Lions: Notebook

Jim Schwartz laments lack of big offensive plays

John Niyo / The Detroit News

Allen Park -- The intention is clear. The results are not.

Coach Jim Schwartz lamented his team's reliance on "small ball" offensively after their 17-10 loss to the Rams on Sunday. But Schwartz wasn't pinning the blame solely on the Lions' running game. The absence of top receiving threat Calvin Johnson, who is expected back for this week's game at Seattle, along with some errant throws by Matthew Stafford and a half-dozen drops by his receivers, all contributed to another "toothless" day for the offense.

"Particularly early in that game, we came out and really wanted to establish run, run, run, run," said Schwartz, whose team ran on five consecutive plays to start the game -- the sixth was negated by a penalty -- and 11 of the first 15 snaps against St. Louis. "We moved the ball pretty effectively there. We got the ball right to midfield. Had a little setback with a penalty, had a chance to get in the field-goal range on the opening drive, and couldn't execute a catch down the field."

After penalties on tight ends Brandon Pettigrew and Will Heller left the Lions facing third-and-14 from the Detroit 40, Bryant Johnson failed to catch a pass for a 30-yard gain down the sideline.

"That play makes that drive at least three points if not a chance to be seven right there," Schwartz said. "So, the run game had an effect in opening up the pass game, even though the numbers were pedestrian."

Still, the pedestrian numbers remain a concern. Kevin Smith, who said he felt "rejuvenated" after the bye week, moved the chains early but again had his day cut short by an aggravated shoulder injury. He finished with 16 carries for 45 yards and four catches for 49 yards, while backup Maurice Morris added 14 carries for 63 yards and a 19-yard reception.

The Lions finished the game with 127 rushing yards and a per-carry average of 3.8 yards, matching their season average that ranks 25th in the league. They rank 20th in the NFL in rushing with 103 yards per game.

"We came out and we ran the ball effectively," Schwartz said. "But there's a difference between efficient runs and explosive runs. When you run the ball on third-and-1 and you gain one yard that doesn't look really good on your final stats, but that was a good run.

"We need to break some longer runs. We need a running back that squirts through there for eight yards, makes a safety miss and goes 40 or goes 30 or goes 25. That's really where our running game's lacking. Not from an efficiency standpoint, because we've made consistent yards."

Through seven games, Detroit's longest run from scrimmage remains a 32-yard scramble by quarterback Daunte Culpepper. Smith is averaging just 3.1 yards per carry, and his longest run is a 20-yarder in the shutout loss at Green Bay. To his credit, Smith, a second-year back, was candid with his self-criticism heading into the St. Louis game, saying, "I feel like I've got 10 games to prove myself to the organization and the rest of the people around the league."

Morris and rookie Aaron Brown could see an increased share of the workload this week at Seattle, depending on Smith's health. But Schwartz made it clear Monday that Smith is still his No. 1 back.

"Kevin is our workhorse running back, getting most of the carries, but we always had in the plan that Maurice was going to get carries in the game," he said.

Extra points

The Lions placed cornerback Demarcus Faggins on injured reserve Tuesday. He was injured early in the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss to the Rams.

To replace him, the team signed free agent cornerback Jason David , a sixth-year pro who started 18 games and had eight interceptions the last two seasons for New Orleans. He was waived by the Saints in mid-August.

... Defensive end Jason Hunter , who missed the last two games because of an ankle injury, is expected to resume practicing today.

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