Another one bites the dust.
The injury-ravaged Detroit Lions – with a league-high 18 players on injured reserve – disposed of the Green Bay Packers Thursday night, notching their franchise-best 11th straight win of the season. In doing so, Dan Campbell's team swept the season series against its NFC North rivals from Madison, Wisc., and improved to 4-0 on the campaign against its divisional opponents.
It was far from easy for Detroit's hodgepodge collection of defenders against Jordan Love and the Packers, which had won three in a row prior to the Week 14 divisional showdown.
The Lions, which were without the likes of defensive linemen Levi Onwuzurike, Josh Paschal and DJ Reader for the primetime contest, had to rely on several players who were making their team debuts. This included linebackers Kwon Alexander, formerly of the Broncos, and Jamal Adams, formerly of the Titans, and defensive ends Jonah Williams, previously with the Rams, and Myles Adams, previously a member of the Seahawks.
For many NFL teams, this would've been an unenviable position to be in, especially when going up against a playoff-bound team like the Packers. But not for Campbell's gritty, relentless bunch. This group of cast-offs rose to the occasion Thursday night, and delivered a valiant performance against Love & Co.
Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn's unit, in fact, held the Packers to under 300 yards of total offense (298), and made Love look rather pedestrian for most of the night. It constantly wreaked havoc against the second-year starter, and came away with seven quarterback hits and a sack of the dual-threat passer. And two of those QB hits were recorded by players donning Honolulu Blue for the first time (Myles Adams and Williams).
“Myles (Adams), Jonah (Williams), they just came in on Monday, so hats off to them,” Lions defensive end Pat O'Connor, a former practice squad player like Adams and Williams, said after the game. “But, it’s a great feeling knowing what we can do with the people we had today, and just (to) overcome a win like that is insane. That’s a hat off to us because (of) ‘next man up,’ and it’s a great feeling.”
Glenn's defense also held Packers lead running back Josh Jacobs in check for most of the evening. Although the former Raiders back accumulated three touchdowns, he was limited to just 3.7 yards per carry. All in all, it was a gutsy performance from Detroit's injury-plagued defense.
Meanwhile, on the offensive side of the ball, the Lions produced their typical solid, all-around effort. And key to all of it was the man who “stirs the drink” for the offense weekly, quarterback Jared Goff.
The veteran signal-caller did gift-wrap an interception at the beginning of the third quarter that led to a Green Bay score on the ensuing drive. However, after that mistake, he settled right in. In fact, he bounced right back on the subsequent possession, leading the Lions on a 13-play, 70-yard touchdown drive that helped Campbell's squad regain the lead (24-21). He capped off the 6:13 drive with his first-of-two touchdown passes to wideout Tim Patrick.
Campbell couldn't speak enough about the former Broncos receiver after the game.
“What a great addition he’s been,” Campbell said. “He just continues to make plays for us in the run game and the pass game, stepped up big here. We talk about catching and knifing today. Catch, turn, and run. Catch it, tug it, turn, and run. Do whatever – if you can only get five, you’ve got to get a six. If you can only get a seven, you’ve got to get us eight. And man, I mean, he did that multiple times, and then comes up with the two big touchdowns for us. He’s been an unbelievable addition, what a stud.”
For Goff, the most impressive thing he did on Thursday came in the fourth quarter. He completed all 10 of his passes, tying the most attempts he's ever had in a quarter without a single incompletion. And while doing so, he threw for 106 yards and guided the Lions on two scoring drives, and most importantly the game-winning drive of the night (capped off by a Jake Bates 35-yard field goal). It was yet another masterful display from Detroit's franchise passer. He finished the divisional tilt with 283 yards, three touchdown passes (two on fourth downs in the red zone) and a 90.9 QBR.
Goff also played a part in the fourth-down conversion that sealed the deal for the Lions.
With 0:43 to play and on the Packers’ 21-yard line, Goff & Co. faced a fourth-and-1, with the game tied at 31. In this situation, many coaches would have opted for the kicker to come in to attempt the game-winning field goal. Not the ultra aggressive Campbell, though. Instead, he elected to leave his offense on the field.
On the ensuing play, a stumbling Goff handed it off to David Montgomery, who muscled ahead for seven yards and the game-deciding first down. It marked Detroit's fourth successful fourth-down conversion attempt of the night (on five tries).
“Goff had another big game, (Tim Patrick) ‘TP’ was big, (Sam) LaPorta made some big plays for us. Look, you can go down the line, but, man, I was proud of them,” Campbell said of his NFC North-leading Lions in the postgame. “I just love the fact that we just find a way, and you feel like the narrative going in, we weren’t buying any of this stuff about where we were at. No excuses, and our guys knew where we were at. We don’t need to talk about being tough, we don’t need to talk about being resilient, we live it, and it’s what we are. We just proved it again.”
With their latest resilient effort, the Lions also proved yet again that they are the NFC North's very best team.
Both the Packers and the Minnesota Vikings, currently the second-place team in the North, are nothing to sniff at. They each are very relevant franchises that should be clinching postseason berths at some point this season. Yet, neither are on the same level as Campbell's Lions. These Lions are on the trajectory of reaching a Super Bowl, and the same can't presently be said for Detroit's two main competitors in the NFC North.
The Lions have a stranglehold on the division. And despite the countless number of injuries, they don't appear to be on the verge of losing their grip anytime soon.
