Lions’ New Coach Makes Team Forget Ben Johnson in Statement Win Over Ravens

The Detroit Lions stunned the Ravens 38-30 on Monday Night Football, showing off their toughness and balanced offense. “From the Packers game? Can we move on from that game? Yeah, let’s move on,” John Morton said after being asked about the red zone issues in the week-1 loss. This road game against the Ravens, who have seemed invincible in the 2025 season, was a statement for Morton. The Lions’ offense was effective in every area of the game. 

Detroit launched a ground-and-pound attack. David Montgomery ran for 151 yards and two touchdowns, including a late 31-yarder to seal the win. Jahmyr Gibbs contributed two more running touchdowns and 67 yards on the ground. The Lions outrushed the Ravens 224 to 85, the third-most allowed in the Harbaugh era.

“That’s a great win. We did exactly what we said we needed to do, played complementary freakin’ football, man. When we need it the most, every phase picked up the slack, man. That’s how you win games against teams like that, “ Dan Campbell said in his locker room speech.  

The Detroit Lions controlled the line of scrimmage on defense. The Lions applied pressure throughout the game and stopped multiple drives by sacking Lamar Jackson seven times. They performed admirably at crucial times as well. One of the most crucial was a fourth-and-two from their own 49 late in the fourth quarter. The first improvement on the inside of the offensive line is the new guard and center position, which allows Goff plenty of time and offers both backs huge runways. This created a clutch convert by Jared Goff with Amon-Ra St. Brown.

“To get seven sacks against Jackson is insane, hats off to our defense,” said Lions receiver Amon-Ra St Brown after the game.

Errors cost Baltimore. In the fourth quarter, Detroit had a great field position after Derrick Henry fumbled. Despite his numerous touchdown passes, including one to Mark Andrews late in the game, Lamar Jackson was unable to overcome the tenacity and momentum of the Lions. The way their season’s started, it looks like the Lions are chasing redemption from last year’s end-of-season struggles.

Detroit Lions chase redemption in 2025 after Ben Johnson’s brilliance

The Detroit Lions achieved new heights in 2024, a first for the team. Detroit completed 15–2, secured the top seed in the NFC, and led the league in scoring at more than 33 points per game thanks to Ben Johnson’s creation of one of the most inventive football attacks.

Alongside wideouts Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams, David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs both achieved 1,000 scrimmage yards, making it the first time an NFL team had four such weapons in a single season. But in January, after Washington stunned Ford Field with a surprising upset in the playoffs, what had started as a dream run came to an end.

Detroit was hungry after the defeat, but it was also at a turning point. The Detroit Lions gave the keys to John Morton, a seasoned assistant tasked with maintaining and possibly even improving the machine Johnson created, once Johnson left for a head coaching position towards the end of January. Morton’s offense struggled right away in 2025, casting a question on whether the magic could be repeated.

However, the decisive victories against Chicago and Baltimore displayed moments of ingenuity and perseverance, as the run game hammered defenses and Jared Goff flourished. At this early point in the season, Detroit’s 2-1 record makes them seem more dangerous than many had thought.