Lions Fold in Second Half, Lose to Vikings 27-13
by Sean Yuille on Sep 20, 2009 4:06 PM EDT
in Detroit Lions Game Recaps
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PrintThe Lions played one of their best halves of football in quite some time today and even took a 10-7 lead into the locker rooms after two quarters. Detroit was running the ball effectively on offense and the defense was containing Adrian Peterson. It wasn't until the very end of the half when the Vikings finally put together a good drive, which ended in a touchdown and gave Minnesota lots of momentum. From that point forward the Lions looked lost and simply let the Vikings take over the game. Favre had his way with the defense; Peterson finally broke free for some big gains; and the Lions' offense couldn't do anything. The Vikings went on to win 27-13 with all of those points being unanswered until a late Jason Hanson field goal.
This was a tale of two halves for sure. In the first half the Lions were playing extremely well. Aside from a Matthew Stafford interception, the offense was controlling the ball and taking time off the clock. Thanks to a great running attack of Kevin Smith and Maurice Morris and couple Vikings penalties, the Lions moved down inside the 10 on one drive and Stafford threw his first touchdown pass in the NFL to Calvin Johnson. That put Detroit up 10-0, but it was really all downhill from there.
After cutting the lead down to a field goal with their late touchdown drive in the first half, the Vikings came out in the second half and slowly took over the game. The Lions went three and out to start the half, and then the Vikings worked their way down the field and tied the game with a field goal. Kevin Smith fumbled two plays into the next drive, and Adrian Peterson scored on the very next play to give the Vikings a lead. In the fourth quarter Minnesota added another field goal and Percy Harvin scored a touchdown following another Stafford interception to put the game away.
The Lions showed that they are a better team than last year with their performance in the first half, but they also showed that there is still lots of room for improvement with their play in the second half. Matthew Stafford has not played well at all in the first two weeks of the season, and he has to stop throwing interceptions if the Lions are going to win a game. I said it last week, but I will say it again: Detroit is not talented enough to win games with all of the mistakes they are making. It will take a mistake-free game for the Lions to win, and they will get a chance to do that next week at home against the Redskins.
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Fold is an understatement
When the LEGAL side-effects of a substance, cause more harm to the person, than the side effect of the substance its self, we have an injustice.
- Jimmy Carter
although stafford threw some pics
I saw some improvement, i liked how on a couple of plays he threw the ball away instead of forcing something….but yeah, all in all, that was like watching two different teams…one in the first half, one in the second….and does anybody else think of “destroyed in seconds”( a show on discovery) when hearing Ron pitts? Hard for me to listen to him as an announcer because of that….
Yeah, not sure what happened at the half
But I saw several phantom calls, along with the actual miscues… against a polished team like the Vikings, those things will kill you.
Couple of bright spots from my observation:
We held A.P. under 100 yards, not bad.
Kevin Smith managed 83 yards (I think) against the top run defense in the league.
Pettigrew got a few targets (one big one that got called back) and played well.
Staff’s QB rating doubled, I believe, to an astounding 51 (or something to that effect).
And the bad:
Backus. Period.
The playcalling – I know we’re trying to protect Stafford, but come on, let’s use some of those weapons we have Scotty!
The officiating… Seems like every time we got a decent play, the refs called it back on very questionable penalties.
All told, not too bad. Stafford needs to improve his reads, but when your only throws are coming in obvious passing situations… I can see a problem. Kevin Smith was solid minus a fumble, and the D showed up in the first half. Favre’s stat line is a little alarming.. But, let’s face it: the Vikings are a very talented team, and we didn’t play consistent football.
Consistent football comes with time, experience, and practice as a team, which we have very little of. All good things in time…
I think Stafford can go in both categories
And I’m still a proponent of improvent in the O-Line. Is Mark Sanchez really that much better of a quarterback? We had the runninggame to set up the pass, which should’ve equated into results from Staff, I’m just not seeing enough from him. Sure, you can play the “rookie quarterback” card all day long, but look at what Sanchez is doing, look what Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco did last year, it isn’t a given that rookie QBs are garbage in their first year. And it’s not Staff’s fault, if he can have longer than 3 seconds to throw the ball he might actually be effective. In fact, when you think about it, any quarterback can make Tom Brady throws if they have ages to sit around in the pocket.
