The Green Bay Packers found themselves in enemy territory, playing their third game in twelve days and trailing 10-0 in the second quarter. Their first offensive play from scrimmage was a sack that lost seven yards. Their first three possessions ended with two punts and a fumble. They were playing what is statistically the best offense in the NFL.
Yes, the Detroit Lions have the best offense in the NFL, having scored 417 total points prior to the game. No team had been able to score 30 points on their defense all year. Lions’ fans smelled a blowout, but it was not to be. The Lions came after Jordan Love with blitzes all night. Love shrugged them off, going 12-20 for 206 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions while adding 23 yards rushing.
He led his team back, scoring 31 points in three quarters. The Packers went ahead in the fourth quarter and nearly pulled off the victory. Love got help from Josh Jacobs, who plowed for 66 of the toughest yards any Packer has produced since John Brockington. He was also helped by his receivers. Kraft had a highlight-reel catch for a touchdown that seemed to go through a defender before he caught it. Dontavion Wicks had 4 catches for 49 yards, and Christian Watson rolled up 118 yards on 4 catches.
Turnovers Prove Costly for Green Bay
The Packers were Watson’s fumble away from winning this game. It came in the first half as the Packers’ third possession finally started to click. His 20-yard catch in Detroit’s territory could have led to the points the Packers needed to win. The Lions scored a field goal on the ensuing possession after the fumble and scored a touchdown just before halftime expired, thanks to the Packers’ two-play, quick-turnover possession.
The Packers can beat the Lions, but they must win the turnover battle. Goff threw an interception to Kesian Nixon in the third quarter, which led to the second Packer touchdown of the third quarter and the Packers’ first lead. But in this game, the defense of both teams struggled to get off the field in the second half. Detroit made multiple 4th down conversions, and on this night, they sealed the Lions’ victory.
Campbell’s Gamble
Lions coach Dan Campbell was so fearful of Love getting the ball back with time that he gambled on 4th down in field goal range to run the clock out. Ok, Campbell may just be a limited thinker. We should not be giving Campbell credit for playing chess when his 4th down strategy has always resembled a checkers player. It bit him last year in the playoffs, and now that he is going to get headlines for his “bravado” again, he will probably make the same call he did last year in the playoffs with the same result.
Despite the loss, Love and company seemed to grow up a bit in this game. Time and again, Love made good decisions, and his scrambling shows he is not affected by his early-season knee injury. The Packer defense…. has work to do. Playing 3 games in 12 days is not an excuse. But there are realities that affect success. The running defense woke up after the first series, but screen passes and short passes in the linebackers’ zones killed them repeatedly. They had some great third-down stops but failed repeatedly on 4th down.
Missed Opportunities and Defensive Struggles
Detroit’s touchdown on 4th and goal from the three-yard line was the backbreaker. The Packers had just scored two consecutive touchdowns to take a 24-21 lead. The Lions drove down the field, but at the 8-yard line, Goff threw an incompletion on first down, and a run to Gibbs left a third and goal from the four. They tried Gibbs again up the middle, but he was stuffed for a one-yard gain.
The Packer defense then got confused, was not lined up correctly as the Lions snapped it, and failed to call a timeout to get set. The result was a quick pass touchdown in front of linebacker Eric Wilson, who was not in position due to the confusion. A critical blown opportunity that could have swung the game.
But alas, the Lions succeeded on their 4th down attempts, and Campbell will tell his team this is his blueprint for success. While the Packers will chomp at the bit to get another shot at them on this same field in the playoffs. Up next, the Packers travel to Seattle to take on the surging Seahawks, winners of three straight.
