Detroit Lions were the NFL's most effective screen pass team in 2024
The Detroit Lions offense is great at many facets of the game. With considerable talent all over the formation and a savvy field commander in QB Jared Goff, there isn't much Detroit doesn't do well.
One specific area where the Lions offense thrives is the screen pass. The Lions made great use of the skills of the receivers and linemen on screens.
According to Pro Football Focus data, no team was more successful when throwing a screen pass in 2024 than the Lions were:
This isn't to say that offenses aren't executing screens at a high level. The Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Arizona Cardinals all averaged at least 0.2 EPA and 6.5 yards per play on screen passes last year.
The Buccaneers, specifically, utilized screens often and effectively in 2024 under then-offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Tampa Bay ranked fourth in the NFL in screen usage (17.0% of dropbacks) and second behind only the Detroit Lions in EPA per screen (0.257). That type of efficiency has become more the exception than the baseline, yet screen rates continue to climb across the league.
Both RB Jahmyr Gibbs and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown thrived on passes behind the line of scrimmage. Gibbs earned a PFF grade of 91.3 on 38 targets, while St. Brown posted a 92.1 grade on a perfect 10-for-10 receptions on targets in those situations. Not all are screens, but that's an indication of why the Lions topped the league in success on screen passes.
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