Passing efficiency wins games in the NFL.

Since 2020, NFL teams have a record of 1,299-343-5 when finishing a game with a better passer rating than their opponent, which equates to a winning percentage of .790.

It’s no wonder, then, that quarterbacks are considered the most important players in the sport.

And if quarterbacks are the most important players in the sport, it stands to reason that the second-most important part of the sport is the battle between the quarterback’s bodyguards and the guys who are hired to crush the quarterback.

Therefore, one would think that if a certain team struggled mightily to protect their own quarterback, but excelled at harassing the opponent’s quarterback, then that team is probably known for engaging in gritty, ugly football games, a byproduct of having an immobile offense and a strong defense.

That could not be further from the case for the 2026 Detroit Lions.

Two games into the 2026 season, Detroit has witnessed a stunningly paradoxical relationship between the pass-blocking battle and their overall success on each side of the ball.

The 2026 Detroit Lions defy football logic: Starting with the offense

Offensively, the Lions have been excellent, scoring 31 points in each of their first two contests, continuing the elite success they have had on that side of the ball since 2022. They are also second in the NFL with 25.0 first downs per game.

Strangely, though, they have accomplished this despite awful pass protection. Detroit’s offense has a pass-blocking grade of 54.5 at Pro Football Focus, ranking 27th in the NFL.

Starting quarterback Jared Goff has had to work around some brutal offensive line play. According to PFF, the offensive line was at fault for 92% of his pressured dropbacks this season, ranking fourth-highest among quarterbacks. Goff himself was only on the hook for 8% of his own pressured dropbacks, the eighth-lowest rate.

How could an offense be this good when the pass protection is this bad?

Simple: The quarterback has put the team on his back, thriving in spite of the pressure.

Picture Goff as a fantastic contested jump shooter, like Jalen Brunson (sorry, Pistons fans, Cade Cunningham doesn’t get the nod for this metaphor). The defense is doing its job by continuously getting in his face to make life as difficult as possible, but he keeps putting the ball where it needs to go regardless.

Goff has been the NFL’s best quarterback under pressure this season, leading the league with a 111.1 passer rating under pressure, per PFF. When pressured, Goff has completed 12 of 23 passes for 202 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions, and that’s with one drop, three batted passes, and two passes broken up by a quarterback hit.

It’s unusual to see this from Goff, who has a reputation as an elite pocket passer who can dice up defenses from a clean pocket but crumbles under pressure.

Typically, Goff has one of the league’s widest disparities between clean-pocket efficiency and under-pressure efficiency. For instance, in 2025, Goff ranked 16th in under-pressure passer rating (70.6), but second in clean-pocket passer rating (121.7).

Goff has still been great when kept clean this year, posting a 114.0 passer rating, but the difference is that he’s suddenly looked surgical when pressured. Compared to the 51.1-point decline in his passer rating when pressured in 2025, there’s only been a 2.9-point drop this year.

Time will tell whether it’s a two-game blip or if Goff has legitimately improved in that area. For the New York Jets, though, it’s imperative to put that question to the test in Week 3.

Goff has spent years known as a quarterback who falters under pressure more than most starters in the league. Are they to believe that he has suddenly transformed into an elite under-pressure passer at 31 years old?

If the Lions’ pass protection does not improve, Goff is due to come back down to earth as an under-pressure passer, barring a shocking late-career leap in that facet. That would dramatically sink Detroit’s offensive ceiling, as, for now, Goff’s under-pressure precision is what has kept the Lions’ aerial attack in the elite ranks despite shoddy pass protection.

Our Connor Long highlighted the favorable matchups that New York’s edge rushers will face on both sides of the line. David Bailey will have a chance to cook against Detroit’s right tackle, whether it’s rookie Blake Miller or backup Larry Borom, while left tackle Penei Sewell has been shaky since switching positions, opening the door for Kingsley Enagbare and Will McDonald to make noise on the blind side.

The Jets need their edge rushers to simply win their one-on-one battles, but head coach Aaron Glenn must do his part to pressure Goff by consistently bringing the heat, helping to maximize the number of reps in which Goff has to deal with pressure.

New York should strive to make Goff throw as many pressured passes as possible. Challenge him to prove that he is no longer the guy whose passer rating drops by over 50 points when pressured.

