The Lions defense bent but did not break. Baltimore didn't get into the end zone once. The Ravens settled for field goals time and time again. The Lions struggled to get something going on offense themselves, but an 80-yard drive capped with a touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford to tight end Joseph Fauria made Ford Field rock as the Lions went up 16-15. Baltimore had a decent return to their own 33, but the Lions only let the Ravens move up 25 more yards. To win the game, the Ravens would have to make a 61-yard field goal to win the game. I stood there in the stadium with my dad as Justin Tucker booted it through the uprights like it was nothing. The Lions lost the game 18-16 after Matthew Stafford threw his third interception of the night on the next drive. The Lions would not win the division. They would not make the playoffs. They would end up firing head coach Jim Schwartz weeks afterwards for the embarrassing meltdown down the stretch.
I stood there in awe as I took it all in. I've cited that game as the most heartbreaking sports event of my young life. It's the kind of experience that completely hardens you from attempting to feel positively about sports, especially when your sports team is the Detroit Lions. There have been a lot of heartbreaking losses for that team, but December 17, 2013 has always stood out.
There were a lot fewer stakes on September 26, 2021. The Lions aren't contending for a wild card spot, much less a division title. They have yet to even win a game this season. The defense has been dreadful, and the offense inconsistent. The Ravens were beat up by injuries, but still have hopes they can make a big run with Lamar Jackson at the helm.
Despite the clear gaps in talent between the two teams, Detroit found themselves in the game. The Lions miraculously found themselves up 17-16. Despite the team not having expectations, Ford Field was louder than it's been in probably four years. Fans just wanted to see this team eke out a win. I stood on my feet in Ford Field once again, only a few rows away from where I stood on December 17, 2013. I wasn't just with my dad this time, but my mom and my sister and her husband and my three nephews. My oldest nephew was losing his mind. The Lions were really going to pull off an upset.
Then the Ravens converted 4th-and-19, spiked the ball, then threw the ball out of bounds for one last shot. Justin Tucker, still one of the greatest kickers in NFL history if not the greatest kicker, would have to do something that had never been done before. He would have to make a field goal from 66 yards deep. This time, it wasn't so clear. Half the Ford Field crowd thought he missed as the ball actually bounced off the crossbar and forward, just barely clearing it. The Ravens stormed the field in celebration. My nephew, feeling the highest of highs just seconds prior, folded into his grandmother's lap asking, "Why? Why can't the Lions ever win?" I once again stood in silence and awe as history repeated itself. This is Lions fandom.
I saw all the tweets and the articles about how this was the best possible thing for the Lions. How they're not going to the playoffs anyway, so losing close games that the team was competitive in but retaining draft position is the best way for things to go down. But when you're in the stadium surrounded by thousands of other people that just want to feel a little bit of football joy losing their minds because the Lions really might pull off the upset this time, it's hard to think like that. And you can't explain that to your 11 year-old nephew. He doesn't care about draft position. He just wants to know why the Lions don't ever win, and why they specifically always lose like this. All you can do is say, "Because we're Lions fans, and that's what life is like for us."
It sucks.
Quick Hits
Carried by... the defense?: For a good chunk of this game, the Lions were surprisingly carried by their defense. They weren't perfect. They needed Marquise Brown to drop several balls to stay in the game, because the secondary still isn't very good. The linebackers played better this week, with Jamie Collins sitting out this game just days before the team would cut him. Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Derrick Barnes performed fine in his stead. The Ravens still had a lot of yardage up the middle on plays where linebackers were the closest defenders, but it wasn't quite the massacre that Aaron Rodgers and Aaron Jones performed on the linebackers in Green Bay last week. Alex Anzalone looked a lot better in run support in particular.
The real defensive improvement came with the defensive line and the outside linebackers. Romeo Okwara had a fantastic performance. I don't believe he stepped off the field for a single defensive snap. The Lions consistently kept the lethal Lamar Jackson contained in the pocket. They got some really clutch sacks. It was nice to see them feast a little bit after a couple weeks they weren't garnering enough pressure.
Just One Coaching Complaint: I've largely heaped praise on Dan Campbell and the Lions coaching staff's aggression on offense, but this is the first time I've really disagreed with the decisions. On the Lions' last drive deep into Ravens territory, the Lions ran the ball three times and then kicked the go-ahead field goal. I would've liked a bit more aggression. I'm fine with the first two runs to force the Ravens to use their timeouts, and the field goal isn't ideal, but it's fine. But I would've preferred that third down call to be a shot down the field either for a first down or a touchdown. I understand that puts you at risk for an interception, or that an incompletion stops the clock and gives the Ravens a little bit more time on their drive, but I think the positives outweighed the negatives. The Ravens had Justin Tucker, so their field goal range, as we saw, is way bigger than most NFL teams. They don't need that much time to get him in game-winning range, so at least one shot at the end zone where the Lions would have to force the Ravens to score a touchdown themselves on the next drive would have made me a lot more comfortable.
Maybe Two Coaching Complaints: For the first half in particular, the Lions were looking undisciplined. The Lions had a few costly penalties on offense when they were already sputtering. There seemed to be communication issues in the secondary at multiple points, including the 4th-and-19 that the Ravens converted. The Ravens also had a touchdown from a blown coverage. I understand that it's a young team, a young coaching staff, and there are multiple players who have been rushed into playing time before they're ready, but you can't have mistakes like that in close games like this. When one team's a huge underdog, they have to play more disciplined in close games, because their huge mistakes will get feasted on.
Another Weird Day for Goff: I'm not sure Jared Goff is going to play two halves of a football game the same way this season. He looked completely lost in the first half, but was a lot sharper in the second half as the team rallied. I know he's not being helped much by his receivers; only Kalif Raymond really seemed to have a good game for that group with 6 receptions for 68 yards. Still, it's really hard to watch Goff and think that he might be the Lions' answer at quarterback beyond this season or the next. Still plenty of season to disprove that, but early returns aren't promising.
Feed. D'Andre. Swift: The Lions running game wasn't great on Sunday, only averaging 3.4 yards per carry, but D'Andre Swift was the difference maker in the second half against the Ravens. The Lions kept feeding him over and over in the passing game, and the Ravens didn't know what to do. Swift is an absolute killer in space, and when T.J. Hockenson's production is limited like he was in this game, Swift should probably be getting like two out of every three touches. He's playing that well.
Jamaal Williams didn't play as well, but he's been showing why he's been such a great addition this season too. The Lions had 285 yards in this game. 174 of those were from Swift and Williams. They are the absolute heartbeat of this offense. Campbell and Anthony Lynn should just let them cook.
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