The NFC’s best team, the 8-1 Detroit Lions were the host to the dismal 2-8 Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday for their Week 11 matchup. The Lions have been on a roll, winning their last seven games, including a last-second field goal win against the playoff-bound Houston Texans. They entered Sunday’s game a heavy two-touchdown favorite against the Jags, but would they play down to their competition, or would they absolutely dominate like expected?
Detroit Lions Show Out In First Half
The game started with the kings of the NFC winning the coin toss and deferring to Jacksonville. The Jags ended their first drive with a Cam Little career-long 59-yard field goal but then the Lions took over. David Montgomery pounded the ball on the first Lions drive like a hammer on a nail. “Knuckles” was able to cap off the 12-play 65-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run putting the Lions up 7-3 early.
This would be the first of his two touchdown runs in the first half. His partner in crime Jahmyr Gibbs also added a first half score on a 1-yard touchdown run. The run looked like Sonic was going to get stuffed in the backfield but after hitting the “circle button” Gibbs spun out of traffic and to the pylon scoring his eighth touchdown of the season.
Amon-Ra St. Brown, the “Sun God,” ran a beautiful route for 27 yards to score Detroit’s fourth first half touchdown. St. Brown has now scored in eight consecutive games, the second-longest streak (1st being 9) since the 2000 season. The chemistry between Goff and St. Brown has been building in front of our eyes this season. After last week’s struggles, the Lions’ offense came out like they had something to prove.
The Lions’ defense played great in the first half, only allowing six points on two field goals and only letting up 104 yards. The biggest takeaway was Linebacker Alex Anzalone with what appeared to be a forearm injury, mouthing “It’s broken” on the sideline. Anzalone would miss the rest of the game. They had four first half possessions that all ended in touchdowns.
Detroit’s Second Half
Did I mention the Detroit Lions went 4-for-4 possessions resulting in touchdowns? Well, they continued in the second half with a 64-yard touchdown from Goff to Jameson Williams. Jamo ran a great drag route and when that guy gets in space, no player in the league is catching up to him. Guess what the Lions did on their sixth possession? 15 plays 93 yards later ended with a Brock Wright wide-open 5-yard touchdown reception.
Lions Safety Kerby Joseph intercepted Jags Quarterback Mac Jones for his league-leading seventh interception of the season. The ballhawk Joseph has the most interceptions since 2022 for all NFL safeties. Not many people expected the Jags to do much in this game but don’t take that away from the Lions’ defense who played tremendously all game. Za’Darius Smith got a roar from the crowd after getting his first sack as a Lion.
They were were the first team since the 2007 New England Patriots to score touchdowns on their first seven possessions in a game. This is even more impressive considering five of their drives were 80+ yards. On the eighth possession, the backups came in.
Notable Stats
Jared Goff finished with 412 passing yards and four touchdowns. Williams added 124 receiving yards and a touchdown. St. Brown was spectacular again as he had 161 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The Lions rushing attack was great as well on Sunday afternoon. Gibbs added 124 all-purpose yards and a touchdown while Montgomery 95 total yards and two touchdowns in the blowout.
Final Thoughts
This is the best Detroit Lions team in franchise history. Yes, I said it! They continue to roll with their eighth straight win, improving their record to 9-1. They are breaking records weekly and dominating the competition. This is the eighth time this season that “Sonic,” “Knuckles,” and the “Sun God” scored a touchdown in the same game, setting an NFL record for any trio in history. At this point, is there any team that can stop these gritty Lions?
Lions fans would also like to apologize to Doug Pederson because this loss will probably cause him to lose his job. Wrong place, wrong time bud! Let’s hear those Jared Goff chants!! Detroit is the NEW GREATEST SHOW ON TURF!!! Final Score: Detroit A lot – Jacksonville not so much. In reality, it was Lions 52 Jaguars 6.
