In their second matchup of the season, the Detroit Lions downed the Green Bay Packers at Ford Field by a final score of 34 to 31 thanks to a game-winning field goal by kicker Jake Bates.
The Lions received the opening kickoff, marched down the field, and scored after the Packers were flagged for illegal contact on 3rd down, giving Detroit a fresh set of downs on Green Bay’s three yard line. On the next play, Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery punched it in for a 7-0 lead.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson fumbled on the first play of the second quarter, giving the Lions possession on their own 46. After a promising start to the drive, the Lions stalled out and settled for a 43-yard field goal and a 10-0 lead.
The Packers then got things going. The Lions were penalized for defensive pass interference in their own end zone, giving the Packers the ball on Detroit’s one yard line. Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs scored a play later to make it a 10-7 game.
The Lions answered back with a time-consuming touchdown drive. Detroit quarterback Jared Goff completed a pass over the middle of the field to running back Jahmyr Gibbs with 11 seconds remaining in the quarter to give Detroit a 17-7 lead going into halftime.
The Packers opened up the third quarter with a 59-yard completion to Christian Watson on their second play of the half, setting them up in a prime scoring position. On 3rd and 10 from Detroit’s 12, Packers quarterback Jordan Love zipped the ball past a defender to tight end Tucker Kraft for a touchdown, once again cutting the Lions’ lead to three points.
On the ensuing drive, Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon intercepted Jared Goff and returned the ball to Detroit’s 16 yard line. Less than 90 seconds later, Josh Jacobs scored on a six-yard rushing touchdown, giving the Packers their first lead of the night 21-17.
Detroit wouldn’t be down long. The Lions responded with a 14-play touchdown drive that took over six minutes. The drive was capped off by a three-yard pass touchdown from Jared Goff to wide receiver Tim Patrick on fourth and goal, putting the Lions ahead 24-21.
A couple of drives later, Detroit elected to go for it on fourth down from their own 31 yard line. However, the Packers were prepared and stuffed Jahmyr Gibbs in the backfield, allowing Green Bay to take over on Detroit’s side of the field.
Thanks to a 21-yard catch and run by Tucker Kraft, the Packers had a 1st and goal from Detroit’s six to start the fourth quarter. Josh Jacobs would once again punch it in for his third touchdown of the night, putting the Packers on top 28-24.
The Lions took the lead back after finishing a ten-play drive with a one-yard touchdown reception by Tim Patrick for his second score of the night. That catch put the Lions up 31-28.
Thanks to a pair of 25+ yard receptions from receivers Christian Watson and Dontayvion Wicks, Green Bay got the ball down to Detroit’s six. But, a touchdown pass was taken off the board due to an illegal screen, derailing the drive and forcing the Packers to kick a field goal to tie the game 31-31.
The Lions got the ball back with a little over three and a half minutes in the game and never gave it back. After moving into Green Bay territory with effective pass plays, the Lions converted on 4th and inches with less than 50 seconds to go in the game, killing any hope the Packers had of getting the ball back. Two plays later, the Lions hit a 35-yard field goal to win the game 34-31.
