Glover Quin, Former NFL Safety

The Detroit Lions are one of the best teams in the NFL, and they have legitimate Super Bowl expectations this year, and it's a story that's a whole lot of fun to watch and follow. Now, let's welcome in someone that played for the team, does a great job with Believe, the podcasting network Believe in Lions, and that is former Lions offensive back, Glover Quinn, here with us once again. Glover, appreciate the time, as always.

Thanks for it. How you been? Man, I've been good. How you been?

Well, I've been fantastic. So I was really impressed by the Lions effort this past weekend, and I know they got off to a slow start down 10-0 to the Vikings, overcoming that injury that happened the week prior to one of their leaders in Aiden Hutchinson. But to see them scratch out that victory up against the Minnesota Vikings with all they went through this past week and the slow start in the game up against Minnesota, extremely impressive.

Oh, yeah. I mean, they started out shaky, like you said, and I was sitting there like, oh, my gosh, this is going to be one of those games. You know, Minnesota came out. They had a, you know, a big play in the beginning.

Dan Campbell went forward on fourth down. They got a big stop. They had all the momentum, and they come out and get a run.

Aaron Jones down the sideline, and I'm just like, oh, boy, here we go, because I know how it is playing in Minnesota. It's a great environment. The fans are awesome, and they're a 5-0 football team. So, you know, they're playing with a lot of confidence.

Their fans are being fans with a lot of confidence, and so I'm like, it's going to be one of those games. And then, you know, they go down 10-0, and then all of a sudden the Lions put together a drive. They slowed the game down. David Montgomery went out the game, and when David Montgomery went out the game, I was sitting there with some friends watching the game, and I was like, you know, this right here just means they get a little more of Jameer Gibbs. You know, they get a little more of Jameer Gibbs, and he provided that spark that the Lions needed, that dynamic run down the sideline.

Incredible run, incredible footwork. And then once that kind of happened, it's kind of like they settled down. They took over the game. Jared Goff was dialed in, especially against the pressure. You know, those guys were just, they were rolling, and once they started, once they turned it around, I knew then, I was like, all right, I feel like they got it. They got it in the bag.

It was a really good game, though. Two really good football teams, and the Lions did it just enough to get the win. They're a deep team, and you watch this team. There's a lot of stars on the Lions.

I was having this conversation with a buddy of mine over the weekend. If you had to pick who their best player is, now with Hutch being out, who do you think their best player is, pound for pound, on this football team in Detroit? I mean, I think if you look defensively, you got to go with Brandon, I mean, Brian Branch. He's been playing awesome. You know, I think he's had four turnovers in the last two weeks, three interceptions, a forced fumble in Dallas, just been all over the field. So, I think him and, you know, obviously, Kirby Joseph has been playing well. The two safeties really have been playing well this season.

So, I think you really got to go there. Alene Nix. Hicks, I think his name has been, the D lineman. McNeil, McNeil, Alene McNeil.

Yeah, Alene McNeil. He's been playing really good on the inside as well. Obviously, he got the big extension. But I think pound for pound, you got to go with the safeties, and I'm going to say Brian Branch. Offensively, you know, me, obviously, Jared Goff is leading the charge. He's playing really well. But you look at, you know, Jameer Gibbs is dynamic.

David Montgomery, you know, they call themselves Sonic and Knuckles. And, you know, those guys are doing their thing, man. I think everybody's feeding off of the run game. And, you know, that opens up things for Omar and Ross St. Brown. They just got a whole slew of guys, but I think you got to go Brian Branch on defense. And probably Jared Goff for, you know, those two running backs on offense.

Yeah, I don't think there's a wrong answer. I could just as equally argue Amr and Ross St. Brown or even the big fella up front in Penay Sewell. I actually think the answer may be Penay Sewell. That offensive line is coming right now in Detroit. Oh, yeah, those guys, you know, when you build a team like that, you know, you're having Taylor Decker who's been there for a long time. Graham Glass has been there for a long time. You know, Penay Sewell, just all pro talent.

