There are no moral victories in the NFL, but given the way the Dallas Cowboys dominated opponents at AT&T Stadium this year, Detroit's 20-19 loss against one of the top teams in the NFC shows that Detroit Definitely among the NFC's elite.
The Lions thought they would take the lead in the final seconds when quarterback Jared Goff led Detroit on a 75-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes. Goff connected with wide receiver Amon Rao St. Brown on an 11-yard touchdown pass with 23 seconds left to make it 20-19.
Head coach Dan Campbell opted for a two-point conversion to try to win the game and Goff hit left tackle Taylor Decker for the conversion, but Decker was flagged for illegal touching and both points were wiped off the board. given. Detroit elected to try again and win by two points, but tight end James Mitchell's pass fell incomplete. When Detroit couldn't secure an onside kick, the Cowboys escaped with their closest win at home this season.
Heading into Saturday night's primetime matchup with the Lions, Dallas is undefeated (7-0) at AT&T Stadium this year and has outscored opponents 279 to 108.
Detroit's defense held them to an average of 20 points at home this year. He made a key stop on Eden Hutchinson's third sack of the game with two minutes and 39 seconds left in the game to give the ball back to the offense and allow them to drive 89 yards to win the game. be given
On the second play of Detroit's drive, Goff was picked off by Dallas safety Donovan Wilson on a diving grab in front of tight end Sam LaPorta at the Lions' 31-yard line. The Cowboys converted on a 43-yard field goal to extend the lead to 20-13 with one minute, 41 seconds remaining.
But credit gaffes and a late scoring offense kept them from getting the last two points.
The loss dropped the Lions to 11-5 on the season and the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoff picture as NFC North division champions. Dallas improves to 11-5 and keeps its NFC East title hopes alive.
Detroit got touchdowns from St. Brown (11) and David Montgomery (3).
QB Comparison: Goff finished the game completing 19 of his 34 passes with a touchdown, two interceptions and a 67.2 rating. He was only sacked once but was harassed by Dallas' front seven for much of the night.
Dallas' Dak Prescott was 26-38 for 345 yards with two touchdowns, one interception (Ifeatu Melifonwu) and a 103.5 rating.
Big play: The Cowboys took a 7-3 lead in the first quarter on a 92-yard touchdown pass from Prescott to Lamb. It was a play that could have easily resulted in a sack and a safety for the Lions, but linebacker Derrick Barnes fumbled on a potential sack. Prescott bailed out to his right and passed it to Lamb, who was one-on-one with veteran Lions cornerback Kyndal Wildor. Unfortunately for Detroit, Wildover fumbled at the 45-yard line and Lamb was all alone when the ball rolled into his arms at the 50-yard line.
What could have been a 5-0 lead with a safety and the ball turned into a 7-3 deficit.
Key stat: Detroit was just 4-for-13 on third downs. He entered the game seventh in the NFL with a third-down conversion rate of 43.6 percent.
Injury report: Wide receiver Jameson Williams did not return after leaving the game in the second half with an ankle injury.
Next week: vs. Minnesota (7-8), TBD
