It was a battle of the top team in the NFC against the league’s worst team when the Arizona Cardinals visited the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on Sunday afternoon. Considering the Cardinals entered the game a perfect 7-0 on the road, most anticipated they would cruise to a victory over the Lions, who had only one win all season.
That wasn’t the case though, as the underdogs came up big and upset the Cardinals 30-12.
“That was fun,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell told members of the media following his team’s win on Sunday, via Yahoo News. “We knew what we had to do today and we did it, really in all three phases across the board. The minute it felt like something may go the wrong way, we were able to tilt it back into our favor. I was proud of those guys.”
The Lions were able to control the game for large periods of time with a running game that the Cardinals just couldn’t figure out how to stop. It became increasingly difficult for the visitors as Detroit gained momentum and the crowd became more involved as well.
“Today was really the first day we really seen what our brand of football is,” Lions fullback Jason Cabinda said. “Smash-mouth, run the ball (to) open up the pass, defense just balling. So it was awesome to see.”
The Lions are still just 2-11-1 on the season, but as a result of Sunday’s victory they are no longer the worst team in the NFL and at this moment they would not select number one overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. The Jacksonville Jaguars are now in line to draft first overall for the second consecutive season, after they selected Trevor Lawrence with the number one overall pick last year. They are just 2-12 for the season.
Detroit are just trying to win football games though and considering they went 11 straight weeks without a victory, they are thankful to have two wins in their last three weeks.
“It was a fun day,” Lions tackle Taylor Decker said, via Yahoo News. “It was fun to see everything come together and just kind of dominate in all phases.”
The Lions dominated throughout the game and even when the Cardinals took over possession at their 44-yard line, Detroit managed to make big stops and force turnovers when required.
“That’s what winning teams do,” Lions quarterback Jared Goff said following the victory. “That’s what good teams do. If you look around the league at teams, you call it points off turnovers, is a good stat to look at. Do you score when your team gets a turnover, and, vice versa, do you stop the team when your offense makes a turnover? We had the best of both worlds there.
“Unfortunately, Godwin had the fumble, but Amani having the interception and bringing it all the way back down there, that’s how you win games. That’s how you shift the momentum, that’s how you make big plays and Amani’s kind of been making them all year. It’s been exciting to see him grow, too.”
The Lions will look to make it three wins in four weeks when they travel to Atlanta on Boxing Day to play the Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
