Lions 34, Packers 31: Game Balls / Lame Calls
'What ifs' bedevil Green Bay in hard-fought loss
Almost.
Throughout the night in Detroit, the Packers almost got there. The defense got some important stops, but at the most critical moments fell short. The offense almost sustained enough drives, but couldn’t finish enough of them. It was almost a huge victory, but Green Bay lost 34-31 because when you’re playing a good team, in their house, too many almosts are too much to overcome.
Detroit is the better team and it showed. But the Lions came in wounded and vulnerable, with much of its starting defense on IR or inactive. Green Bay, too, had to resort to a makeshift secondary as in-game injuries felled safeties Evan Williams and Javon Bullard, on top of the already injured Jaire Alexander and Corey Ballentine.
In the end, the Packer defense just couldn’t get off the field often enough. Jared Goff was a surgeon, completing 32 passes on 41 attempts for 283 yards. It was a short and intermediate game plan, as Goff delivered at least five receptions to six different pass catchers, none longer than 28 yards. Meanwhile, Detroit’s tandem of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery tacked on another 94 yards on the ground, helping the Lions to dominate time of possession and convert seven of 15 third downs and four of five fourth downs, including the dagger at the end despite Goff getting stepped on and falling as he handed the ball off.
The Packers battled valiantly. There were some miscues, but overall they played hard, hung with the best team in football and did not beat themselves. But they needed to be nearly flawless, and that’s hard to do.
GAME BALLS
Keisean Nixon — He wasn’t perfect, but he had a savvy, important interception, 10 tackles and he kept Amon-Ra St. Brown quiet early before having to move to safety when Williams and Bullard went down. This resulted in more snaps for the mediocre Eric Stokes, whose future in Green Bay should be under intense scrutiny when the season is over.
🏈 🏈 🏈 🏈 🏈
Tucker Kraft — He was open for a sure touchdown early in the game, only to have Jordan Love sail an easy throw over his head. But he made his subsequent receptions count with a touchdown, significant yards after the catch and holding onto a late, drive-sustaining sideline throw despite absorbing a brutal hit before jumping back up like an acrobat.
🏈 🏈 🏈 🏈 🏈
Christian Watson — His night was marred by letting his first big catch get punched out for a fumble, but overall he caught four balls for 114 yards, more than twice the rest of the receiving corps combined. Strangely, Jayden Reed had zero receptions on one target, as it was clear the Lions did not want him to beat them.
🏈 🏈 🏈 🏈
Rashan Gary — He had the Packers’ only sack of Goff, he had two of the three QB hits, and a tackle for loss. He’s kicked it up a notch over the past few weeks.
🏈 🏈 🏈
UNSUNG HERO
Kenny Clark — Clark had perhaps his best game of a quiet season, tallying eight tackles, five of them solo, and one tackle for loss, and was a disruptive presence all night. Honorable mention to Isaiah McDuffie, who led the team by a wide margin with 15 tackles, though he was beaten in coverage more than once. The Packers need Edgerrin Cooper to get healthy pronto.
LAME CALLS
Zach Tom — The usually reliable Tom had a rough night, getting manhandled early in pass protection, and committing two penalties in important spots. The Packers once again were bedeviled by costly flags, including extending a Lions drive with a pointless and inexcusable shove of a Detroit lineman by Quay Walker after a play was over.
Although Love was sacked only once (by ex-Packer Za’Darius Smith), he was hit seven times and under frequent duress from the blitz-happy Lions, much of it coming from Tom’s side of the line of scrimmage. Love was three for seven for 31 yards in the first half, which will never get it done.
The O-line did its usual good work for the first two-and-a-half quarters opening up running lanes for Josh Jacobs to wriggle through, but Detroit DC Aaron Glenn started blitzing a bit less and closing up the holes midway through the third quarter. Jacobs was not much of a factor after that, ending the night with 66 yards on 18 carries.
The D — It’s hard to point to any one element, and overall Jeff Hafley did a decent job given his missing or banged-up personnel. But there was simply too little pressure on Goff, who was sacked once and hit only three times. The book on Goff is you can’t let him have an easy time in the pocket, and he’s not mobile. Detroit’s high-powered offense won’t be slowed unless pressure is brought to bear, and it didn’t happen nearly enough on this night.
