DETROIT – The Detroit Lions avenged last year’s embarrassing loss by crushing the Carolina Panthers for their third win in a row.
Detroit played without two of their best players Sunday, as Amon-Ra St. Brown and Brian Branch both sat due to injury. But it didn’t matter, as the Lions got off to a fast start and never looked back.
Hot start
The game couldn’t have gotten off to a much better start for the Lions. They forced a Carolina punt on the opening drive and then needed just three plays to go 81 yards into the end zone. David Montgomery capped the scoring drive with a 42-yard touchdown run.
On the ensuing drive, Aidan Hutchinson made one of the best plays of the season, diagnosing a screen to the running back and picking off the pass with one hand. That set up a Jared Goff touchdown pass to Sam LaPorta that quickly made it 14-0.
Panthers bite back (briefly)
Carolina’s third drive didn’t go nearly as well. Cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, who returned from injury Sunday to make his Lions debut, went down with a non-contact injury and limped off the field before a 3rd and 4. He did not return due to a knee injury.
The Panthers converted that third down and ultimately drove 75 yards on 14 plays for a touchdown. Young hit Tommy Tremble from 1 yard out for the score.
Detroit responded by driving quickly into Carolina territory, but a drop by Jameson Williams on his first target since suspension put the Lions behind schedule, and they turned the ball over on downs three plays later.
OK, enough of that
The Panthers possessed the ball with a chance to tie the game for exactly one play.
Alim McNeill forced a Miles Sanders fumble on first down and the Lions took over at the Carolina 38-yard line. The Lions scratched and clawed their way into the end zone with a 38-yard drive that took 10 plays. Goff found Josh Reynolds in the back of the end zone for a beautiful 1-yard touchdown.
Carolina turned the ball over again on the first play of the next drive, as Young threw a pass up for grabs and Jerry Jacobs made his third interception of the season.
Goff took the very next snap and pitched it to Montgomery, who pitched it to Raymond, who pitched it back to Goff, who hit a wide open LaPorta for a 31-yard touchdown that put the Lions ahead 28-7.
The Panthers added a 33-yard field goal just before halftime to pull within 28-10. But the game was already well out of reach.
Second half
The Lions have struggled this season right after halftime, and they were looking to buck that trend Sunday.
Offensively, they came out a bit sloppy, but they were also nursing an 18-point lead and in no rush. But the defense looked just as stout. Hutchinson had a sack to force a punt, a holding penalty set the Panthers back, and and the Lions came within a foot of a safety on an intentional grounding call.
Detroit eventually found the end zone early in the fourth quarter on a Goff sneak, and that officially erased any doubt.
Young did hit former Lion D.J. Chark for a touchdown later in the fourth quarter, but Craig Reynolds answered with an immediate score of his own.
Thielen caught a 4th-and-1 pass for a touchdown just after the two-minute warning to make the final score a slightly more respectable 42-24.
Final stats
Goff led the way for the Lions with four total touchdowns -- three passing and one rushing. He completed 20 of 28 attempts for 236 yards.
Montgomery rushed for 109 yards and a score on 19 carries. Craig Reynolds had 48 yards on six carries.
Josh Reynolds led the Lions with four catches and 76 yards. LaPorta finished with 47 yards and two scores on three catches.
Alex Anzalone led the defense with 11 total tackles and eight solo tackles. Hutchinson had a sack, two tackles for loss, an interception, and a quarterback hit.
Young threw three touchdown passes and two interceptions. Thielen caught 11 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown.
What’s next?
With the win, the Lions improved to 4-1 and held onto their spot atop the NFC North Division.
They’ll hit the road the next two weeks for two of the toughest games on the schedule. First, they head to Tampa Bay to play the 3-1 Buccaneers, and then they’ll visit the 3-2 Ravens in Baltimore.