler, logged 100-plus receptions in both 2022 and 2023 and is on pace to post a career-high in touchdowns this season (he has six touchdowns in eight games). He also is on a streak of 30 consecutive catches when targeted by Goff.

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Prior to getting a two-game suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy last month, wide receiver Jameson Williams logged 17 receptions for 361 yards (21.2 yards per reception) and three touchdowns. Meanwhile, tight end Sam LaPorta was a Pro Bowler in his 2023 rookie season, registering 86 receptions for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns. Offensive linemen Frank Ragnow and Penei Sewell are both multi-time Pro Bowlers, and Brady regards the latter as the best right tackle currently in the NFL.

Brady thinks it's a daunting task to game-plan for this offense.

"When you play the Lions, the only way to beat them is to play a style where the offense complements the defense, and then the kicking game does their job," Brady said. "Sometimes, when you punt, you play great field position. Offensively, the best defense against the Lions offense, to me, is possess the football. You don't want to make it a track meet against a team that can run it. They throw it to their tight end, they throw it to their receivers — when they get Jameson Williams back, they have the explosive receiver. They go for it on fourth down so often. You got to stop them for four downs, not just three, which is a really hard thing to do.

"To me, they got a great offense. They got a lot of humility. They got a great culture. To me, they're doing so many things the right way in the NFL right now."

Most recently, the Lions beat the NFC North rival Green Bay Packers on the road, 24-14, to take sole possession of first place in the division. This coming week, they have a road bout against the Houston Texans (6-3) on Sunday Night Football.

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