FINAL WHISTLES
Unlike in several previous games, Green Bay has little to beat itself up about after this loss. It’s disappointing, and there were a few “if only” plays that might have made a difference. What if the flea flicker had worked? What if Watson doesn't fumble? What if the D gets off the field on third and 8? But the Packers played a very good team, they played with intensity and physicality, and came up just short. The reality is that like every team that encounters the Lions this season, the Packers need to be at their very best to win. Let’s hope they get another chance in January. GPG.
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Jonathan Krim grew up in New York but got hooked on the Packers — and on hating the Cowboys — watching the Ice Bowl as a young child. He blames bouts of unhappiness in his late teens on Dan Devine. A journalist for several decades who now lives in California, he enjoys trafficking in obscure cultural references, lame dad jokes and occasionally preposterous takes. Jonathan is a Packers shareholder, and insists on kraut with his brats. You can follow Jonathan on twitter at @Jkrim.
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Comments (46)
Cheezehead72
December 06, 2024 at 07:32 am
I only watched the first half due to having a cold and being in the Eastern time zone. My one take is that MLF got away from the run game eventhough Jacobs was having a good game. We needed to run the ball especially at the beginning of the game.
packerbackerjim
December 06, 2024 at 07:40 am
Game: Watson (fumble excluded), Jacobs.
Lame: Initial scripted plays. Tear it up, burn it, shoot it into space.
T7Steve
December 06, 2024 at 07:44 am
Can you change it to, Bad, Worse and Ugly?
The blockers weren't prepared for the backups they faced and the RBs got some yards in spite of them not because of them.
Quay was just trying to break out of the grip (hold) of the O-lineman and was set up for that penalty because they know him. Still not excusable. ALL of the Packers' penalties happened at the worst times and the Packers couldn't make the Lions pay for theirs.
MitchAnthony
December 06, 2024 at 01:23 pm
Give that Lions O-lineman his Academy Award for the acting job at the end of the push and tug match with Walker. There's no way that Walker blasted him off his feet with that kind of effect. But hey, it got the flag.
The other part of that is that opponents probably know that Walker is a ripe target for that kind of stuff just based on some of his past episodes of low impulse control. He has to know himself and know to not play into those moments.
egbertsouse
December 06, 2024 at 07:45 am
They scrapped but at the end it was the same old song. Tie game with three and a half minutes to go and the defense needs to make a stop. The defense wilts and the Lions march right down and kick the game-winning field goal. I've seen that more times than I've heard Bing Crosby sing White Christmas. And I've been around for a boatload of Christmases
cpabandit
December 06, 2024 at 08:32 am
They gave up 34 because the Shit For Brains defense leaves an empty parking lot in the middle of the field. How many years have we been seeing that?
Houndog
December 06, 2024 at 09:07 am
No Shit! It looked like when Miami left Green Bay last week they left Joe Barry behind disguised as Jeff Hafley.
Same Old Shit, different day, bigger pile!!
Strat
December 06, 2024 at 03:16 pm
Definitely a case of "We've seen this movie before." Not only can you see it coming you can damn well feel it.
Gman1976
December 06, 2024 at 04:34 pm
Our DC needs to get rid of these zone and soft coverages. Receivers exploit the holes in the coverages time and again.
jannesbjornson
December 06, 2024 at 10:12 pm
No CBs for 1:1s with Alexander out of the lineup. Procurement issues.
NFLfan
December 06, 2024 at 07:56 am
Though the Pass Rush has slightly improved, it was no match against the Lion's OL. Was Goff really significantly pressured by our front 4?
This game unmasked what we all know though some do not want to admit nor address. Games are won in the trenches and Green Bay has nowhere near the Lion's level of talent on either side. GB's DB room is depleted and has been all year; it is manned by 3rd string DBs who get little help from the Pass Rush. It is expensive and wasteful to have to address problems on the D every year. GB has not built a strong enough, reliable defensive foundation though there have been multiple opportunities. The Lions on the other hand, have chosen their pieces wisely over the last 4-5 years and now have a strong army.
We can't rely the excuse that we had injured players as they had many more.