We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne
Completely agree
This game was set up for Stafford to finally flourish and he failed miserably. I didn’t see any bright spots from him. Throwing the ball away when he’s rushed isn’t a bright spot. They teach you that in high school. We had the running game today to keep Minnesota’s D honest, and Stafford still couldn’t find his touch. Sanchez is definitely showing he was the better pick. Even if it’s only week 2. Switch them out and Sanchez would still play better on Detroit than Stafford in New York. That’s not saying that Stafford won’t be a good QB in the future, but right now he’s not ready. Culpepper plays today and we would’ve won.
You can't say that with any certainty
Sanchez could very well be much worse than Stafford if he had been placed in Stafford’s position, you never know, same with Culpepper.
2009 = The start of the Lions Golden Age (We hope).
by Hyperion Ecta on Sep 20, 2009 7:00 PM EDT up reply actions
The major problem I have with that.....
IS the fact that we will likely never know! If Schwartz sticks to his guns, we will never know if Culpepper would be any better than Stafford, because he will not play!
I'm just giving you crap, dude...
I just cringe every time I see Culpepper’s name in a post on this site.
By the way
Sanchez had 15 yards in their first half. Not sure what he ended up with, but I really have to disagree that he is already ‘the better pick’.
Jets Defense
Held NE to 9pts! I know this comparison is never going to go away, but there really is no comparison. Totally different teams in totally different situations!
O-line
Sanchez has D’Brickashaw Ferguson as his LT and Nick Mangold at C. That team was 9-7 last year and would have finished much better if Favre’s arm hadn’t given up.
Well said Nate
I agree with pretty much all of what you said.
2009 = The start of the Lions Golden Age (We hope).
by Hyperion Ecta on Sep 20, 2009 7:01 PM EDT up reply actions
I watched this game since the Bears were on afterward
and I agree that some of the officiating was bad, but you have to play through that. One play that comes to mind was that monster run that Calvin Johnson had that was called back because of the chop block by Gosder Cherilus.
The Lions are to blame for this loss, straight up they could have beat the Vikings today (and I was rooting for you guys, because the Vikings are ahead of the division and I think the city of Detroit needs it). Stafford missed wide open WR’s, Bryant Johnson could have planned a wedding and still walked into the end zone. Your OC has handcuffed Stafford too much with the run game. You can still keep defenses honest with quick short intermediate throws (Ref Patriots 2008 w/ Matt Cassell). Stafford has high accuracy for short throws and it will help give a break for your Oline if it’s short quick throws.
The momentum shift in this game was Kevin Smith’s fumble and resulting score, it deflated the team and the crowd.
27 unanswered points is ridiculous, the Lions gave this game away
See you in 2 weeks
If you want to crown em...
by JohnnyTruant on Sep 20, 2009 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions
I think you are spot on.
Sometimes an “outsider’s view” is needed. This game was on us. But… for the Lions, it was progress.
Where I think you are right is with the playcalling. They were out to protect Stafford too much. In turn, I think he felt he had to do too much when his number was called…. mostly because it was always third and long.
Thanks for the post and yes… we will see you in two weeks.
Agreed
2009 = The start of the Lions Golden Age (We hope).
by Hyperion Ecta on Sep 21, 2009 4:11 AM EDT up reply actions
I agree that the momentum shift came with the Smith fumble.....
But the last INT was the last nail in our coffin….oops, maybe I shouldn’t state my opinion since it is the same thing over and over and over and over…..FU CLF
For the first, and probably only time...
…I will come to Jeff Backus’ defense. While he had some horrendous miscues (completely forgetting to block Allen), he actually stood tall against one of the best pash rushers in all of football for the majority of the game. Allen is a monster on that line and I thought, for the game as a whole, Backus did better than I would have expected.
