Thanks to an outstanding Matthew Stafford, the Detroit Lions (4-4) in Lambeau Field win after losing 24 out of 25 duels. The Green Bay Packers (4-4) had a hard time getting the offense going when they lost 17:30 without Aaron Rodgers.
The Packers seemed to have used Bye Week to heal their injuries and prepare Brett Hundley (26/38,245 YDS, Rushing: 4 CAR, 22 YDS, TD) for the game against the Lions. However, both of these big plans went backwards. Bryan Bulaga and Morgan Burnett were injured again during the game. The best offensive-line combination of the packers had previously only played 15 plays in this constellation during the whole season.
For Hundley, the challenge of NFL seems to be a bit too big at the moment. The Packers tried to give him self-confidence by short passes. But when he was forced to take risks, it became clear that the road was still a long way off. Hundley needed too much time in his pocket to make decisions. The nervousness was clearly noticeable in 3rd down.
The Playcaller on the other side did better. Matthew Stafford (26/33,361 YDS, 2TD) played an impressive game and convinced in all phases of the game. Even the Lions’ problems in the Red Zone seemed to make Stafford forget. But here, the Lions’ Run Game had something against it. In the end, only two of the four Red Zone trips were ended with a touchdown.
The Lions dominated the duel at 3rd Down. Where Detroit was able to exploit 8 out of 13 trials, Green Bay was only 2 out of 9. Without Rodgers, the Packers have lost all three games. For Stafford and the Lions, it was a little revenge after last season’s Rodgers-to-Rodgers Hail-Mary victory.
Green Bay Packers (4-4) – Detroit Lions (4-4)17:30 (0:7,3:7,7,0:3,14:13) BOXSCORE
Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions):
“3rd downs are especially important because you keep your drives alive and score points. We didn’t do that well enough last week. This week we’ve done better and scored points.”
Mike McCarthy (Green Bay Packers, Head Coach):
“You have won the 3rd down fight. We still have a lot of work to do. That’s out of the question, and it has to happen quickly. At Brett (Hundley) I think, and that’s not just a statement at a press conference.”
The game was heading in the same direction early on when the Lions scored their first openingossession touchdown of the season and were unstoppable. But that did not have to be the case. The Packers had their first Lions drive at Three-and-Out. A completely superfluous Unnecessary-Roughness-Penalty because of a head bump by Mike Daniels kept the drive alive. Stafford capitalized on Marvin Jones with a great drive of nine plays over 71 yards and a touchdown pass on Marvin Jones.
Over the past few weeks, Lions have been experiencing frequent problems with enemy lightning packages. Against the Packers, however, offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter had the right answers. Stafford threw 13 successful passes against the lightning in 20 attempts, mostly with fast short passes and screen passes. The result was 254 yards and a touchdown with a quarterback rating of 125.0 against the Blitz. The highlight was a 63-yards screen pass at 2nd and 10 on Theo Riddick in the fourth quarter. The play took Green Bay any momentum from the previous touchdown.
The League’s highest-paid quarterback impressively demonstrated the great advantage of Lions in NFC North: The quarterback position. Stafford conducted the Lions with calm and excellent reads. The mix of runs, short and long passes kept asking the packers questions. Stafford recognized the lightning again and again. The accuracy of his passes between cornerbacks and safeties was impressive and at 3rd down he seemed to have an answer to every challenge.
The Lions could have had a lot easier. The reason why the game wasn’t finished in the middle of the third quarter was the 24-year-old Abdullah. The running back fumbled after the Lions had taken the ball in half of the packers after a turnover on downs. In the next drive, Abdullah fumbled at First and Goal. But this time he was lucky that his team mate Rick Wagner jumped on the ball. Off ball safety, Abdullah ran for 48 yards and a touchdown at 21 Carries. Lions have serious problems with running games and red zone efficiency. The back position plays a major role here.