Game Ball-Lions
(coaching, personnel choice, discipline)
Packerpasty
December 06, 2024 at 05:02 pm
A good pass rush would for sure help out the secondary...Goff had all day to sit, immobile, in the pocket and toss those short passes for first down to the middle of the field...most teams can do that against the Pack because of the anemic pass rush...same old crap for a few years now...with Gute's drafting big physical guys who cant play football like LVN it wont change soon...
dobber
December 06, 2024 at 08:17 am
Game Balls:
Brandon McManus--where are the Packers if they decided to stick with Narveson? ...or if they were using some other retread, low-end kicker to get by? McManus might not have done much last night--aside from a game-tying FG--but he's reliable inside 50 and he makes his PATs.
Dontayvion Wicks got over his drops and made key catches in the 4th quarter.
Isaiah McDuffie--he was a dynamo all night long bringing pop and energy to the defense. He was regularly fighting through blockers on blitzes and making key tackles.
Lame Calls (which includes some of my "gut reactions" because I just went to bed instead of waiting to post):
Jordan Love--Part 1: On a night when the Packers really needed to start fast and punch the Lions in the mouth early, Love did himself no favors on the opening couple drives hanging onto the ball too long and letting the Lions' pass rush impact his play. He could see the kitchen sink coming, but he didn't play with urgency in those situations or look for hot reads. He's lucky he wasn't concussed on the Z. Smith shot to the head...you know, the obvious play the refs missed.
Part 2: how many times did the Packers just pound Josh Jacobs into 8 and 9 man boxes last night? Too often on early downs the beat-up Lions had all 11 guys within 5 yards of the LOS (when you re-watch, look for that) expecting run, and they got it. Love's gotta see that and audible out of those plays. Jacobs' numbers look way better if the Packers go play action every now and then and get the ball out. I think they left a lot on the field in those situations. That leads me to...
Matt LaFluer--the play-calls were mostly vanilla. There wasn't much in what the offense did last night that was unscouted or new. He couldn't get the ball to Jayden Reed...which, if the Lions were intent on taking him away, is maybe not all bad, but he's a key playmaker in the offense. LaFleur, to my mind, failed to help his guys out when he needed to...and that's with the Packers putting up 31! Don't get me started on that first down challenge in the first quarter...ugh!
Final thoughts: I'm with you Jonathan--I knew even against a beat up Lions team that this game was going to be a slog. The Lions play hard and they've come to that point where they don't rattle. We can come up with plenty of excuses for the loss--the refs are popular whipping boys today (the OPI penalty late happens 10-15 times per game and isn't called often...either way)--but if you're blaming the refs typically it means your guys weren't making plays.
I'll come back to the Packers' slow start. They didn't seem to be ready for the Lions crashing the LOS early and often. At one point it was 10-0 Lions and it was feeling like a real possibility that they were going to blow the Packers off the field...give the Packers credit for responding with a long drive for a TD.
Detroit is an elite team. Playing at home. Their offense is high end, and the Packers--except for two runs--limited chunk plays in the run game. They seem to do better against speed backs (Gibbs) than they do power backs (Montgomery). The Lions know they can protect Goff with their 5 and so they flood the field with pass-catchers...someone is always open, and Williams' and Bullard's injuries left an already depleted Packers secondary more vulnerable.
In the end, I wasn't expecting them to win. It still sucks because the Packers were in position to win, but mostly they battled and played physical football. Moral victories don't mean much, but they looked the part. Packers seem to only have taken on a couple injuries--but they're important ones--and they get 10 days before they need to go to Seattle, who hasn't been terribly impressive but has played better of late. JSN will eat this defense's lunch unless they shore up the middle.
greengold
December 06, 2024 at 10:21 am
We all saw the massive bowl of vanilla LaFleur served up. I agree with you on all points, dobs, but think of it this way… if we only win one game this season against Detroit, I’ll gladly take a win over them in the NFCC game over one in the regular season.
I’m left wondering how many calls were made with the sole intent of scouting DET’s tendencies in certain situations, both on O and D.
It was definitely not the Packers’ best ball, but it’s entirely possible it was never really going to be.
