It’s no secret that the “secret” sauce behind the Rams’ defensive success has been their defensive line. Rebuilt through Les Snead’s ability to find gems in the draft, the two monsters in the middle will be a big challenge for the Lions offense, according to Dan Campbell.
When talking about three-time Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald and Defense Rookie of the Year candidate Kobie Turner, the two men have combined for 17 sacks and 57 solo tackles in 2023.
Campbell had this to say about the Lions’ challenge of blocking the dynamic tandem on Sunday night.
“If you’re going to put your attention on 99, then we’ve got to win our one-on-one versus 91,” Campbell said. So, it’s challenging. (Turner’s) playing at a high level, he’s really coming on and he’s helping them because of that. And the minute you try to take care of him, then Aaron is by himself, and we know what he can do. There again though, I still like our matchup. I love our O-line and we’ve seen a lot of good defenses this year. We’ve faced a lot of good guys, lot of good fronts, and have accepted those challenges. So, this will be no different. This will be a big challenge, our guys accept it and it’s the strength of our team.”
It will be a challenge indeed but the Lions have one of the best offensive lines in football, captained by three-time Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow. With both Rams’ DC Raheem Morris and Lions’ OC Ben Johnson rising as head coaching candidates, the interior matchup could decide more than just this game.