Lions' loss to Bills has panic level high after another poor performance by defense

Sep 18, 2026 at 1:22 am ET • 2 min read

Unless something drastically changes, the Detroit Lions will join another notable NFL team whose Super Bowl hopes were dashed by a woefully underperforming defense.  

In 2000, the Rams boasted the NFL's best offense, but their toothless defense resulted in an early playoff exit. This year's Lions could suffer an even worse outcome. Their defense prevented them from making the playoffs in 2025, and that could very well happen again in 2026. 

The issues started last week in New Orleans. After building a 21-0 lead, Detroit's defense was torched by Saints quarterback Tyler Shough, who threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns. The Lions prevailed in overtime, but the writing was on the wall. 

Turnovers are a bad defense's best friend. That was the case in Week 1 as the Lions managed to force three turnovers of Shough. They were also able to sack him five times. 

But Week 2 was a very different story. Allen was protected well, and he didn't commit a single turnover. More so, Allen ran circles around a Lions defense that simply had no answers him. 

The Lions' defense couldn't contain Allen on the ground (he ran for 69 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries) or in the air. Even more alarming was the lack of defenders around Allen's receivers. The biggest example of this was Josh Palmer's 43-yard touchdown catch that gave the Bills a 14-0 lead. 

We haven't even talked about James Cook III, who gashed Detroit for 135 yards and a score on 21 carries. Cook spent the night looking like Bo Jackson in Techno Bowl. 

To be fair, the Lions faced one of the league's best offense and arguably its best player in Allen, who is making a very early case for league MVP. But even when you consider the opponent, the fact that they were out-played that badly, it raises serious concerns about this team's ability to make the playoffs, let along compete for a Super Bowl. 

Detroit has good defensive players. Aidan Hutchinson (who had one of Detroit's two sacks of Allen) is one of the NFL's premier pass rushers. Jack Campbell has become one of the league's most productive inside linebackers. The Lions just simply don't have enough good players on that side of the ball, though. Until they do, they are not going to be a legitimate threat to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl five months from now. 

If Lions GM Brad Holmes wants to change that, he needs to work the phones in an effort to acquire someone -- anyone -- who can help his defense before the Nov. 10 trade deadline. His first call should be to Steelers GM Omar Khan about cornerback Joey Porter Jr., who continues to be mired in a contract dispute. 

There are reports that the Steelers' asking price for Porter is scaring teams off. Holmes, however, should give Khan whatever he wants -- within reason -- for Porter, a talented player who is just entering his prime. Holmes owes that to his defense, his talented offense, and most especially, to the Lions' long-suffering fan base who deserves to be rewarded for its decades of loyalty.