(Photo: Charlie Riedel, Associated Press)
Allen Park — The Detroit Lions have been pretty good at bottling up tight ends for as long as Matt Patricia has been coach. In 2018, despite a slate that included superstars Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle, the Lions allowed tight ends to catch 64 passes, the seventh-fewest in the NFL.
That success has carried over to the early portion of this season. Part of that is because the defense didn't see a viable threat at the position the first two weeks, but the unit did manage to hold Zach Ertz in check in a win over the Eagles last Sunday, keeping him to a season-low four catches, totaling 64 yards.