Detroit Lions coach Jim Caldwell rarely begins his news conferences with an opening statement. But he had one Monday.

Yes, Matthew Stafford injured his finger. Yes, he will play on Sunday against the New York Giants. No, don't ask him about it.

"He did have an issue with his finger, there's no question," Caldwell said. "He's going to be able to play in the next game, he's going to practice and those things."

The story pointed out that one complicating factor could be the weather. This is Detroit's first and only cold-weather game of the year, at the Giants, and freezing temperatures could affect anybody's ability to grip the football. And that's especially true of a quarterback who struggled to grip the football indoors because of a dislocated finger. Early forecasts have temps in the low to mid 40s as highs for next Sunday.

Lions OC Jim Bob Cooter believes Matthew Stafford could be at his best in a no-huddle offense.

It has been one of the most dramatic changes this season. Detroit was in the bottom third of the league in offensive pace under former coordinator Joe Lombardi, because he wanted to shuffle in personnel and packages at a dizzying rate.

Now, though, Detroit has been in the no-huddle 62 percent of their plays during the preseason. That's up from just 7 percent in the regular season last year.

"I think if you do it right -- if you do it well in general -- it's a more efficient way to go about your business," Cooter said. "Now does that mean we're always playing extremely fast? Absolutely not. But it also doesn't mean we never do that. We like to have all the options at our disposal. Sometimes we play fast, sometimes we don't. Sometimes we're in the huddle, out of the huddle."

The Lions’ offense really took off after Jim Bob Cooter took over as the play-caller, but that probably had more to do with the strength of schedule than anything he did. The Lions played Minnesota twice, Arizona, Seattle, Kansas City and Denver in their first eight games, and the schedule was significantly softer after the Week 9 bye. Still, Stafford was the #4 QB over the final eight weeks, averaging 21.5 points per game. The loss of Calvin Johnson will sting, but if Cooter’s influence is real, then Stafford could push for QB1 numbers if things break his way. Playing at a faster pace should only help, assuming the offense can move the ball effectively and stay on the field.

The Lions haven't scored much with their starting offense on the field, but they have moved the ball.

But Golden Tate is not concerned.

"I think we can be special," Tate said.

They put together a 12-play drive on their lone series in the preseason opener against Pittsburgh, before a Taylor Decker breakdown led to a sack-fumble. Then they went 10 plays and 79 yards to open against Cincinnati, before Tate dropped a would-be touchdown in the end zone.

QB Matthew Stafford has a 70.6-percent completion percentage, which is actually ahead of the pace he set in the second half of last season, and 171 yards through the air. He has not thrown an interception, though he does have two-sack fumbles.

Detroit has been without TE Eric Ebron and RB Ameer Abdullah as well, which isn't helping their production. Stafford's favorite target continues to be WR Marvin Jones, who leads Detroit with 81 receiving yards on five catches. That includes a 32-yard toe-dragger along the sideline last week, which helped set up a field goal. We've heard a lot about how Jones has been Stafford's go-to WR so far in camp and it's holding true in preseason games.

Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford whipped a pass toward the sidelines. It went over Nevin Lawson's shoulder -- he was turned, chasing Marvin Jones -- and right into Jones' hands.

It illustrated two things.

First, Stafford has complete comfort in Jones at this point. He likely doesn't make that throw to many other receivers on the roster and it showed just how good Jones' awareness and hands are. He put his hands up at the last possible second -- good trackers of the ball do that -- to throw off the defensive back and make the catch.

Second, the window Stafford threw the ball into was minuscule, even by NFL standards. The only way that pass was going to be completed was if he threw it in a small spot just over Lawson's shoulder. He did. It was complete. It was a heck of a play -- whether or not it counted.

It was a continuation of what has become a strong rapport between Stafford and Jones, the story said. This isn't the first we've heard about this chemistry, and it appears Jones could be the top WR target, passing Golden Tate who many assumed would take that role over from Calvin Johnson. The author went on to say he "can't think of a day when Jones had a bad day of practice."