I agree with your positives, but if you were to tell me that AP would be held to less than 100yds AND Brett Favre less than 250yds before the game I would tell you that the Lions should win that game. The fact is, the Lions really did let this one slip away and against a team as talented as Minnesota…that is a real shame.
They did not prove they are a better team than last year with their play in the first half
What exactly was different about their performance today than in last years two matchups with the Vikings? ESPN said before the game that the Lions actually should’ve won both games because they played well enough throughout to do so, but inevitably gave away the games at the end.
We didn’t win. We didn’t score in the 2nd half. We didn’t score much in the 1st half, still settled for a FG where we could’ve had a TD on one drive. We are NOT a better team until we win follow through and win a game. To top it all off this game was nowhere near as close as the two games played vs the vikings in score.
One thing I liked
We finally implemented Pettigrew into the offense, albeit only for a few plays. Why are we bringing him along so slowly? He’s a first rd draft pick, hes’ NFL ready, what is the reasoning for not drawing up plays for the kid? He can be yet another threat for the defense on a team with poor slot receivers.
We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne
My game summary.
Positives: The running game was greatly improved once you overlook the fumble. Stafford finally realized in the 4th quarter that throwing the ball away is legal. The run defense stepped up and was flying around the ball. We actually got sacks and tackles for loss.
Negatives: We only scored 13 offensive points for the second week in a row. We turned the ball over 3 times for the second week in a row. We didn’t get any non-offensive scoring. The secondary is still suspect. Stafford still forces the ball more often than not. Backus is still getting stupid penalties and missing blocks.
Overall view: We are still a long way from being a competitive team. There are improvements happening but they are small, few, and far between. We still lack key personnel in the trenches and secondary. Barring miraculously brilliant play, expect a 2 or 3 win season at best.
I got nothing,
too easy, 27 unanswered point ‘s Say’s it all. mighty vikings!!!! ya I said it ……… and I’m sticking to it !!!!!!!!!!
take a kid fishing, it's good for the soul. not only yours, but the child's as well !
He was a bit off on the details
I see what you mean though
2009 = The start of the Lions Golden Age (We hope).
by Hyperion Ecta on Sep 20, 2009 7:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Spot on
With the “game was closer than the score indicates” comment
We didn't lose the games, we just ran out of time -- Bobby Layne
disgusted
at this point the lions are not showing me anything that i havnt seen before. They can score and take the lead in almost any game, but they cant hold onto that lead. The defense is awful and the offense is sub par. There is no reason for matt stafford to be in any of these games. We could lose with anyone else at qb just as well. He needs some tutoring by a veteran qb before we blow his entire career in 1 season. being on the field could kill this kid mentally.
I’ve had enough of this franchise and its awful performance.
Ford
The Ford’s should do every one a favor and sell the Lions.
by Kyle Leatherspoon on Sep 20, 2009 7:04 PM EDT reply actions
Chill.....
way too much negativity in here.
1) We had a chance at winning this game against a very good team. That’s a plus right there. I’m not one for the whole “coulda, woulda” thing, but we definitely look like an NFL team for large stretches of football games now.
2) The Stafford/Sanchez argument is pointless at this time. Mainly because its simple to explain: Sanchez is further along in his development, older, on a team ready to win. All this combined means he is the better QB right now. Yet, we knew this coming into the season. Stafford has huge potential, and not in a jamarcus russell type way. He’s got the physical tools, but Staff isn’t some moron…he simply isn’t as advanced as Sanchez right now. Nothing wrong with that. I still think Stafford is the right QB for us. We can build our team right along with him.
3) Staff to Megatron for the TD. First of many.
Doom and gloom... my gosh.
Second game after an 0-16 season with a rookie quarterback under center and it was a competitive, close game until the fourth quarter. Didn’t everyone want to see progress? Didn’t everyone just want to see us be competitive? Well, guess what… today I saw progress and competitiveness. Funny how we change our expectations once the season starts… isn’t it?
