On Sunday, the Detroit Lions came back after a bye week to start divisional play, taking on the Green Bay Packers.
The Lions forced multiple stops in the first half, en route to a 10-7 halftime lead. The Packers took advantage of a turnover on the Lions’ opening drive of the second half to grab their first lead, but Detroit snapped back and executed when it mattered most, taking up the final three minutes of game clock to kick a game-winner as time expired. Detroit emerged victorious, 20-17.
Here are the winners and losers from the divisional affair.
Winners
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
The Lions All-Pro receiver has been a thorn in the NFC North’s side for nearly a half-decade, but Green Bay seemed to forget about St. Brown in the first half. The receiver found himself having a career day in the first half.
St. Brown started his damage with a simple out and up where his man could not keep up with him. That was the theme of the opening half, as the receiver slid behind coverage. The Packers surrendered 204 receiving yards in the first half, with the USC product accounting for 135 yards on seven catches on eight targets.
The Packers elected to finally cover the Pro Bowl receiver, holding him to 15 yards in the second half. That said, St. Brown finished with his fifth 150-yard receiving game of his career.
WR Jameson Williams
The Packers had a rough start to the game, with St. Brown and then Williams burning the secondary on back-to-back plays. Right after the former had an out-and-up for a big gain, Williams was open for another gain, and then was targeted a second time in the flat, which he took for a touchdown.
The Packers clamped up on Williams after that, only allowing one more catch in the first half as St. Brown ran wild. The halftime adjustments to cover St. Brown enabled the Alabama product to get free for two more catches for 40 yards on the Lions’ go-ahead scoring drive.
Williams capped that drive off with his second touchdown of the night, after an eligible Penei Sewell ran routes and helped free up Williams on a hitch route.
Safety Brian Branch
Branch made his return to the field on Sunday, and it was quite the successful return. The former Lions second-round pick aided a few defensive stops early. Branch helped the communication throughout the day, along with breaking up a pass.
His biggest play of the night, however, came to open the fourth quarter. Jordan Love took a shot deep with Christian Watson appearing to have a step on Khalil Dorsey. Branch, however, flashed over to high point the ball and ended a chance of a Green Bay go-ahead scoring drive.
CB D.J. Reed
Reed was strong on Sunday, despite the Lions allowing nearly 300 yards through the air. The corner made some of the biggest plays of the days when it was needed most. With Green Bay inside the Lions’ 10-yard line on fourth down, Reed sniffed out a screen and dropped Matthew Golden behind the line of scrimmage. That ended an impressive Packers streak, as they had converted their previous nine fourth-down attempts.
Reed also added a pass breakup late, knocking the ball out to force a punt. Most breakdowns on the day did not occur from Reed, and he quietly put together one of his best games in Honolulu Blue.
EDGE Aidan Hutchinson
Hutchinson brought down Jordan Love for the only Lions sack of the game in the second quarter, providing a significant portion of the defensive stops needed. He also nearly picked off Love during the first half.
Hutchinson finished with five quarterback hits, while the rest of the team combined for one hit on the afternoon.
EDGE DJ Wonnum
As the fourth quarter wore down, the Lions and Packers each got desperate to make a play. The Lions went for it on fourth down and got stuffed on a Jahmyr Gibbs run, giving the Packers the ball inside the Lions’ 30-yard line. That dragged out the Lions defense, which stood tall and forced a Trey Smack field goal attempt.
Wonnum made arguably the biggest play of the night, with the South Carolina product getting a few fingers on the Smack field goal, deflecting it and pushing it just wide.
RB Jahmyr Gibbs
While it was not a game that saw Jahmyr Gibbs go for over 150 total yards, Gibbs was quietly doing his role behind the scenes. Sonic finished the game with just over 130 total yards, crossing 100 yards in the final two minutes.
On the opening scoring drive, it was Gibbs picking up a blitz to enable a big play to Jameson Williams, who would follow that up with a score on the next play.
In the final two minutes, Gibbs faced a free touchdown twice and declined it both times, kneeling to make it second-and-2 before taking another kneel after converting a 3rd-and-6 on a toss play. That enabled the Lions to run the clock out and kick a field goal as time expired.
K Jake Bates
Bates was needed for all eight of his points on Sunday, with the Arkansas product kicking the Lions home to victory as time expired.
None of Bates’s field goals were particularly hard, but he was part of the end product that executed a win. His kickoffs were also strong, with the kicker forcing Green Bay to return the ball and not break their 30-yard-line. Full marks for the former Michigan Panther.
Losers
C Cade Mays
It was a rough opening to the season for Mays. The center was activated for Sunday’s contest after being the star free agent acquisition to the offensive line. In the first half, Mays provided a strong push in the opening series. That was offset by a false start penalty where the entire offense besides Mays moved.
Then, to make matters worse, Mays was knocked into Gibbs, forcing the back to fumble as the Lions were deep in Green Bay territory. It gave the Packers a way to escape, kneeling to end the half.
Mays did not have a strong start to the second half, either. The center had a bad exchange with Goff on the opening series, with the ball bouncing two yards past the line of scrimmage and being recovered by Green Bay. That enabled Green Bay to score a go-ahead touchdown on their ensuing drive.
LB Derrick Barnes
Barnes had a rough outing Sunday. On two separate fourth-down plays, the Purdue product was tagged for a missed assignment in coverage. The Packers went 3-of-4 on fourth down in the opening half, and Barnes was the primary man giving free conversions to Green Bay.
To make matters worse, Barnes was again the primary man in coverage when the Packers had their go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter, and missed a shoestring tackle attempt as Josh Jacobs ran in for the touchdown.
Additionally, in the fourth quarter, Barnes was whistled for an unnecessary roughness penalty, albeit controversial, with Tom Brady lamenting the call on television.
TE Sam LaPorta
After a loud week in off-the-field headlines, LaPorta had a quiet game on the field. He went the entire first half without a target, primarily showcasing his blocking. In the third quarter, the Lions faced a lull, and Goff airmailed a swing pass to LaPorta in the flat.
It was a very quiet day for the Iowa product who was coming off his best game of the season before the bye week. That said, when LaPorta was called upon on Sunday, he answered. LaPorta was open on his first target, and made the most of his second target, catching the ball for an 18-yard gain on the game-winning drive for Motown.
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