These guys are phenomenal. And when you when you build a team from the inside out, it allows you to be able to control the line of scrimmage. It allows you to be able to play tough, hard-nosed football and come downhill and just hit teams in the mouth and and and and insert your will on the game. And they've been doing that offensively and defensively.

And, you know, you're right. Penay Sewell may be one of the, you know, he's probably one of the best, you know, o-linemen in the game for sure. I saw a crazy stat the other day. The Lions offense is the only team, Glover Quinn, with more offensive TD's 18 than incompletion 16 in a four game span since the merger. With that being said, I know you've been very complimentary about Jared Goff. He's always been like, it's a complex conversation, even though he got to a Super Bowl in L.A., they gave up on him.

It's clearly now working in Detroit. How do you view Jared Goff as a quarterback? Just wondering right now when you compare him to the rest of the league. You know, I think, you know, Jared Goff is one of those guys that, you know, he has an even keel, even demeanor. You know, when he's rolling, he's rolling. You know, I'm not going to lie, I've been critical of Jared Goff in the past.

Last year, I think they were going on a stretch of a few games where the offense just wasn't performing really well. And I just felt like in that moment, we needed Jared Goff to provide a little spark. Sometimes you can't just, you know, be the calm guy. Sometimes you got to, you got to provide a little spark.

You got to, you got to, you know, say something sometimes. And so I've been critical of him, of that. But when he's good and he's rolling, he's rolling. And, you know, he doesn't, you know, force a lot of balls into coverage. So he doesn't throw a lot of interception, doesn't turn the ball over. I mean, he's had multiple games this year where he's been at least 12, 15, 18 for 18 passing. You know, I think Sunday he was probably 15 to 15 before he had his first incompletion.

I know another game this season, he was like 18 to 18. That's why they have more touchdowns than incompletions, because he's not throwing the ball into coverage a lot of times. A lot of times he's throwing the ball in the guys that are wide open. But that's a credit to the O-line that's giving him protection. He's not having to force and rush a lot of throws. He's not getting hit a lot.

And so that all plays a part into it. So the run game, being able to control the run game. I think a lot of those incompletions that he's had in this whole entire season came in week two against Tampa Bay, because they didn't establish the run game against Tampa Bay and they threw it way too many times.

I think that's probably when he had his most incompletions this entire season. Ever since then, they've kind of really been controlling the game, running the ball and throwing play action passes. And guys have been wide open. And when he's had to make a critical throw and critical moments, he's made that throw. But on the other hand, the guys are catching the ball. You see a lot of teams run a league where guys are dropping touchdowns, dropping passes. The Lions guys have really been catching the football. So it takes two. Jared Goff obviously has to make good throws.

And the guys on the other hand has to catch the ball. And they've been doing that. Last week, I had a chance, Glover Quinn, to talk to former NFL general manager Thomas Dimitrov. And I said, Lions, Max Crosby, trade with the Raiders. What is it going to cost the Lions? He said at least two first round picks.

Would you be willing to give up two first round picks for Max Crosby to get him in Detroit? I mean, I think that's that's tough. You know, I think they're in a position to where they can do it. I think they have a great group of young talent. You know, they've paid a lot of guys. They still got some guys left to pay.

They've drafted well over these last few years, so I don't know if they want to give up a first round draft pick. But I do know the windows in the NFL close real quick, just like they do on defense, right? When the guy is open, the quarterback has to anticipate that throw and make it because those windows close really quick.

So the window of winning, it closes really quick. And right now you've got a good group. You've got a bunch of young guys. You haven't had to pay Brian Branch yet.

You haven't had to pay Kirby Joseph yet. Jameer Gibbs, you know, you're going to have some guys coming down the pipeline. So I don't know if you give up two first rounds.

But if that's what you got to do, this this right here, this right here could be the year you might have to pull that trigger. Well, that's why I would say bleep the picks, you know, two first round picks the next two years. They're going to be pretty late picks anyway. You got a window to go win a Super Bowl for an organization, as you know, has never done it.

