Philadelphia – One week after the Detroit Lions’ offense exploded, they were completely shut down at Lincoln Financial Field.
In what was considered a major test for this team’s championship aspirations, the Lions failed miserably on every big play against the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Detroit converted just 4/15 on third downs, and set an NFL record (per TruMedia data) by failing all five of their fourth-down attempts, leading to a 16-9 defeat against the defending champions in the “Sunday Night Football” matchup.
The pillars of the Lions’ passing game – quarterback Jared Goff, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, and the entire offensive line – all bore responsibility for Detroit’s mistakes.
The Lions (6-4) entered the game atop the NFC North and now have dropped to third place. The Eagles are 8-3.
Could the offensive line have played better? Absolutely. Philadelphia’s pass rush was firing on all cylinders on Sunday night, and that was most evident on the fourth-and-goal from the 4-yard line: Goff had Brock Wright wide open for a score, but with edge rusher Jaelen Phillips – the Eagles’ new blockbuster signing – charging in after cleanly beating Penei Sewell, he threw a panicked pass to St. Brown that fell incomplete.
However, many of the failed conversions were simply due to poor execution – a short pass here, a dropped ball there – as the Lions let the opportunities they had been waiting for slip away. Goff targeted St. Brown six times on third and fourth downs but didn’t connect once. He targeted Jameson Williams once on fourth; the pass was low but catchable, and it was dropped.
Goff had the worst completion percentage of his career (14/37, 37.8%) while throwing for 255 yards, one touchdown, and one interception with a passer rating of 60.1. St. Brown had just two catches for 42 yards on 12 targets. Williams had four catches for 88 yards and a 40-yard touchdown.
The Lions’ defense did its job, limiting the Eagles to 273 offensive yards and 3/13 on third downs. They were constantly put in tough spots – Philadelphia had three starting drives in Lions territory in the first half, including an early three-point score that began at Detroit’s 11-yard line after an interception. Saquon Barkley was held to 3.2 yards per carry (83 yards on 26 attempts).
Not all the blame falls on the players. Sunday night wasn’t Dan Campbell’s best coaching performance. He kept going for it on fourth down until perhaps the most critical one of the game; with 5:10 left and trailing by 10 points, Detroit punted.
Miraculously, Detroit still had a chance to get back in the game on Philadelphia’s final offensive drive. After cutting the deficit to 16-9, the Lions appeared to have a stop on third-and-8 with 1:47 remaining that would give them the ball back, but officials – who had let cornerback “handsy” play go uncalled all game – flagged Lions cornerback Rock Ya-Sin for pass interference.
Of course, the Eagles deserve credit. They were the far superior team on Sunday night, which might be harder to swallow than the reality that the Lions simply squandered their chances.
Philadelphia’s pass rush certainly had Super Bowl pedigree, and they made Goff feel the heat on every dropback. He went 0/10 with an interception when under pressure, per Next Gen Stats.
And the Eagles’ run defense was as ferocious as ever. Jahmyr Gibbs was held to 39 yards on 12 carries – but had a career-high 107 receiving yards – while David Montgomery had six carries for 27 yards.
The Lions had a quick three-and-out to start the game and immediately moved the chains on offense. The Eagles flipped the field when Jordan Davis knocked down a pass at the line of scrimmage, and it was intercepted by Cooper DeJean, returning it to Detroit’s 11-yard line.
Detroit’s defense held firm and limited the Eagles – the NFL’s No. 1 red-zone offense entering Sunday – to just a three-point field goal, leading 3-0 at 9:43 of the first quarter.
The Lions went for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 48, getting stuffed on third-and-short and opting to try a run anyway. But Gibbs was stopped at the line for a turnover on downs. Detroit’s defense came up with another stop, forcing a three-and-out on the ensuing possession.
Detroit was stopped in its own territory on the next drive. Facing fourth-and-2 at their own 43, the Lions snapped directly to Grant Stuard, who was stuffed short of the line for another turnover on downs. The Eagles turned that into points, adding a 34-yard field goal from Jake Elliott to lead 6-0 with 6:02 left in the half.
The failed fake punt was the first costly coaching decision of the half.
The Lions’ offense got rolling quickly, marching 74 yards in three plays when Jameson Williams erupted for a 40-yard touchdown. He caught a pass from Goff over the middle and motored into the end zone, leading to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for excessive celebration when he hugged the goalpost.
The Eagles then marched right down the field for a touchdown and regained the lead near the end of the half. After A.J. Brown caught an 11-yard pass to set up first-and-goal at the 5 with over a minute left in the half, Campbell – who had all three timeouts in his pocket – allowed Philadelphia to run out the clock and gave the ball back to Detroit with the score 13-6 and just 16 seconds remaining.
Jalen Hurts put Philadelphia back ahead with a 1-yard touchdown run via the infamous “Tush Push,” the Eagles’ quarterback sneak.
The Lions got a bit of luck early in the third quarter when Philadelphia was called for a false start before attempting the “Tush Push,” which NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay said should have been a neutral-zone infraction on Lions defensive tackle Tyleik Williams.
Detroit’s defense got off the field with a stop on the next third-and-6, then marched down the field with big yards from Gibbs, including a 42-yard reception. The Lions failed again in a crucial spot when Goff, under heavy pressure, threw an incomplete pass to a covered St. Brown instead of the wide-open Brock Wright on fourth-and-goal at the 4 for another turnover on downs.
Detroit’s defense continued to make stops as the offense sputtered. The Lions tried another fourth down near midfield late in the third, but again failed to connect with St. Brown, as Goff overthrew his most reliable weapon for the fifth turnover on downs.
The Eagles moved close to putting the game away when they added a 49-yard field goal from Elliott with 10:15 left.
The Lions gave themselves a chance when they stuffed two “Tush Pushes” to force a turnover on downs in Philadelphia territory with 2:57 remaining. Detroit cut it to a one-score game with a 54-yard field goal from Jake Bates.
But after kicking off with all three timeouts, the Lions couldn’t get the stop they needed when officials made a controversial pass interference call on third down with Ya-Sin to essentially seal the game.