It’s been quite some time since we checked in with Detroit Lions fans regarding their opinion of general manager Brad Holmes. The last time we polled our audience was almost exactly a year ago, following the team’s 2025 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, those poll results were lost to time (and a migration to a new content management system at SB Nation).
Detroit, MI
Lions grades: Detroit survives vs. Giants despite offensive miscues, defensive breakdowns
Detroit — Richard Silva grades the Detroit Lions in their 34-27 win over the New York Giants.
Quarterback
Jared Goff wasn’t done any favors by his teammates. His lone interception was caused by a tipped pass that should’ve been caught — there were other drops, as well — and his mobility was the only reason he wasn’t sacked more than three times. He had a couple of big-time throws, including a rifled ball to Amon-Ra St. Brown that went for 20 yards on third-and-medium. Goff’s final line: 28-of-42 for 279 yards and two touchdowns. Grade: B
Running backs
What more is there to say about Jahmyr Gibbs? One of the best players on the planet dominated for the third week in a row, and this was the best game of his career. He took the first snap of overtime 69 yards to the house. He ripped off a 49-yard rush before catching a touchdown two plays later to cap a pivotal drive in the second quarter. He scored on another 49-yarder later in the game. He’s an incredibly special talent. Grade: A+
Wide receivers/tight ends
Drops have officially become a problem for St. Brown. The receiver entered Week 12 with five on the season, and he couldn’t corral two balls he should’ve caught, including a costly pass in the third quarter that tipped off his fingers and into the arms of safety Jevon Holland. St. Brown was Detroit’s most productive pass-catcher, snagging nine of his 13 targets for 149 yards and a touchdown. His score was the result of a screen. He showed good initial patience and proceeded to carry a handful of defenders with him into the end zone. Kalif Raymond hauled in a 30-yard reception with less than 30 seconds remaining in the first half, putting kicker Jake Bates in position to make a 37-yarder before halftime. Grade: B-
Offensive line
Kayode Awosika struggled in his third game filling in for the injured Christian Mahogany at left guard, allowing two of New York’s three sacks. He was swiftly beaten by Rakeem Nuñez-Roches on the second instance, giving Goff no chance to get through his progressions. The third sack came due to defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence getting initial pressure against Graham Glasgow, which forced Goff to scramble into Darius Alexander, who had two sacks. The rookie previously only had a half-sack on the season. Grade: D
Defensive line
I’m concerned about the pass rush, but Aidan Hutchinson saved the day by sacking Jameis Winston on fourth down to slam the door on the Giants. The grade here also gets a significant boost (it’d be much lower if it only focused on rushing the passer) because of Detroit’s run defense; the Giants averaged 3.1 yards per attempt, and the interior of the line defensive line (notably, Roy Lopez) deserves credit. Grade: D+
Linebackers
Jack Campbell once again paced the Lions in total tackles (11), and he had as much to do with the team’s efforts in stopping the run as anyone, notching at least three run stops. Alex Anzalone had a couple run stops, too, but he was one the wrong end of an impressive 24-yard catch from tight end Theo Johnson, who went up and high-pointed the ball with Anzalone in coverage. Derrick Barnes wasn’t at fault for a deep pass to Winston on a trick play, but he was in the wrong for not being able to get Winston to the ground after the QB caught the pass. Grade: B
Secondary
Covering Wan’Dale Robinson proved difficult. There were a handful of gains that were the result of well-schemed passes to the nimble receiver out of the slot, but Robinson also flat-out beat Amik Robertson. Robinson (a career-best 156 yards on nine catches) caught a touchdown on New York’s opening drive. It was a double-pass, and Thomas Harper, who later hauled in an interception, was baited out of position. D.J. Reed lost Isaiah Hodgins on a critical third-and-10 with the Giants backed up near their own goal line, and Brian Branch had a pass interference against Johnson later on that same drive. Robertson made up for some of his earlier errors with a crucial pass breakup late in regulation. Grade: D
Special teams
Bates made both of his field-goal attempts, knocking through the aforementioned 34-yarder and an absolutely massive 59-yarder to tie the score with 28 seconds remaining. Jack Fox had perhaps his best game of the season, as he averaged 40 yards across five punts and pinned the Lions inside their own 10-yard line on four occasions. Grade: A+
Coaching
With their backs against the wall, the Lions answered. Was it pretty? No. Were there mistakes? Plenty. But for the first time this season, the Lions rallied from down multiple possessions and snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. That’s coaching. Dan Campbell made his errors — wasting his final timeout in regulation after a spiked ball sticks out — but this grade was saved by the culture he’s built. Grade: B
rsilva@detroitnews.com
@rich_silva18
4Warn Weather – SATURDAY: Mostly cloudy skies. A chance of showers and thunderstorms. A few storms could be strong with gusty winds and hail. High: 71.
SATURDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy skies, becoming partly cloudy skies late. Low: 45.
SUNDAY (MOTHER’S DAY): Mix of sunshine and clouds, cooler temperatures. High: 61.
SUNDAY NIGHT: Partly cloudy skies. Another chilly night. Low: 41.
MONDAY: Mostly sunny skies, remaining chilly. High: 58.
After a beautiful end to the week on Friday with sunshine and a little cloud cover, with warmer temperatures moving into the region as well, some of us are waking up to some patchy dense fog on Saturday morning. Some places south of M-59 are seeing reduced visibilities down to around a mile. If you do run into some patchy dense fog, be sure to use your low beams.
That warming trend continues into the start of the weekend on Saturday, but it also brings a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Another cold front will work through the region by Saturday afternoon and early Saturday evening and that will bring our thunderstorm chance. High temperature is warming into low 70s by Saturday afternoon.
The Storm Prediction Center has placed most of the region under a Marginal Risk (1 out of 5) on our severe weather scale for the start of the weekend. Gusty winds and hail are the primary threats as we work through the start of the weekend, but this will not be a widespread threat for severe thunderstorms.
Behind that cold front for the end of the weekend on Sunday, we will keep a mixture of sunshine and clouds into the forecast. High temperatures running about 10 to 15° cooler to end the weekend. Expect high to warm into the upper 50s to lower 60s by Sunday afternoon.
Drier weather sticks around for the start of next week, before another chance of rain moves into the region by the time we get to Tuesday. The cooler-than-average temperatures will continue into the start of next week as well. Expect high temperatures to remain in the 50s for Monday and Tuesday.
Temperature start to warm up by the middle of next week, and Drier weather moves back in by Wednesday behind another cold front moving into the region. Expect high temperatures into the lower 60s on Wednesday to warm into the upper 60s by the time we get to Thursday. Above average temperatures move back into the region as we look ahead into the end of the week, expect high temperatures back into the lower 70s by the time we get to Friday.
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But as you can see below, Holmes has been an extremely popular figure among Detroit sports fans for pretty much his entire career.
Although, if there was a time when Holmes’ popularity took a hit, it was likely during the 2025 NFL season, when the Lions took their first clear step back since he and Dan Campbell came to town.
Since last year’s data was lost to time, this is a good opportunity to check back in with Lions fans. While Holmes certainly deserves a ton of credit for getting the Lions back to relevancy and helping them produce four consecutive seasons with winning records, there are some serious blemishes on his resumé now. The 2024 NFL Draft class has not lived up to his high standards through two seasons, some of his riskiest picks over the last few years have all failed to pay off, and last year’s roster just wasn’t good enough to withstand the injuries.
But Holmes is also coming off a very crowd-pleasing draft. Detroit addressed their two biggest needs with their first two selections, and there were no crazy head-scratching picks or expensive trade ups. Many have categorized his latest draft as “back to business as usual,” which could have some fans he lost back on his side.
However, that is all up to you. Vote on your thoughts about Holmes’ time in Detroit below, and share your extended thoughts in the comment section at the bottom of the page.
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