5 areas the Detroit Lions need to improve following bye week

4. Inside the 30 passer rating

Creating turnovers and being good on third down and in the red zone are vital to being a good defensive unit. STATS INC. breaks downs numbers both in the red zone (20 yards to goal line), but also inside the 30 to goal line.

In that 30-yard line to goal area, the Lions have allowed opponents to complete 27-of-38 (71.1 percent) of their passes with eight touchdowns and no interceptions for a 128.6 passer rating. That’s the highest rating allowed by any team in the NFL in that zone. The 4.8 yards per play opponents are getting inside the 30 are also a league high.

Part of the reason the Lions are on track to break the NFL record for fourth-down conversions and attempts is because they haven’t been good enough on third down. Detroit’s converting 36.9 percent (24-for-65) of the time on third down, which ranks 22nd. Buffalo and Kansas City, two teams considered to have explosive, high-powered offenses, convert better than 50 percent of the time on third down to lead the league.

On 3rd and 1, the Lions’ offense has converted just 2-of-5 times (ranks 28th).