Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press

The Detroit Lions rank last in the NFL in third-down defense, but defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said the team's problems actually start earlier in drives.

"It’s not our third down, I think, is the problem," Austin said today. "It’s our second-down defense, 'cause we’re not getting them into third-and-longs."

The Lions are the only NFL team allowing opponents to convert more than 50% of their third downs, but statistically, they've been bad no matter the down and distance.

For the season, opponents are averaging 7.3 yards per pass on first and second down and 7.5 yards per pass on third down. On running plays, opponents are averaging 4.7 yards on first down, 5.5 yards on second down and 2.7 yards on third down (when runs typically come on third-and-short plays).

Last weekend, Washington converted 9 of 15 third downs, including 4 of 5 third-and-1s.

"We’re making a focus on that to try to do a better job of getting people in third-and-long," Austin said. "I think, when you look at our third-and-7-plus defense, it’s standard where we’re in shouting distance of what it is around the league, in terms of probably, I think we’re at 28% at that point. But it’s the other stuff where we’re not getting them into third-and-long and we can allow our pass rushers to get after people. So we’ve got to do a better job on second down to get them in third-and-long. And that’s, I think that’s the biggest thing that’s hampering our third-down defense."

The Lions (4-3) have struggled mightily in third-and-short situations this year, allowing conversions on 19 of 21 plays of third-and-2 or less.

Like most teams, they get better as the third-down attempts get longer, but the Lions still are allowing teams to convert an astounding 42.9% of third downs (12 of 28) between 6 and 10 yards.

Injuries have played a part in the Lions' struggles. Pro Bowl pass rusher Ziggy Ansah missed three games with a high ankle sprain and still doesn't have a sack this year, and top linebacker DeAndre Levy hasn't played since Week 1 because of a knee injury.

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But Austin also acknowledged that the Lions sometimes concede yards early in drives with a bend-but-don't-break philosophy that prevents big plays downfield.

"Sometimes you just make what we call a business decision and try to get them -- when you have an opportunity to get them into third-and-longs and not giving up something big," Austin said. "I still believe that you don’t want the ball to go over top of you just to try to get some type of third-down percentage. I think if we make teams work and try to go the hard way, as we’ve seen, they might get some seven-, eight-play drives, but it’s taken awhile and sometimes it’s harder for them to score."

That defensive approach is a big reason offenses like the Lions' ball-control passing attack work so well in the NFL now -- and why quarterbacks are completing passes at such a high rate.

But despite his defense's third-down struggles, Austin said the unit is doing plenty right.

"I thought we played really good defense last week, till the last two drives," Austin said. "Just didn’t get it done the last two drives. At the end of the day, you look up and you say, well, they only had 17 points and go, 'That’s winning defense in this league for a lot of teams.' So we try to look at the positive part of it. We know where we’ve got to improve and we try to improve those areas, but at the end of the day, we’re saying, 'Hey, listen, the bottom line is do we give ourselves and give our offense a chance to win the game?'"

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BYNES BACK: Linebacker Josh Bynes, whom the Lions signed Tuesday after they traded Kyle Van Noy to the New England Patriots, said he isn’t sure if he’s ready to play Sunday in Houston.

“Well, I don’t know,” he said. “We’ll see. Right now I’m just glad to be back, I’m glad to be back with the guys.”

Bynes spent a couple of months on the street, back home in Atlanta with his wife and two kids after the Lions cut him with an injury settlement after he injured his knee in the exhibition season.

The good news is that Bynes has lots of experience in the Lions defense. He started 11 games last year and played with Teryl Austin in Baltimore’s defense in 2011-13.

“There was some catching up to do,” Bynes said. “At the same time there was some familiarity. I’ve been in the same system, it’s my sixth year this year, so pretty much getting back into the swing of it, getting back into the football mode.”

LEFT OUT: Left guard Laken Tomlinson, a first-round draft pick last year, lost his starting job last week. He spoke Thursday for the first time since the move. He wouldn’t address exactly what coaches said about their decision to bench him in favor of rookie Graham Glasgow or what he needs to do to earn his job back. Bu the overarching theme of his focus was to become more consistent in practice and in games.

“I’ve just got to work hard,” he said. “Continue to work hard, be more consistent, come in every day with the mentality to compete. That’s all I can do for my team.”

BRIEFLY: Darius Slay missed his second day of practice Thursday with a hamstring injury and is not expected to play Sunday. Levy (knee), Corey Robinson (ankle) and Riley Reiff (illness) also remain out. … Marvin Jones returned to practice Thursday after his wife gave birth to the couple’s fourth child. Mya Love Jones weighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces.

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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