Justin Rogers' Lions grades: Detroit passes Jaguars test with flying colors

Detroit — Justin Rogers grades the Detroit Lions' performance in their 40-14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Quarterbacks

Coach Dan Campbell said Jared Goff played as well as any quarterback in the league Sunday, and it's difficult to argue against the results. The Lions QB completed 31-of-41 throws for 341 yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers.

The ball placement wasn't always pristine, including an early throw to Amon-Ra St. Brown that was deflected by the defender before it was caught, but Goff made good decisions all afternoon and, outside of that aforementioned throw, put it where only his guys could catch it the rest of the day. Grade: A

Running backs

D'Andre Swift turned a corner with his health this week and was rewarded with a season-high-tying 18 touches. He responded with 62 yards and a touchdown on the ground and another 49 yards on four catches. Jamaal Williams also did well with his opportunities, providing some short-yardage conversions and his league-leading 14th touchdown of the season with 11 carries. Grade: B+

Wide receivers/tight ends

Detroit's receivers had an excellent day, routinely exhibiting impressive concentration to make catches in traffic and away from their frame. St. Brown continues to be the engine of Detroit's offense, pacing the team with a career-high 11 receptions, including a pair of touchdowns.

DJ Chark also had his best day in Honolulu blue, hauling in five balls for 98 yards, including a tough deep ball where the defending cornerback had an arm in between Chark's when he brought in the 41-yard gain. Grade: A

Offensive line

The Jaguars might not have entered the day with many sacks, but they had a reputation for generating plenty of quarterback pressure. Goff ate a couple of sacks and a few other hits, mostly on blitzes, but more often than not he had plenty of time to comfortably sit in the pocket and progress through his reads.

The ground game wasn't nearly as effective, averaging 3.5 yards per carry when you factor out the two QB kneel downs at the end of the contest, but the team only lost yardage once on 29 carries. Grade: B+

Defensive line

John Cominsky quietly had a good day, forcing a pair of punts in the first half with a run stop and a batted pass on third downs. Additionally, rookies Aidan Hutchinson and James Houston contributed sacks.

When it came to the ground game, the Jaguars were able to find space to operate. Star runner Travis Etienne had 54 yards on 13 carries, while QB Trevor Lawrence found some breathing room on some designed runs, gaining 32 yards on four attempts, including a fourth-down conversion. Grade: B

Linebackers

Detroit's linebackers had a relatively quiet afternoon in the second level, combining for just 11 tackles, but two of those stops can behind the line of scrimmage.

Alex Anazlone, who also recovered a fumble in the first quarter, slammed the door on any hope of a comeback for Jacksonville by dropping Etienne in the backfield on an attempted screen pass in the final frame. Grade: B+

Secondary

Safety DeShon Elliott set the tone for the day by forcing a fumble on the second snap of the game, stripping the ball from Etienne after standing up the shifty back in the open field. In coverage, the Lions gave up some chunk gains, occasionally struggling with pick plays, but Will Harris and Jerry Jacobs each scored a pass breakup, while Jeff Okudah was all over Jacksonville's receivers whenever he was tested by Lawrence.

Additionally, Detroit's coverage played a big role in the team holding the Jaguars to 3-of-12 on third downs. Grade: B+

Special teams

It was a banner day for coordinator Dave Fipp's group. Michael Badgley outscored the Jaguars, making all four of his field-goal attempts, as well as four PATs. Meanwhile, both punt returner Kalif Raymond and kick returner Justin Jackson found breathing room, with the latter averaging 35.5 yards on his two efforts. Finally, the coverage unit also did a solid job bottling up Jaguars return man Jamal Agnew. Grade: A

Coaching

The Lions coaching staff pushed all the right buttons with both their planning and in-game execution of that plan. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, in particular, dialed up a good mix of plays, and, more importantly, never took the foot off the gas, as the Lions scored 40 points for the second time this season.

Campbell kept his usual aggressiveness in check, taking the points when drives stalled deep in Jacksonville territory. He also managed the clock well at the end of the half, leaving the Jaguars with too little time to respond after a Lions field goal, plus won an early challenge that led to points. Grade: A

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @Justin_Rogers