If we meet again in the playoffs, and we get this team healthy, I think the Packers could take them. Jmtc.
I agree with everything else you and many others have shared on this… especially cleaning up some shizz.
Gman1976
December 06, 2024 at 04:39 pm
Just once or twice, I wish MLF would have Love fake the hand-off to our RB and throw the ball on 1st down in the 4th quarter. MLF was like a gambling addict saying, "Surely, it's going to work this time." And of course, it didn't.
RCPackerFan
December 06, 2024 at 08:29 am
GAME BALLS
Keisean Nixon —
Creating an interception was a huge turning point in the game.
Tucker Kraft —
I don't care what he did in the game, when he took a shot and did a Shawn Michaels kick up was so damn great.
Christian Watson —
Outside of the fumble Watson was really good. That OPI he had was pure BS. That took away a TD when Watson was literally running a route. But it is even more maddening especially when you saw that the Lions do exactly what Watson was called for, but they didn't make the call.
Josh Jacobs —
He didn't put up big numbers. Didn't have a target in the passing game. But he had 3 rushing TD's. He has been a beast down in the redzone.
UNSUNG HERO
Kenny Clark —
Yeah I think Clark is perfect here. I would have given him a game ball but this was a good call.
LAME CALLS
Injuries —
Going into the game without Alexander and Cooper severely hampered the defense. But then losing Williams and Bullard really impacted the defense. Offensively not having Doubs hurts. Its one weapon that they didn't have. And its one that Love trusts.
Refs —
The Refs impacted this game negatively for GB. There were way to many calls they didn't make that should have been made. Love gets hit in the head, no call. Should have been 15 yard penalty and extended a drive. A Lions player comes up and hits McKinney in the face hard enough to knock his helmet off. No penalty. The Nixon blitz where he was clearly held, no call. The Watson OPI. The Non OPI on the Lions twice on the final drive. There were many others as well, but those were some of the big ones. Where if its officiated properly it no doubt changes the game.
FINAL WHISTLES
This game just leaves a bad taste in my mouth quite honestly.
The Packers started slowly offensively. The defense not being able to get off the field in key situations. The refs severely impacting this game. The injuries are impacting what Hafley can do defensively as well.
I leave this game and I believe that the Packers win this game if the refs referee it properly. Them taking away a TD, just killed them. I'm not saying that would have won the game for GB. But they would have been 4 points ahead and the Lions would have had to score a TD. But then to add salt to the wound, is the following drive not once but twice the Lions WR's engaged with the defensive player which should have been OPI, but it wasn't called.
The Packers have a mini bye so hopefully we can start getting some players back. If they could get Alexander, Cooper and Doubs back that would be huge. Hopefully Williams will be able to play as well. I heard Bullard was on crutches after the game so that likely isn't good. But hopefully the rest of the players are closer to ready to play.
Also I hope we can get Musgrave back sometime soon. I think he could be a great additional chess piece added to the offense. Same with Lloyd. I am not holding my breath that they will make an impact, but they are a couple of players that could add a little extra to the offense down the stretch.
dobber
December 06, 2024 at 08:57 am
"He didn't put up big numbers. Didn't have a target in the passing game. "
He had a big target taken away on the OPI/TD play.
I'd like to know how many routes he ran last night. Seemed he was helping to block a lot....well, which can't be too many times given the Packers only threw 20 passes.
RCPackerFan
December 06, 2024 at 09:02 am
That is a great call.
It was a TD throw to him and should have put them ahead. Instead the Refs got involved and took it away.
It was kind of weird game to be honest.
jvole
December 06, 2024 at 08:33 am
After the last Lions game, I commented that their O-line piled into scrums and tried push everyone forward while ours stood around waiting to help someone up. That changed in this game as both our lines were scrapping the whole way. Tough loss but they fought like hell. Keep fighting Packers and good things will come!
Boneman
December 06, 2024 at 08:43 am
I often compare the Packers to their opponents and make my Lame Calls and Game Balls accordingly:
Lame Calls- Everyone bemoans the pass rush but 90% of the time the ball is delivered to wide open receivers' well before any hope of pressure can be realized. McDuffie and Walker are 'horrific' in pass coverge and every team capable exploits that weakness mercilessly. The Lions picked up guys off the practice squad and they were better in coverage than us!
