DETROIT – The Detroit Lions couldn’t get their offense going on Sunday and fell to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field.
It was a disappointing afternoon for Jared Goff and play caller Ben Johnson. The Lions managed just one touchdown while turning the ball over twice and struggling in the red zone.
Offense struggles in first half
The defense kept the Lions in the game during some offensive struggles throughout the first half.
After a pass interference call on rookie Terrion Arnold gave the Buccaneers a first and goal at the 5-yard line, the defense stiffened and forced a field goal.
They were forced right back on the field when Goff threw an interception on the first offensive play of the game. Jameson Williams appeared to get held coming out of his break, but it wasn’t called, and Goff’s pass sailed directly into the arms of Zyon McCollum.
Once again, the Lions held strong, forcing a 55-yard field goal that put the Buccaneers up 6-0.
Both of Tampa Bay’s possessions were doomed by Aidan Hutchinson sacks -- the first on third and goal and the second to put the Buccaneers back at third and 22.
The Lions managed just a pair of field goals in response, sandwiched around a Tampa Bay drive that was once again polished off by a Hutchinson sack.
Tampa Bay finally broke through on their fourth drive, a six-play, 70-yard march capped by a Chris Godwin touchdown grab down the left sideline.
Dan Campbell sensed that his offense needed a spark, so he dialed up a fake punt on fourth down and 12 from his own 20-yard line. Punter Sam Martin hit Sione Vaki with a perfect pass over the middle to move the chains and keep the drive alive.
A few plays later, David Montgomery converted a fourth down near midfield to once again extend the drive.
But Goff and the Lions continued to struggle on third down, and the drive ended with a punt.
A Brian Branch interception gave the Lions one more chance before halftime, but Goff made yet another mistake, throwing the ball over the middle with no timeouts and only 12 seconds left on the clock.
When the Lions went to spike the ball to set up a field goal, the kicking team was already out on the field, resulting in a penalty that ran out the rest of the first-half clock.
“Listen, 100% on the head coach there, alright?” Campbell said during his halftime interview with FOX. “I totally screwed my team. That is mine. We’re going for the clock it, it’s not a hurricane and I made a decision that I shouldn’t have made, and our team’s gonna have to overcome it. That’s the bottom line.”
Lions score, Bucs answer
Detroit finally got in the end zone late in the third quarter, with Montgomery punching it in from a yard away following a Goff completion to Amon-Ra St. Brown.
But Baker Mayfield and the Bucs answered with a six-play, 70-yard scoring drive of their own, capped by a pair of quarterback runs for 11 yards each.
Offense sputters again
If fans thought the 12-play, 68-yard drive would get the Lions’ offense going, they were mistaken.
A penalty and a Montgomery 15-yard catch moved the sticks twice on the next drive, but the Lions were forced to punt again at the start of the fourth quarter.
The defense got a punt and handed the offense some great field position near midfield, but after marching into the end zone, Goff threw a costly interception that took at least three points off the board.
Carlton Davis got away with some contact on third down to give the Lions yet another opportunity with 5:12 left in regulation.
Starting from their own 18, the Lions big plays from Kalif Raymond (an 18-yard catch) and St. Brown (a 9-yard grab on third down) to get across midfield.
The Lions faced a key third and 7 after the two-minute warning, and Goff hit Sam LaPorta for a six-yard gain.
Jahmyr Gibbs took the fourth-down handoff and scampered 23 yards to the Tampa Bay 13, with 1:17 left on the clock.
But the Lions couldn’t punch it in. The first play was a dump-off to Gibbs that went for a four-yard loss. Then the Lions threw well short of the sticks on each of the next three plays to come up well short of a first down.
The defense got another stop with 42 seconds remaining, highlighted by a Derrick Barnes pass breakup on third down.
Goff took over at the 43-yard line with 33 seconds to play. The first two plays were for short gains in the middle of the field, costing the Lions 19 seconds and their only timeout.
Goff never took a single shot to the end zone as the final three passes fell incomplete.
Tampa Bay took one knee to complete the win.
Final stats
Goff finished with 34 completions on 55 attempts for 307 yards and two interceptions.
Gibbs led the Lions with 84 rushing yards on 11 carries. Montgomery had 35 yards and a score.
St. Brown caught 11 balls for 119 yards before leaving late in the fourth quarter with an apparent injury. Williams added five grabs for 79 yards.
The player of the game for Detroit was Hutchinson, who finished with 4.5 sacks and five quarterback hits.