The stadium was energetic and there was a true excitement in the air… and I felt like we should have won, but we didn’t. This team needs to learn how to win and not give games away. It’ll take time. I get so tired of saying that. I think people think that this “time” a few of us are referring to means seven days. Right. Like this team is going to miraculously become a contender from one week to the next. Patience people. It gets frustrating seeing how frustrated everyone gets. Even at the game, I could hear the “same old Lions” talk immediately when Stafford threw that last pick.
Yeah, he didn’t play well, but my gosh… he is not getting a fair shake at this. He was booed today at the stadium. Booed. Are you kidding me? I felt ashamed of the fanbase. He’s playing his SECOND pro game and we boo him? Yes… it was a very, very costly penalty and he had a second bad game. But weren’t we as fans, supposed to give him a little lee-way and let him make some mistakes?
People simply have unrealistic expectations for this year. I’ve just come to realize that sad fact. The Lions will simply not get any benefit from the fans as they try to build themselves out of the roster rot that ate away this team’s core… even though everyone talked about it all offseason and most picked them to have 2-5 wins. Everyone will focus on negative and not the positive. They will be expected to win a lot of games with a roster not capable of it and be chastised at every turn for it. Damn shame.
...this wasn't a response to your recap, Sean...
this is a response to all the negativity in the comments I’ve read… and probably a little carry-over from the negative nancies at the game.
Exactly......
…….this team was never going to make the playoffs……We played tough but the 2 picks and the smith fumble made for 3 short fields for Miny……To much to overcome…….Staff will improive but games are going to be like this all season…….I say we win next week ……and ill keep saying it every week!!!!…..GO LIONS!!!!
by BennieBladesFan on Sep 20, 2009 10:21 PM EDT up reply actions
One thing most people are not seeing..
is that. New Orleans and Minnesota will likely be playing in the NFC Championship game. These are two very good football team. New Orleans ran up the score in Philly. The Lions statically matched Minnesota. 265 to 265. Defense held Adrian to less than 100. The defense showed some signs of life. Stafford played better today than in New Orleans against a better defense.
Yes I am disappointed with the loss. But still happy will the progress. Washington might be a better match up for the Lions. So, next week is the week.
or maybe,
you could play the little sisters of the blind and poor next week, I hear they have a nun, who throws a sweet pass ! maybe c.j. could catch one of her passes !!!!!
take a kid fishing, it's good for the soul. not only yours, but the child's as well !
burn ,
that’s going to leave a mark !!!!!!
take a kid fishing, it's good for the soul. not only yours, but the child's as well !
burn??? What is this 1978?
You need to step away from the dog. And have some “Human” interaction. And I dont know what the laws are in Minnesota. But inter-species “relationships” are frown upon, in the rest of the civilized world.
Pretty pathetic when you have to give your own comment a boost.
What’s wrong? Couldn’t give it a rec? LOL
And banned
Like I told the other troll, I’m not going to put up with it on POD.
Pride of Detroit, SB Nation's Lions Blog
Thanks BBF, for saying exactly how I feel.
I know this morning I will get razzed for predicting the Lions would win this one, but frankly I don’t give a shit. Every Friday and Saturday I will see that the Lions have a chance to pull the upset and will believe it until the end of the game Sunday.
People are just tired and upset
A win would change things I think. The 19 games straight doesn’t do much for confidence and it’s quite a burden to carry, the sooner it’s off our shoulders the better.
2009 = The start of the Lions Golden Age (We hope).
by Hyperion Ecta on Sep 21, 2009 4:15 AM EDT up reply actions
Now hold on a tick.
Look I’m probably one of the more realistic and objective people on here (not saying I’m correct very oftne, but my expectations and enthusiasm is permanently tempered by the Millen era). I’ve been saying all along that this team will struggle and the first six games of the season is a dreadful lineup for a previously 0-16 team (let alone a 1-23 team).
