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Game 13: Lions @ Bucs Thread

Only threw the ball 50 yards in the air probably.

You're so salty... Jones had a catch of 38 yards and 4 other receivers had receptions of over 20 yards... You're such a hater it's unreal.
 
Last week, Matt Prater had perhaps the worst game of his Detroit Lions career. This week, he saved their season. Again.

Prater knocked in a 46-yard field goal with 20 seconds left to lift Detroit (7-6) to a 24-21 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-8) that was ridden with errors on both sides.

Four Lions offensive linemen were whistled for holding calls. They had eight penalties overall, for 105 yards. Matthew Stafford threw two picks. It was ugly. But Stafford also completed his first 12 passes, then his final six. That helped Detroit march from its own 23-yard line with 2:54 left, all the way to Tampa Bay's 28.

And Prater finished off the game-winning drive with yet another winner. He has never missed a potentially game-tying or -winning field goal in the final 4 minutes of a game in his Lions career. And this was a big one.

The Lions now improve to 7-6, preserving whatever slim odds remain they can make the postseason. They still need Atlanta, Carolina and Seattle to start losing, except Atlanta won on Thursday night and the Panthers were up seven on Minnesota as this game went final. The Seahawks face first-place Jacksonville later today.

They need at least two losses from two of those teams. Their odds are slim. But they still have odds, thanks to more heroics from their fabulous kicker.

Here are some observations from the game:

-- After opening the season with one of the league's most opportunistic defenses, the Lions didn't force more than two takeaways in any of their last six games. Then they jarred five balls loose against Tampa Bay, a season high. Quandre Diggs and Darius Slay both picked off passes, while Diggs forced a fumble that Slay recovered. Glover Quin and Jarrad Davis also forced fumbles, which D.J. Hayden and Tahir Whitehead recovered.

-- One of those takeaways occurred on a play that, frankly, might have never happened before. Quandre Diggs, playing his second career game at safety, came across the middle to separate Mike Evans from the football on a big hit. Darius Slay scooped up the fumble, and it was Lions ball. Or so it appeared to everyone except Ed Hochuli and his crew. The pass was ruled incomplete, and Diggs was flagged for hitting a defenseless receiver. The Lions then challenged the ruling, arguing the pass was complete and fumbled because Evans had established himself as a runner. After a review, the officials agreed and overturned the initial ruling. Got that? Me neither.

-- Quandre Diggs was moved to safety last week to replace the injured Tavon Wilson. He played OK, but Teryl Austin said he would stick with it anyway. And a week later, the move paid off in a big way. In his second career game at the position, Diggs picked off his first career pass plus forced a fumble. And he nearly added another pick in the third quarter, only to have the refs overturn it upon review. The kid just might be all right back there after all.

-- Darius Slay can go ahead and buy his flight to the Pro Bowl. He entered the weekend leading the NFC's cornerbacks in voting, then scooped up a fumble and intercepted a ball intended for DeSean Jackson. He now leads the league's cornerbacks in interceptions with five.

-- Why couldn't the Lions pull away from a team they turned over five times? Take your pick, although the penalties seem like as good as any place to start. My goodness. Corey Robinson wiped out Tion Green's best run of the day with a dumb hold, then Taylor Decker and T.J. Lang picked up holds of their own. But perhaps none was more costly than Graham Glasgow's hold in the third quarter, when Golden Tate picked up a third-and-9 with a long completion over the middle. But the play came back because of the line's fourth hold of the day, and the offense's fifth overall. Detroit would go on to punt while clinging to a seven-point lead, and Tampa came right back the other way to tie the game, 21-21. And remember, all this came against a Tampa Bay defensive line that is among the worst in the game, with the fewest sacks. More bad, sloppy football from Detroit.