Can we ever get a stop on a screen pass? Whether its a flanker screen, running back screen or TE screen we can't stop it. Where was our screens? It seemed we had middle and deep routes exclusively. We should have mixed in screens on every drive and featured Kraft over the middle.
Our challenges are too often pathetically ill timed and with no chance of success. LeFleur looks like a child who had his lolly pop taken by a bully, reacting on pure emotion. The Packers need to implement a better process into when to challenge and quit wasting timeouts.
Game Balls- The defenses physicality is especially gratifying to see. This is the best, most physical group I've seen the Packers bring out in a long time. Love it!
Tucker Kraft is the real deal and it is becoming criminal that he doesn't get featured near enough. He could have been the perfect target against the blitzes Detroit ran most of the game.
dobber
December 06, 2024 at 08:52 am
"Everyone bemoans the pass rush but 90% of the time the ball is delivered to wide open receivers' well before any hope of pressure can be realized. "
^^THIS^^
The Lions only had two pass plays of more than16 yards last night. Goff was efficient, and pass-catchers were winning their routes.
...although I'm still seeing ARSB giving Nixon a two-handed shove on his in-break on that 2nd and 17 play late.
"Our challenges are too often pathetically ill timed and with no chance of success."
The first down challenge early would've given the Lions the ball 3rd and inches. Admittedly, the Packers were better at bottling up the Lions' backs than I anticipated, but what are you accomplishing there if your challenge is upheld?
"Tucker Kraft is the real deal and it is becoming criminal that he doesn't get featured near enough. "
Should've had a second TD last night, but Love air-mailed the pass. Luckily, they still finished that drive with 7.
Doug_In_Sandpoint
December 06, 2024 at 09:06 am
MLF’s lame call is actually a game ball. I assume that MLF’s vanilla play calling, eschewing screens, slants, dump offs and the short passing game in general was a brilliant 3-level chess move with the NFCCG in mind. Like a pre-season game, he just didn’t want to tip his hand when it didn’t matter. He knows we are headed to the Wild Card path.
Regarding the “almost” theme and OPI calls, Watson’s “pick” wasn’t, and cost us 4 points. Sun God’s was (pushing off Nixon) and cost us a bunch of clock on the 17-yard pickup on the last drive. Different calls on both almost could have led to a different outcome the game
dobber
December 06, 2024 at 09:27 am
"MLF’s lame call is actually a game ball. I assume that MLF’s vanilla play calling, eschewing screens, slants, dump offs and the short passing game in general was a brilliant 3-level chess move with the NFCCG in mind.. "
You, my friend, are a 'glass is half full' kinda guy!
Doug_In_Sandpoint
December 06, 2024 at 09:10 am
Oh, and another game ball to the commentators. Y’all just don’t know how hard it is to speak with Dan Campbell’s junk do far down…
I guess I shouldn’t finish this thought on a family site.
Razer
December 06, 2024 at 09:29 am
I agree. I am waiting for Taylor Swift to become a Lions fans. I just wished that our defense could have stuffed them a couple more times on the 4th down plays. Instead kept making us their bitches
Razer
December 06, 2024 at 09:22 am
People need to stop using refs as an excuse for a loss. You want win the game then definitively beat the other team - like Detroit did last night. They beat up our O-line, flustered our QB, beat us over the middle repeatedly and out coached us. The better team won.
My reactions:
-We failed to take advantage of an injured makeshift Lions defense. Worse, we didn't effectively adjust to pressures and schemes.
-Our secondary isn't good enough in a passing league
-Xavier McKinney has the worse body language since Aaron Rodgers. Hope he is mad at himself because he was late to every party last night.
-Screens and middle of the field defense are not in the Packer defensive playbook
Packer fans need to be content with a winning, competitive program. Until we know how to identify and draft properly on defense we will not gain much on the front runners. Defense isn't good enough to win another title.
Packerpasty
December 06, 2024 at 10:08 am
screens and middle of the field passing also isn't in the Packers offensive playbook..
