Effort play: Stuard had the early mistake with the fumble, but he also made a play late in the first quarter that showed exactly the kind of effort he plays with. Los Angeles started a drive on their 20-yard line and the first play of the drive Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard dialed up a blitz for Stuard. He rushed up the middle and was cut down by the running back but still raced to his feet and was able to sack Chargers quarterback Trey Lance. Stuard finished with four tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.
Kickoff adjustments: We got our first look at the newest changes to the dynamic kickoff rule first implemented in 2024 to promote more kickoff returns while continuing to make the play safer. We saw only one touchback on a kickoff in the contest. There was also a penalty on Detroit’s Jake Bates for landing a ball short of the landing zone that is from the 20-yard line to the goal line. That awarded the Chargers the ball at their own 40-yard line.
New virtual measurement: We also got our first look at the NFL’s new virtual measurement system for first downs, which allows the NFL to accurately measure the distance between the spotted ball and the line to gain without having to bring out the chains. It seemed to have gone off without a hitch Thursday and should help keep the flow of the game going without lengthy measurement timeouts.
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