-- Matthew Stafford opened the game by hitting on his first 12 passes, the first Lions QB to do that since at least 1991. Going back to last week, he had completed 32 of his last 33 passes. Not bad for a guy who had two fingers taped after having his throwing hand stomped on. Stafford finished the game 36 of 44 passing for 381 yards and one touchdown to Golden Tate. He also led that late game-winning drive by completing all six passes, including a gem to Theo Riddick over the middle and a big third-down pickup to Kenny Golladay. Of course, Stafford also threw two interceptions, the latter of which came on an awful decision with Detroit in field-goal position at the end of the first half. Credit to the defense for all the takeaways, but the offense left a whole lot of points on the board as well, which made this one far closer than it should have been.

-- With his first catch, Golden Tate scored a 5-yard touchdown that gave Detroit a 14-7 lead. With his second, he moved into fifth place on the Lions' all-time catches list -- passing some guy named Barry Sanders. That's impressive, and so is the fact he did it in just 61 games. Sanders did it in 153. Tate finished the game with 85 yards on eight catches, giving him 359 in nearly four seasons with Detroit. Next up on that list: Brett Perriman, who had 428 catches in 94 games.

-- Eric Ebron has been playing well for weeks now, then blew up in the first half against Tampa. Of Matthew Stafford's 20 completions before intermission, seven went to Ebron for 73 yards. By the end of the game, Ebron had set new career highs with 10 catches for 94 yards. And, most impressively, he did it on 11 targets. He's now caught 18 of his 19 targets the last three weeks combined. Of course, Ebron also had a fumble in the first half. But the miscue proved harmless, and Ebron -- not exactly known for handling adversity well -- rebounded nicely. Bob Quinn gambled he was better off hanging on to Ebron than dealing him at the deadline, and he could not have been more right.

-- What is the future of Ameer Abdullah? That's a big question to come out of this game after Detroit elected to bench him. Theo Riddick started in his place, and racked up 93 yards on 16 touches. That includes a brilliant 18-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that gave Detroit a 21-7 cushion -- a cushion it would eventually need. Tion Green and Zach Zenner were the backups instead of Abdullah, as the Lions try to figure out what exactly they have in Green. The undrafted rookie followed up last week's breakout with just 15 yards on five carries.

-- While the Lions had some success on the ground with Riddick, they continued to struggle in short-yardage situations. Struggle? Is that the right word? Perhaps incompetent is a better way to put it. After getting stuffed on another third-and-1, the Lions are now 2 for 7 when they try to run the ball in such situations. Throw in a failed fourth-and-1, and Detroit is 2 for 8 when it tries to run the ball needing 1 yard on third or fourth down. Frankly, that's pathetic.

-- For all that's made of Detroit's offensive problems at the goal line, the defense has been pretty freaking bad, too. They can't defend the play-action, and bit twice more against the Bucs, with O.J. Howard catching one touchdown and then Leonard Webster adding another. Yes, Leonard Webster is an offensive lineman. Against Detroit, it doesn't matter. Fake a handoff, and you get a touchdown! And you get a touchdown! And you get a touchdown! And you g...

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/...quandre-diggs-tampa-bay-buccaneers/939090001/
Detroit Lions grades: Eric Ebron, Quandre Diggs shine in win over Buccaneers.
Freep

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sp...s-grades-secondary-nets-high-marks/108495794/
Lions grades: Secondary nets high marks.
Detnews

https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2017...it-lions-vs-tampa-bay-buccaneers-stock-report
Detroit Lions vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers stock report.
It was a sloppy game by both teams, but there?s plenty to look at both positive and negative in this one.
POD

https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2017...ot-sacked-first-time-2-years-stats-buccaneers
Matthew Stafford wasn?t sacked in a game for the first time in 2 years.
Finally the Lions quarterback finished a game unblemished.
POD

https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2017...picture-detroit-lions-postseason-odds-week-14
NFC playoff picture: Detroit Lions postseason odds increase after Week 14.
The Lions? path to the playoffs is clearer, but still difficult.
POD

https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/PPY3090013530? selected=LKN5446950286
LOCKED ON DETROIT LIONS PODCAST VOLUME 313. DECEMBER 10. 22 minutes.
Post-game POD. #Lions 27-24 winners in an ugly one in Tampa.

http://www.detroitlionspodcast.com/...aneers-review-turnovers-turn-victory-detroit/
Lions vs Buccaneers Review: Turnovers Turn Into Victory For Detroit.
DLP
 
Stafford on his two interceptions: "Just two bad decisions. Went into the game going not going to let [Brent] Grimes wreck the game and I just got too aggressive. I bet you if I checked that ball down to Theo [Riddick] we get a bunch of yards and still moving and I got a little bit impatient and really the same kind of thing on the second one. We got the field goal, we’re in range, just take the 3 or 4 yards and let’s kick it, let [Matt] Prater do his thing. Poor decisions that pissed me off there for a little bit but the rest of the game our guys did a great job making plays."
 