That's why I would do it if that's what the cost. But I'll ask you this on the flip side of that, Glover Quinn, with how the league is right now. And look at what the Chiefs are doing. They're winning with their defense first. I know they have the all time great quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, but he has right now more interceptions than touchdowns. And the way that they've won over the last year has been defense first. We know the lion's strength is offense. When you look at this defense, even without Hutch, do you think they don't need to be great? But can they still be good enough to win a Super Bowl with what you're seeing so far from this defense? Well, I think the thing, you know, they've been very opportunistic on defense. Like I said, I think Kirby Joseph has four interceptions.

I think Brian Branch has three, maybe he and then we caught two and Dallas caught one last week. So they've they've been really dynamic as a safety group. But the thing that was worrisome was this this past game in Minnesota. I don't know if they got enough pressure on Sam Darnold and, you know, Sam Darnold has been playing great this season.

Obviously, there were a 5-0 football team. But I think if you're going to beat and compete with the other top echelon teams, you're going to have to get some pressure on the quarterback because it's going to be tough for DBs to stick in coverage against the top teams, the better wide receivers consistently over the course of a game, especially when you're trying to get deep into the playoffs and get to the Super Bowl. So I think they definitely got to figure out a way to create some pressure. I don't know if they can continue to just a lot of quarterbacks to sit back and just have a field day and throw the ball to whoever they want to without any pressure. So they're going to figure something out.

Either they got to go and get somebody that that's that's going to cost a lot or you got to find somebody that that fits their system, fits what they're doing. Maybe somebody that's familiar with Aaron Glenn, you know, that they can get that may not cost as much, but could provide some kind of spark and they do it as a unit, you know, as a group of past rushers. But they're going to have to figure out a way to create some pressure. Last thing I'll ask you, because I think the Lions right now with the way that they're playing, they're the team to beat in the NFC. I'm down on Philly this year. I'm down in the Niners right now.

Rams are banged up. I truly do believe the representative in the Super Bowl, what I've seen so far, is coming out of the NFC North. So when you look at the entirety of the NFC with your playing background, who's the team that you're not afraid of, but maybe fear the most at all, they could be a pain in the rear end for the Lions and potentially prevent the Lions from getting to the Super Bowl in the NFC.

Well, I mean, I think if you if you're just looking at it in that regard, I think it would probably have to be one of the other teams in the NFC North, in my opinion, because we play those teams twice. And so, you know, it's hard to beat a team three times, right? So you beat Minnesota already. So you go beat Minnesota again when they come to Detroit. You know, you play Green Bay. So you beat Green Bay twice and then you run into those teams again in the playoffs.

You know, they're very familiar with you. Obviously, they're playing good football as well at the moment. And it's very hard to beat a team three times. And so those would be the teams that would probably worry me the most just because they're familiar and we've played them multiple times already. But like you said, I mean, I don't think the East is very strong, you know, with Dallas and the commanders.

I don't know. Well, you got Philly, obviously. And Philly can get hot, right? Philly got, they got players. And, you know, Philly may be having the formula that they want, right? Kind of struggle, grind through the season.

But, you know, get healthy at the right time. Guys kind of lock in at the right time and you get on fire in the last three or four weeks of the season. And ride that momentum into the playoffs.

You know, that's kind of the trend that they're on right now. Obviously, they come off a big game against the Giants this past week, so they could take that momentum and kind of get themselves going. The West, you know, San Francisco, they're the same type of team, right? Obviously, they lose Brandon Nyuk. But Debo Samuels, you know, hopefully they get Christian McCaffrey back at some point just because you want to see great players out there on the field. I don't know what was the final thing with his Achilles.

I don't know if it's torn or whatever, but he hasn't played yet. But San Francisco has been there each and every year, so you always got to think, you know, that they can get the job done as well. But if I just had to choose right now, like you said, I would say it would be one of those teams out of NFC North, Minnesota, Green Bay.

The team that we, you know, if we meet them in the playoffs, that would be our third time playing them this year. He's the former NFL defensive back for the Texans and the Lions. He, of course, is Glover Quinn, who now hosts Believe in Lions along with Lions writer Brandon Brown to bring you all the latest buzz surrounding coach Dan Campbell, Jared Goff, Jameer Gibbs, and the rest of this highly anticipated Lions squad. Glover, appreciate the time. Thanks for doing this. Oh, man, thank you for having me.