Razer
December 06, 2024 at 10:21 am
So true. Love has to thread missiles into tight downfield routes while opposing QBs dish to wide open crossers for quick conversions. I have Jayden Reed in my fantasy football pool. He got me zero points. Thought this was his wheelhouse?
the_gavia_pass
December 06, 2024 at 09:38 am
this franchise needs a total rebuild. the new president is already in but nobody knows how good or bad he will be. but first moves should be as follows:
1. hire howie roseman - a real great gm
2. hire ben johnson to get his new offense
3. trade for josh allen - I know it's almost impossible, if not allen drake maye
I am tired of gutekunst always missing on top draft picks. and drafting 8-10 wr to get 2 good and no stars.
lafleur is a little man, look how bad he looked talking trash with a detroit fan on the field. and believe me, if stenavich will leave green bay the packers will collapse.
love is just a lucky man, he got 150 million and people is asking, why?????
GregC
December 06, 2024 at 10:52 am
All of this because they lost to the best team in the league on the road on a last-second field goal.
the_gavia_pass
December 06, 2024 at 11:00 am
the bears lost was even worse...so? the bears are better?
lions had all the D out for injuries.
and you know...bad teams always find a way to lose
Leatherhead
December 06, 2024 at 12:47 pm
Yup. It's pretty stupid when you get right down to it.
Packerpasty
December 06, 2024 at 10:13 am
the difference in coaching was obvious, the Lions have built a coaching staff that knows what theyre doing...they probably will lose the OC and maybe the DC this coming off season but for now they have a really good staff....and why cant the Packers defense a screen pass, or why cant they execute a screen pass on offense?? MLF doesnt like the short middle of the field passing game? It moves the chains...every team eats up the Packers with the short middle of the field passing game...maybe they should try it, it works...and who tells MLF when to throw the red flag...seldom is he correct in that....all in all a game that could have been won, Seattle will be no push over they are playing pretty good ball...time for the Pack to get it ironed out....
Bitternotsour
December 06, 2024 at 10:25 am
They lost by three in the final seconds on the road with a decimated secondary. The margins were miniscule and the team accounted itself just fine. The Lions will not want to see the Packers in the playoffs.
the_gavia_pass
December 06, 2024 at 10:29 am
the lions had almost all their D starters out. and they won.
Bitternotsour
December 06, 2024 at 10:30 am
at home, and fortune smiled on them. we'll see them again. they will regret it.
edp1959
December 06, 2024 at 10:55 am
Dan Campbell gave them 7 points and what did Love do with that? As long as Love continues to throw up prayer balls the Lions should be very happy to see them again. I doubt very seriously that they will meet in the playoffs because Love doesn't have the talent to get them past the wildcard round if that far.
13TimeChamps
December 06, 2024 at 11:52 am
" because Love doesn't have the talent to get them past the wildcard round if that far"
Interesting. IIRC didn't Love have the talent to get them past the wildcard round last year?
Packerpasty
December 06, 2024 at 12:16 pm
if the Packers make the playoffs, Seattle is no push over and either are the hated Vikings...
the_gavia_pass
December 06, 2024 at 10:31 am
the lions are 12-1 playing without aidan hutchinson, the best defensive player in the nfl.
imagine the steelers without tj watt....so you can understand how good are the detroit management staff roster
Packers0808
December 06, 2024 at 12:18 pm
Reffing has been better this ion high school games I watched than in pro games and don't just mean Packers!
SwedeBayPacker
December 06, 2024 at 12:30 pm
The Lions manhandled the Packers with their Defense all but leveled, embarrassing.
Our O-line was beyond pathetic. Jordan Love had about 0.5 seconds in the pocket on every drive.
Leatherhead
December 06, 2024 at 12:48 pm
If the Lions defense manhandled the Packers, how did the Packers get 31 on the board?
SwedeBayPacker
December 06, 2024 at 01:47 pm
85% luck, 15% ability
ddepula418
December 06, 2024 at 01:05 pm
Lame calls, 2 and 17 in Detroit's final drive and you can't get the ball back. Horrible.
lpirlot
December 06, 2024 at 08:03 pm
Quay's shove may have been inexcusable, but it wasn't pointless; the Lions' defender pushed him first. But the first guy only gets called if you don't retaliate.