Matt Stafford Leads Lions to Victory

NFL Football at its best. NFL Football at its craziest.
Yes, the title is correct. The Detroit Lions finally won a football game. Usually the season for football begins late in the season as the Lions fight for a high draft pick and then ends during draft day when they most likely take a wide receiver. This time it was different as the Detroit Lions did something positive on the field. This time it was winning a football game, something they have not done for 2 years.

Just to make it fun, the Detroit Lions took the game down to the last play, a hook and ladder, which is basically, if it looks like someone will tackle me then get ready for me to lateral the ball to you and Washington lateraled down the field. It was scary as the clock ran out.

And, finally, it was watching the last few seconds, fists clenched, lumps in throats, as the Redskins ran a desperation hook-and-ladder play, a completed pass, a lateral, another lateral, the Lions chasing the ball like kids in a keepaway contest. On the sideline, Stafford couldn’t look. He stared at the turf. Or he tried.

“Then it gets quiet and I can’t wait anymore so I looked up and saw (Ladell Betts) get tackled. … I saw it go 0:00 and I was like, ‘Phew.’ ”
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Matt Stafford says Phew!

There were some early moments when things did not look so good but the Lions fought back and, for once, made the fans proud to be supporting the Lions.

A week after struggling inside the 10 and barely beating the Rams, Washington was held scoreless on its opening drive despite a first-and-goal from the 9. Clinton Portis was denied on fourth down from the 1 by rookie linebacker DeAndre Levy, who started in Ernie Sims’ place.

Detroit then drove 99 yards on 12 plays over nearly 6 minutes, capping the impressive drive with Johnson’s fantastic catch on a high throw in the end zone from Stafford.

“I didn’t think we’d be denied getting in the end zone and we were,” Zorn said. “But there was no way a team could drive 99 yards on us was my thought.”

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In the ultimate irony, most fans missed the game, because the crowd barely exceeded 40,000 people and had to be blacked out. My house is 89.99 miles from Ford field and had to be blacked out. Stupid rule. A city further away used to carry the game until the recent changes to digital TV. Now for some reason it won’t even pull with rabbit ears and my TV is digital. Usually not seeing the Lions is a good thing, but for this one time it was not. Of course, 200,000 will now claim they were at that game as time goes by.

It does not matter, because the Detroit Lions finally won a ballgame!

Photo source Newscom

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