ALLEN PARK >> Getting to Andrew Luck, through the Colts’ revamped offensive line, didn’t prove easy.
Kerry Hyder, seeing his first NFL regular season action, was the only one from the Lions’ defense to sack Luck and he did it twice.
“Kind of how I felt in the preseason game,”Hyder said on Monday. “It was nice, I’m excited but still a lot of work to do. It’s Week One good to start off that way but still have 15 more games. I have to take it one game at a time.”
Hyder had three sacks in the final preseason game on Sept. 1.
PHOTOS FROM LIONS 39-35 WIN OVER COLTS
The defense did tip six balls and Hyder had two of those even though he only played 22 defensive snaps rotating in at defensive end.
“Every game’s a little bit different, they did a nice job of taking the necessary steps to try to make certain that a couple of our guys couldn’t get to him, double-teams and things of that nature makes it a little bit difficult,” coach Jim Caldwell said.
“Your numbers might not be great, but then guys like Kerry Hyder show up. I think overall, we’d certainly like to able to get more pressure on the passer, and we can do it a number of different ways. Sometimes you’re doing one thing to help others, and hopefully you’ll get some one-on-one’s where we should be able to get a little bit more pressure,” Caldwell added.
Hyder is the first rookie or first-year player acquired by the Lions as an undrafted free agent to register a sack in his first career game.
“It feels good to know I’m supposed to be here,” Hyder said. “To myself I’ve been a little confident that I can rush the passer in this league I have to keep at it, keep making strides.”
He became the 11th Lions defensive player to notch 2-plus sacks in the season opener since sacks became official in 1982 and first to do so since DE Kalimba Edwards at Oakland Sept. 9, 2007.
Martin’s big game
Sam Martin had a big payday on Friday and then went out on Sunday and proved why he was worth $13.6 million over four years.
Martin’s punting was pivotal in the Lions’ 39-35 win at the Indianapolis Colts.
“He had a tremendous game, with 55-point something in terms of his average,” Caldwell said, “He flipped the field for us once, all the way down to, I think, the seven-yard line or something, when they had a little bit something going. But they were able to certainly take it the length of the field and put it in the end zone on us,” Caldwell said.
“But he made it tough on them, all the way across the board, with (Johnson) Bademosi on the outside, (Don) Carey on the outside. (Special teams coordinator) Joe Marciano does a nice job of getting those guys doing what they’re supposed to do, and Sam just had one of those great days. That’s who he is, he’s been punting extremely well.”
Martin’s net average of 55.5 yards per punt was the best in the NFL on Sunday by nine yards. Carolina’s Andy Lee was second at 46.5 yards per punt. Martin’s four punts averaged 58.8 total yards with two inside the 20.
This and that
Caldwell would give no updates on injuries from the game. … The Lions rank fourth among teams all-time for the most wins in Week One of the season. It was Detroit’s fifth win in the past six season openers. … Caldwell said was well aware of the contingent of Lions fans at Lucas Oil Stadium. “You could hear them, particularly when they started to chant, ‘Let’s go Lions’ after one of the scores. It was quite evident not only to everybody on our bench, our team and the whole bit,” Caldwell said.
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