5 winners, 2 losers from the Lions’ BIG win against the Packers

Five winners showed up for the Lions 24-14 win against the Packers, while some things need to get worked on during the week.

After another dominating win this season in Week 8 against the Tennessee Titans , the Detroit Lions headed on the road to play the Green Bay Packers . In their first matchup of the year, it was a battle for first place of the NFC North. The game was played in gross conditions with it raining relentlessly and the wind making it harder to throw, catch, and kick. In the end, it didn’t matter for Detroit as they won the game 24-14.

Detroit took the lead 7-3 in the first quarter and never looked back. Detroit had to lean on the running game, which is something they aren’t afraid to do. Despite the 10-point final score differential, the game didn’t feel close once the Lions were up 17-3 at halftime. Detroit dominated the game in every quarter and in all three phases.

Check out my winners and losers in the win against the Packers.

Winners

Jared Goff

No matter rain or shine, indoors or outdoors, quarterback Jared Goff continues to have an MVP level season this year. With the rain coming down, it was expected for Detroit to lean on the running game, but when they needed to throw the ball, Goff delivered. His best throw was on the 3-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown that gave Detroit the lead that they wouldn’t let go of.

Goff went 18-for-22 for 145 yards and a touchdown. In the rain and outdoors, Goff wasn’t afraid to let it rip against this Packers team. While his stats weren’t eye-popping, he is continuing to have a high completion percentage and help his team win games.

David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs

With the rain pouring down in Green Bay and the wind hitting highs of 40 mph, the running game was going to be leaned on. Well, both running backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs answered the call, with both having solid runs and impacting the game heavily. Montgomery started the game as the main back and was the main reason for the Lions starting the game with a touchdown lead. In the first drive, Montgomery had eight carries for 39 yards, which set up the Goff touchdown pass to St. Brown.

After leaning on Montgomery heavily, Gibbs would come in and give him a break, but that didn’t mean the Lions offense would take a step back. Gibbs would be the first of the two to find the end zone, scoring on a fourth-and-1 run in the third quarter to give the Lions a 24-3 lead.

Gibbs would finish the game with only 11 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown, while Montgomery had 17 carries for 73 yards. They both got involved in the passing game too, as Gibbs had an 11-yard catch and Montgomery had three catches for 23 yards. With the game plan needing both players to play at their best, they both showed out and were the biggest factor in the win.

Disciplined football

With the play by safety Brian Branch has an outlier , the Lions were smart and played a pretty clean game. Detroit was called for five penalties for 51 yards, two of them coming from Branch himself. With only three penalties last week, Detroit is starting to clean up their act with the officials. When you don’t beat yourself up, it makes it easier to focus on what your strengths and weaknesses are. It also makes it harder for your opponent to take advantage of your mishaps, they have to play the best version of you.

If Detroit can continue to play clean football, they can be even better than we have already seen them this year. The best thing about penalties are most of the time, they are things the players can correct and make sure doesn’t happen again the following week. Lions head coach Dan Campbell has said those are things the team can clean up and they appear to have.

Kerby Joseph

Doesn’t matter if it’s Aaron Rodgers or Jordan Love, safety Kerby Joseph has the number of both Packers quarterback. With Branch out of the game, Joseph was the leader of the safety position and stepped up big when the team needed to just make a stop. Before halftime, Joseph and got a huge pick-six on Love to give the Lions a 17-3 lead.

Joseph is having a great third year in the NFL and is truly one of the best safeties in the NFL. After a sophomore slump last season, Joseph has rebounded well and learned from his mistakes of last year. He finished the game with four tackles and a pass deflection to go with his pick-six.

Jack Fox

Special teams once again had an impact on the Lions victory, but it wasn’t due to the return game. Punter Jack Fox had another great game, and in the elements too. Fox punted the ball four times for 200 yards, with one landing inside the 20 and his longest was 60 yards. When the offense couldn’t do much, Fox made sure to help out the defense and force Green Bay to play with a long field.

Losers

Brian Branch

In an uncharacteristic move, Branch had his worst game ever as a Lion. The hit on Packers wide receiver Bo Melton was a dirty hit, plain and simple. The ball was clearly bounced and instead of going for a tackle, Branch lowered his head and knocked Melton right in his facemask. Branch was flagged for unnecessary roughness and after review, was ejected. Branch was furious about the ejection, and was called for unsportsmanlike conduct as he was seen flipping off the Packers sidelines.

The penalties were good calls by the officials and I think the ejection was a good call as well. Branch could have easily just went to go for a generic tackle on the play, but instead lowered his head and went right to the face of Melton. You can’t do that and you deserve to get ejected for it. He will face a fine for it, but hopefully Branch learns his lesson when he returns next week.

Pass rush

Injuries have banged up the Lions defensive line this season. Heading into the game, defensive end Josh Paschal and defensive tackle Mekhi Wingo were ruled out and with even more players banged up, the Lions’ lack of pass rush showed today. The Packers struggled with snaps a few times in the game, and even with those bad snaps, the Lions couldn’t be credited for a sack.

Love had a lot of time to throw the ball, which put pressure on the secondary to limit the damage through the air. Love finished the game going 23-for-39 for 273 yards and an interception along with just three carries for zero yards. The Lions are rumored to be trading for Cleveland Browns defensive end Za’Darius Smith, and if that rumor turns out to be true, he will bring some much-needed help to the defensive line.

Detroit should get Paschal back next week, and if Wingo can return as well, along with the trade for Smith, Detroit can certainly start to generate more pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Detroit has shown that they can win without much of a pass rush, but that can only get you so far in the postseason, and if this team wants to win it all, that must be improved.