Stafford on his two interceptions: "Just two bad decisions. Went into the game going not going to let [Brent] Grimes wreck the game and I just got too aggressive. I bet you if I checked that ball down to Theo [Riddick] we get a bunch of yards and still moving and I got a little bit impatient and really the same kind of thing on the second one. We got the field goal, we?re in range, just take the 3 or 4 yards and let?s kick it, let [Matt] Prater do his thing. Poor decisions that pissed me off there for a little bit but the rest of the game our guys did a great job making plays."

Now THATS a leader telling it how it is .
 
then there's Ebron...

Ebron on his fumble: "He made a great play. He caught me in the middle of transition trying to move the ball from him because I knew where I had him. He just made a great play. First fumble. Hopefully my last fumble. Ever. I mean, you live, you learn."
 
then there's Ebron...

Ebron on his fumble: "He made a great play. He caught me in the middle of transition trying to move the ball from him because I knew where I had him. He just made a great play. First fumble. Hopefully my last fumble. Ever. I mean, you live, you learn."

doesnt sound so bad , i know everyone hates him but im sticking by him . Today showed what he can do , had a bad drop and the fumble but still came up with a few big grabs !! Hey , he's ours , might as well cheer him on and hope for the best .
 
Not even trying to be a Stafford slappy but thats refreshing to see and hear

Yeah, much better than the typical "just trying to make a play and their guy made a good play on it" crap.

Those throws did suck. Especially the 2nd one.
 
https://www.prideofdetroit.com/2017/12/12/16767424/detroit-lions-film-breakdown-teez-tabor-buccaneers-coverage

Lions film breakdown: Teez Tabor shows he’s a jack of all trades vs. Buccaneers


Slowly, the Detroit Lions have been working Teez Tabor into the lineup. Prior to the bye week, Tabor played in just three total defensive snaps, causing some to worry that the Lions’ second-round draft pick may have been a bust.

Since then, he’s playing more often, but Detroit is still bringing him along slowly. In the first six games out of the bye week, he only played 55 total snaps, averaging less than 10 a game. But on Sunday against the Buccaneers, the Lions took off the training wheels. Tabor played in 39 snaps, well over 50 percent of the defensive downs.

But it’s one thing to get playing time, it’s another to play well. How did Tabor do in his first significant playing time? Let’s break it down.
 

Pretty good article... Just happy the kid looks like he's coming along nicely after not getting to good of a shot to play early on. Hopefully he can keep increasing the snap counts and replace Lawson/Hayden on the outside completely and they can be the backups... Especially like the play where he bites a little on the WR screen but stuck with Evans as soon as he realized.... That's his awesome reaction time in action that we saw on sports science lol.
 
Pretty good article... Just happy the kid looks like he's coming along nicely after not getting to good of a shot to play early on. Hopefully he can keep increasing the snap counts and replace Lawson/Hayden on the outside completely and they can be the backups... Especially like the play where he bites a little on the WR screen but stuck with Evans as soon as he realized.... That's his awesome reaction time in action that we saw on sports science lol.

I actually REALLY like where the secondary is. Let's say Teez pans out and starts opposite Slay in '18. We move Lawson to the slot.....Diggs to S and Killabrew is our dime LB/S hybrid.

That's a good secondary. I think Diggs has a LOT of potential as a S.

Gotta get better in the front 7
 
With all of the 'Oh our injury woes' talk, it's kind of refreshing albeit a bit strange to have a rookie play behind vets and learn the system rather than being thrown into the fire due to lack of talent or depth.
 
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