If Goff regresses to the mean as an under-pressure passer, everything could fall apart for the Lions’ offense. Right now, they’re maintaining their elite offensive production thanks almost solely to Goff’s under-pressure accuracy bailing out a struggling offensive line. The Jets have a chance to finally make Detroit pay for the protection woes up front.

On the other side of the ball, Detroit has dealt with the opposite story.

The Lions’ defense is doing an excellent job of getting after the quarterback, tying for fourth in both sacks per game (3.5) and quarterback hits per game (8.5). They have the league’s sixth-best pass-rush grade (74.5), per PFF, the mirror image of the offense, which is sixth-worst in pass-blocking grade.

Despite applying plenty of pressure on opposing signal-callers, the Lions’ defense is still bleeding points and yards. They rank 31st in both points per game (35.5) and total yards per game (457.5).

This is primarily because the Lions’ coverage is having the opposite effect of Goff’s under-pressure passing.

The same way that Goff’s ability to hit difficult passes has negated the pressure he’s been under, the secondary’s susceptibility to allowing separation has negated the pressure that the front seven is creating.

According to FTN Fantasy, the Lions have allowed an open-target rate of 88.6% on plays where they put the opposing quarterback under pressure, the worst rate in the NFL. For perspective, the league median is 64.7%, so the Lions’ rate is extremely bad.

With that type of coverage, it’s no wonder that Detroit’s pass-rush success has not translated to overall defensive success. A great pass rush can only do so much if the quarterback can still find an open receiver on nine out of every 10 pressured passes.

As a result, the Lions have yielded a 12.8% explosive-play rate (20+ yards) on pressured pass attempts, ranking second-worst in the league. They have also allowed a 61.3% conversion rate on third or fourth-down pressured passes, placing third-worst.

How does all of this affect the Jets’ game plan?

Well, the Jets can expect some trouble in pass protection, even with how well their offensive line has pass-blocked through the first two games. The Lions pose a much different challenge in protection than the Titans or Packers did. Aidan Hutchinson is a game-wrecker, and he opens everything up for the rest of Detroit’s front seven.

However, the kicker is that, even if the Lions cause havoc in the backfield, the first two weeks showed that their secondary is so exploitable that you can rack up points and yards no matter how successful the pass rush is.

Obviously, the Jets will do everything in their power to shut down Hutchinson and enjoy another week of strong pass protection in front of Geno Smith, but they must realize that there will be avenues for Smith to be successful even if they struggle to protect him.

The key is getting the ball out quickly.

Without safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph, the Lions are yielding separation so easily that opponents have been able to make plays through the air without needing much time for things to develop. That’s why the pass rush isn’t affecting games; they aren’t being given enough time to get home.

According to NFL Pro, the Lions’ opponents are averaging 2.69 seconds to throw, ranking sixth-fastest in the league. More importantly, though, is that the Lions have faced the league’s highest total of quick passes, and they have been atrocious at stopping them.

Detroit has faced a league-high 20.5 quick passes per game (throws released in under 2.5 seconds). On those passes, the Lions have given up 14.8 total EPA (Expected Points Added), the worst mark in the NFL. Their average of 0.36 EPA per attempt allowed on quick passes ranks fifth-worst.

The Jets will have plenty of chances to complete productive passes without needing the offensive line to hold up for 2.5 to 3 seconds. Detroit’s secondary is ripe for the picking, yielding ample separation before you can get halfway through three-Mississippi.

That should heavily influence the Jets’ game plan. Get the ball out quickly, and not only will New York stop Hutchinson from ruining the game, but they will probably rack up passing yards, anyway, given how easily Detroit is yielding separation.

The Jets must use Detroit’s bizarre makeup against them

The Lions have been a football paradox through two weeks, delivering results that go against the sport’s conventional wisdom. It’s up to the Jets to exploit that on both sides of the ball.

Defensively, look for them to push Jared Goff to regress to the mean as an under-pressure passer. Offensively, expect Frank Reich to challenge Detroit’s secondary to stop quick passes before he even thinks about making Geno Smith run long-developing plays against Hutchinson and the Lions’ thriving pass rush.