DETROIT – The Detroit Lions left a raucous Ford Field crowd bitterly disappointed on Sunday with another loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
Dan Campbell’s high-risk, high-reward mantra helped the Lions upset the Kansas City Chiefs in the opener, but this week, it came back to bite them.
With a four-point lead late in the third quarter, Campbell elected to go for a 4th and 2, ultimately giving Seattle a short field. On the ensuing drive, the Seahawks took the lead for good.
Seattle set the tone early in the game with a 12-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that was extended by a pair of self-inflicted Lions penalties. On a 3rd and 2, the Lions had 12 men in the huddle, and after a big tackle for loss in the red zone, C.J. Gardner-Johnson committed a personal foul that gave the Seahawks a fresh first and goal.
Jared Goff answered immediately, completing all four passes on his first drive, including the final two to Josh Reynolds for 20 yards and a 22-yard touchdown.
The Lions forced a punt on the next drive, but after marching 57 yards in 12 plays, Campbell passed up a potential 48-yard field goal attempt to go for 4th and 4, and Goff’s first incompletion of the game (on his 10th attempt) ended the drive.
Seattle couldn’t capitalize, though, as Jake Myers missed a 45-yard field goal. Five plays and 65 yards later, David Montgomery gave the Lions a 14-7 lead.
But the second half was mostly controlled by the Seahawks. Montgomery coughed the ball up on the very first play from scrimmage, setting up Seattle’s game-tying score.
Detroit answered with a long touchdown drive of its own, and Seattle kicked a field goal on the following drive to make it 21-17.
That’s when Campbell went for a 4th and 2 at midfield, ultimately setting the table for Seattle’s go-ahead touchdown. That drive was highlighted by a 3rd and 10 in the red zone, when Jerry Jacobs played way too far off Tyler Lockett and allowed an easy conversion. Two plays later, Jacobs got beat again for the touchdown.
A Goff pick-six on the ensuing Lions drive gave the Seahawks a 10-point lead with about eight minutes remaining.
But the Lions weren’t done yet. They drove down the field for one final touchdown and got the ball back with under two minutes to play. Riley Patterson drilled a 38-yard field goal as time expired to send the game to overtime.
Seattle won the coin toss and took the ball first, and because of the NFL’s nonsensical overtime rule, that ended up being the difference. Geno Smith drove his team down the field and into the end zone, ending the game without Goff ever getting an opportunity.
This is the third season in a row that the Lions have lost to the Seahawks. Last year, it ultimately kept them out of the playoffs, as the two teams tied for the final wildcard spot, and the head-to-head tiebreaker was the difference.
Sunday’s loss is even more disappointing considering what happened in Week 1. The Lions took down the defending Super Bowl champions on the road, while the Seahawks got blown out at home by the Los Angeles Rams.
At 1-1, the Lions will try to bounce back next week when they host the Atlanta Falcons.