If you’re looking for an area where greater authority could enable Lions interim coach Darrell Bevell to have an impact, watch the offense and the game tempo.
In his press conference on Thursday, Bevell talked about a desire to mix things up with the pacing and tempo on offense. It’s an effort to keep the defense guessing and not be as predictable on offense.
There’s definitely a pace we want to have,” Bevell said. “There’s a pace you want to have when you’re changing personnels, so you’re going to be on-and-off the field, in-and-out of the huddle, we talk about that. But then also, there is change of paces whether it’s a huddle that you break quickly, whether it’s no-huddle, so just different style of tempos. But we are always preaching pace, and always preaching tempo.”
The Lions have been fairly quick overall in terms of neutral-situation game tempo in 2020, according to Football Outsiders. Bevell is talking more about mixing in a drive of hurry-up or going with a quick snap count unexpectedly during a drive more than an overarching philosophy, and that could indeed turn the tempo more into a weapon for his offense.
