These are not the Detroit Lions we have grown accustomed to.
They are high-powered on offense, and they showed as such with their 42-17 victory over the Denver Broncos on Saturday night.
In the second quarter, Jared Goff threw touchdowns to his home run hitters: Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Amon-Ra St. Brown – all while the Lions defense forced four Broncos punts and an interception.
Goff’s five touchdowns tied a career-high, which he also accomplished on Sept. 27, 2018 as a member of the Los Angeles Rams.
LaPorta now has nine touchdowns on the season, the most ever for a rookie tight end. Gibbs ran for 100 yards on his 11 carries, while St. Brown racked up seven catches for 112 yards
Detroit moved to 10-4 on the season, and they are that much closer to clinching their first playoff berth since 2016 – their clinching scenario is complicated, but in their case, it’s practically a matter of when, rather than if. Their easiest path is losses by the Vikings and Seahawks this weekend.
It’s also the first time since 2014 the Lions had double-digit wins in a season, the third time since 1995, and the 11th in the history of the franchise that dates back to 1930.
As for Denver, their playoff hopes took a hit. They began the day at 7-6, but so did the Bengals and Colts, who both won. So entering the night, they didn’t get many favors.
