Detroit Lions Week 7 Review: The Good and the Bad

In an epic battle, the Detroit Lions were able to come from behind and score two late touchdowns to defeat the New Orleans Saints by a score of 24-23. The Lions still share a lead over the NFC North with the Green Bay Packers, and finally look like a team that can overcome adversity and win close games.

I could go on and on about this spectacle of a game, so let’s dive right into the good and bad takeaways from this game.

Oct 19, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Lions wide receiver Golden Tate (15) celebrates his touchdown during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Ford Field. Detroit won 24-23. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

The Good

Golden Tate

Golden Tate our savior.

I cannot stress this enough, but Tate has been a godsend for the Lions, especially with star receiver Calvin Johnson off the field. Today’s game proved why after Tate caught a contested pass late in the game and outran everyone for a 77-yard score to bring the Lions within a touchdown.

Without Tate, I can’t even comprehend how lost this offense would be right now. He is a real treat to watch.

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Matthew Stafford

Overall, Stafford had a far from perfect game. There were plenty of poorly thrown balls and plays where he panicked early that resulted in wasted plays. But he hung in there and worked his fourth quarter magic like we’ve seen him do in the past.

I can honestly say there is no other quarterback I’d rather have on the field when trailing by 13 or more points with the game on the line than Matthew Stafford. The Lions needed a flawless final four minutes out of Stafford and the defense and that’s exactly what they gave them.

Glover Quin

Talk about clutch! On a huge third down while trailing by six points, Quin kept his eyes on Brees and made a spectacular read to come up with an interception and immediately put the Lions in the redzone for a chance to take the lead.

Not just that, but Quin was all over the place for the Lions today. He had six total tackles including a monster hit on Pierre Thomas that took him out of the game.

Quin has been solid all year in pass coverage, and it’s nice to see some consistently positive production out of the safety position for the Lions this year.

James Ihedigbo

Ihedigbo quietly had a great day for the Lions today and continues to make plays rushing the passer. Teryl Austin has shown that he trusts Ihedigbo to run a few blitzes and it’s worked. He knocked Brees down to the ground a few times and was credited with eight tackles, a sack, two tackles for a loss and a fumble recovery.

Talk about being all over the place.

I’ll say it again, our safeties have been great this year.

Sam Martin

Sam Martin was the unsung hero for today’s game. Out of five punts, four of them landed inside the Saints’ 20-yard line. Martin and the punting unit has been superb for the Lions all year.

Honorable Mentions:

Corey Fuller (what a catch!), Darius Slay, DeAndre Levy, Nick Fairley, Ndamukong Suh, Matt Prater (not a single missed field goal), lol Bears