Jared Goff beats his former team to give the Lions their first playoff win since 1991

In 2009, the Detroit Lions selected quarterback Matthew Stafford as the first overall pick in hopes of rebuilding after going 0-18 in the previous season. He quickly became their franchise quarterback and led the Lions to three postseason appearances. He also set numerous franchise records.

In 2016, the Los Angeles Rams selected Jared Goff as the number one overall pick. After a shaky first season as a pro, he improved greatly under new head coach Sean McVay. Not only did Goff help his team reach the playoffs, but he led them to their first Super Bowl appearance since 2002 (lost to the New England Patriots).

On March 18, 2021, the Rams traded Jared Goff to the Lions for Matthew Stafford along with a couple of draft picks. Stafford led the Rams to a Super Bowl win and Goff led the Lions to their first playoff appearance.

Game Recap

The Lions hosted the Rams in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. This marked Stafford’s return to Detroit, where he spent the first 12 seasons of his career. This was the second time Goff faced his former team, but the first time in Detroit.

The Lions got the ball to start, and they wasted no time getting in the endzone. David Montgomery ran for the touchdown, and they jumped on a 7-0 lead. The Rams got to the endzone on their first possession, but three straight incompletions by Stafford led to them getting on the board with a field goal.

Detroit came right back and scored another touchdown to put them up 14-3. It became clear early on that it would be a shootout as Stafford threw it to his wide receiver Puka Nacua for a 50-yard touchdown. Then the Lions once again went down and got another touchdown. Rams followed suit with a 38-yard touchdown by Tutu Atwell.

The second half was all about the defense as neither team allowed a touchdown. Detroit’s defense, who had been known to give up long plays that led to touchdowns, forced two field goals and a punt. The Rams’ defense only forced one field goal as they managed to keep the Lions out of the endzone for the majority of the second half.

The Rams’ last trip to the red zone ended with a punt after a holding penalty pushed them back ten yards and a throw to Nacua was incomplete. The Lions were able to run the clock down and get a much-needed first down to pull the game away with the final score of 24-23.

Jared Goff finished with 22 completions out of 27 attempts for 277 yards and one touchdown. David Montgomery finished with 14 carries for 57 yards and one touchdown. Amon-Ra St. Brown finished with 7 receptions for 110 yards.

Despite the loss and getting banged up, Matthew Stafford finished with 25 completions out of 36 attempts for 367 yards along with two touchdowns. Puka Nacua finished with 9 receptions for 181 yards and one touchdown.

What’s Next

Because the Green Bay Packers pulled off an upset win against the Dallas Cowboys, the Detroit Lions will host another playoff game at home in the divisional round. They will host the winner of the Eagles-Buccaneers game on Sunday, January 21. The game will begin at 3:00 p.m. EST.

Photo Courtesy: Eric Seals and Junhu Han (Detroit Free Press)