That being said, this isn’t Pop Warner, this isn’t highschool, and this isn’t college…this is a professional game played by grown ass men. Stafford played poorly, and while I am not a big fan of booing the home team myself I wouldn’t bag on people for booing that performance on Sunday. Yes he is a rookie, but as a #1 pick I don’t think it’s unfair for fans to expect some excitement and flashes of excellence. Outside of a wonderfully thrown ball to Calvin, late in the game…Stafford made some truly dreadful throws downfield, had two disturbingly bad interceptions, and missed a very open receiver in the endzone on what should have been the games first touchdown.
Look, the Lions really aren’t ready to be a favorite against a team like Minnesota, but they had an opportunity in that game. The defense played VERY well against the Vikings and the only 3TD’s they gave up came off of costly turnovers (two of which were Staffords). I’m certainly not ready to throw in the towel on this kid, but let’s not forget that he wasn’t exactly the consensus #1 for this fanbase…so while you and Stafford probably don’t care for the boos at home, unless he gets considerably better in a hurry you both had better get used to it.
Mushy, the first INT did not result in a score. The two later turnovers were converted to TDs.
I agree with most of your comments re Staff. He needs to take a page from Orlovsky and put the ball up high for Calvin. Especially in the end zone. I am patient, but the only way to shut the boo birds up is with results, and right now Staff is not delivering.
Having said that, I am still supportive of Staff and look forward to a solid game vs Washington.
I stand corrected...
…I simply remembered it wrong. Doesn’t change my opinion that it was a giant miscue on what should have been an eventual scoring drive, but I had the sequencing all mixed up. He did rebound nicely to lead the touchdown drive AFTER that first interception, so that’s a positive.
perfectly said.
i don’t understand how two months ago we would have been extatic to win 3 or four games…we all agreed that they likely wouldn’t have come in the first six games. guess what…that is exactly what is happening. perhaps it is because we see flashes of potential & competitiveness…and then stupid calls either by refs or oc…or horrible execution…but guess what…this is what we all anticipated. if you know its coming you can’t be upset by it.
Are you new?
These people aren’t haters! They’re die hard fans sick of all this losing bull shit. Since 2001 this team has won 31 games and lost 99, the last time they won a game was on December 23rd 2007 I know because I was there. I bought tickets because I thought they would be fighting for a playoff spot or homefield advantage after a 6-2 start but then they lost 6 in a row. There is no team in sports as terrible as the Detroit Lions. Few teams in sports have seen such a losing skid as the Detroit Lions. In my opinion this team needs to do several things to start to win. For instance, cutting that dumb ass Jeff Backus would be a huge plus. Today I watched that idiot commit several penalties and then let a DE get straight to Stafford and force a fumble. Then Backus LOOKED AT THE LOOSE BALL AND STOOD THERE. If “he didn’t see it” also is a terrible excuse, you’re a highly paid NFL player you should be aware of what’s going on around you. If he thought the play was dead he’s also an idiot for not busting his ass until he heard the whistle. Luckily the rookie Pettigrew had the awareness to fall on the ball. They could also just start chucking the ball down field a lot more. You set up the run game so well in the first half and didn’t give CJ the ball down field on a play action at all. At certain points Minnesota was bringing 8 guys on a blitz because they knew the ball was being handed off.
Also, trade Culpepper? Who the hell is going to want him? That dude was “retired” until the Lions said “Hey wanna play for a winless team?” No, they could just put him as inactive for the rest of his contract instead of taking the hit to the Salary cap. Also Linehan can make a name for himself here throwing from Stafford to Johnson. Stafford has the arm and it’s not like Megatron isn’t going to be double-covered the same way. Just air it out. Not to say he hasn’t been terrible so far, I’ll agree with you there and the Saints are a 1st class offense, that’s been apparent since the start of this season
before you go ballistick on backus
i am not a fan of his…but vs j allen he did well. that open sack was actually the fb fault. backus was doubling down inside, the fb was motioned to the left side to pick up j allen & didn’t. that one is not on backus
here it comes...
$tafford’s first win.
We’ll beat the Redheaded Stepkids alright,
if the defense has to pick Matt up and carry him into the endzone themselves.
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