Detroit Lions Snap Playoff Drought With a Win Over the Los Angeles Rams
The Detroit Lions have finally snapped the longest playoff win drought in the NFL. The Lions defeated the Los Angeles Rams 24-23 to advance to the Divisional Round. The Lions will now host either the Philadelphia Eagles or Tampa Bay Buccaneers next Sunday at Ford Field, after the Dallas Cowboys lost to the Green Bay Packers.
The first half was an offensive shootout with both teams exchanging touchdowns going into the half with the Lions leading 21-17. All of the concerns analysts and fans had of the Lions seemed true with the passing defense allowing wide receiver Puka Nacua to torch them all game long. The Rams struggled greatly in the redzone with not being able to convert on the three chances they had in the redzone resulting in only three field goals and zero touchdowns.
The Lions may have gotten to a hot start in the first half but slowed down the attack in the second half only scoring three points the entire second half. They continued to lean on the run even after the Rams made the adjustments and failed to exploit the Rams poor pass defense resulting in constant stalled drives and three-and-outs.
They need to improve their consistency throughout the game, or this team will perish in the second half against a team like the San Fransico 49ers who can continuously put points on the boards with the numerous offensive weapons they have. The defense let up over 400 yards of total offense a common theme of the Lions defenses the past three weeks allowing almost 200 yards receiving to three wide receivers over that same time frame.
The Rams seemed to lean on wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who is still a good player but after his injuries has not returned to his MVP caliber form this year. Kupp was targeted in the redzone multiple times even when Puka Nacua was the clear biggest issue for the Lions secondary.
Photo: Luis Sinco/ Los Angeles Times
The Rams were unable to create pressure on quarterback Jared Goff with defensive tackles Kobie Turner and Aaron Donald being shut down by the Lions offensive line.
The officials have been brought up as a reason why the Rams lost, and there were bad calls on both sides of the ball that resulted in crucial drives being stopped. Overall, the officials called a very good game, and it created the best playoff game of the weekend so far.
The Rams should not feel down about this playoff loss, as a team that was projected to win four to six games this season they were able to make a massive turnaround at the end of the year to get into the playoffs. They have also hit on their late round picks and have built a foundation for a dangerous team in the NFC for years to come.
