It’s Turkey Day in America. That means two things:
Passing out on your uncle’s couch … and the start of the NFL playoff race.
On Thanksgiving, we saw the early window unfold with the Packers going on the road and earning a season sweep of the Lions, winning, 31–24, at Ford Field behind Jordan Love’s four touchdown tosses and Micah Parsons collecting 2.5 sacks.
In the late window, the Cowboys host the Chiefs in a borderline must-win game for both sides. Dallas is coming off a win in which it came back from a 21–0 deficit to the Eagles, while Kansas City won last week after trailing 20–9 in the fourth quarter against the Colts.
The nightcap of the tripleheader sees the Ravens host the Bengals, who are welcoming back Joe Burrow after losing him for more than two months with toe surgery. Cincinnati is only 3–8, but it’s a far more dangerous team, obviously, with Burrow at the helm.
On Sunday, the biggest games include an AFC South tilt with the Colts hosting the Texans, as Indianapolis tries to extend its current two-game lead over Houston in the division. There’s also the Steelers and Bills in Pittsburgh, with Aaron Rodgers expected to come back after missing last week’s 31–28 loss to the Bears with a wrist injury.
But we start with the Packers, who put Detroit on the brink while giving themselves an excellent shot at the NFC North crown.
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For Green Bay to beat Detroit, Jordan Love was going to need a big day. He got it.
Love was brilliant on Thursday afternoon, completing 18 of 30 for 230 yards and four touchdowns. More importantly, though, his biggest moments came when the crucible was hottest.
After the defense got a fourth-down stop to start the second half, Love took the ball with a 17–14 lead at his own 49-yard line. Two plays later, he rainbowed a beautiful 51-yard bomb to receiver Christian Watson, giving the Packers a 10-point lead to play with down the stretch.
Love also completed the game-sealing pass despite a heavy Lions rush, finding Dontayvion Wicks for 16 yards on fourth-and-3 from the Detroit 45-yard line, assuring victory.
Throughout the game, Love consistently made tight-window throws, including a touchdown on fourth down to Wicks from the 22-yard line. Without Love’s accuracy and the willingness to cut the ball loose for explosive plays, the Packers don’t win.
If Green Bay is going to the Super Bowl, it’ll need Love to play tremendously. Thursday’s performance should inspire confidence.
It needs to stop. Campbell can be as aggressive as he wants within reason, but over the last few weeks, reason has gone out the proverbial window.
Two weeks ago, the Lions fell to the Eagles while going 0-for-5 on fourth down. In each case, it would have made sense to either punt or kick a field goal, albeit not being necessary. Instead of taking points or playing for field position, Campbell decided to press the issue. The Lions lost, 17–9.
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff talks to head coach Dan Campbell
Lions coach Dan Campbell’s penchant for risky playcalling has hurt the team this season. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
On Thanksgiving, Campbell once again left many scratching their heads. The Lions had a fourth-and-3 near midfield on the first drive of the second half, trailing 17–14. While going for a conversion is defensible, running a halfback dive straight into the line isn’t. Then, trailing 31–21 in the fourth quarter, Detroit faced fourth-and-3 at the Packers’ 21 yard-line. Jared Goff threw to Jameson Williams instead of attempting a 39-yard field goal to make things a one-score game. The ball was inaccurate and dropped.
Being aggressive is Campbell’s identity. Fine. But there’s a line. Eschewing a chip-shot field goal down 10 points in the fourth quarter is bad coaching. It’s far beyond the line.
The Lions entered Thanksgiving without two starting interior offensive linemen and tight end Sam LaPorta. Then, in the first half, they watched All-Pro receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown go down with an ankle injury.
In a spot like that, against a division rival, the Lions desperately needed defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard and his unit to step up. Instead, they got smoked like a turkey, giving up 31 points and 359 total yards in a significant loss.
This is nothing new in big spots. Earlier this season, the Detroit defense allowed 31 points to the Ravens. It gave up 30 points in a loss to the Chiefs. Last season, the Lions permitted 45 points to the Commanders in the divisional round, despite having two weeks to rest and prepare as the No. 1 seed.
Next Thursday, the Lions host the high-powered Cowboys. The week after, a trip to SoFi Stadium and the Rams with receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, along with MVP frontrunner Matthew Stafford at quarterback.
If the 7–5 Lions are going to make a run towards the postseason and do something within it, they’ll need the defense to become a positive force.
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