Lions vs. Rams: Detroit falters again at home in another loss
Second Quarter
Knocking on the door of either a touchdown or a field goal, the Lions began the second quarter with the down and distance at 3rd & 5 and on that play, Ellington snagged a pass for another 10-yard gain through the air. RB Zach Zenner received a pitch and he ran it for seven yards inside of the Rams’ 15-yard line.
On 3rd & 2, Ellington caught a shovel pass but he was stopped immediately which meant the Lions had to bring on their kicker, Matt Prater, for the 28-yard field goal which was a success, 3-3 tie.
The Rams ran the ball for two consecutive snaps as Malcolm Brown took over running back duties in relief of Gurley. Todd Gurley came in on third down and promptly gained enough yardage to move the chains for his team. Jared Goff attempted to go deep again but Lion safety Quandre Diggs came down with the interception to get the ball back for his offense.
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On a busted play, Stafford had to hold onto the ball and he fell forward in order to ensure the Lions kept possession. From there, Toilolo missed an opportunity to catch a pass for the first down and just like that, the Lions had to punt it away after being unable to capitalize on their forced turnover.
Early in the next LA drive, Nevin Lawson was whistled for a pass interference penalty as he inadvertently helped the Rams move closer to midfield. Robert Woods took a big hit from Quandre Diggs on the next play as Jared Goff tried to hit him deep but Diggs broke up the play with a perfectly timed hit. Detroit’s defense was playing strong but rookie Da’Shawn Hand was called for an illegal hands to the face penalty which killed Detroit’s defensive momentum.
On 3rd & 2, Goff hit Everett to move the chains and the Rams’ drive continued down the field. Todd Gurley swiftly took his next opportunity for 21-yards as he helped to maneuver his team closer to a score. On 3rd & 7 in the red zone, Robert Woods beat Darius Slay into the end zone for the game’s first touchdown, 10-3 Los Angeles.
Riddick gained six yards on during the next Lion drive and that play led directly into the two-minute warning. Aaron Donald soon took Riddick down in the backfield for a loss of 3-yards and on 3rd & 7, Matthew Stafford was absolutely blasted by linebacker Cory Littleton for the sack.
LA got the ball back with less than 2-minutes to go but still plenty enough time for the Rams to come away with more points. Jarrad Davis made a strong play to force an incompletion on second down and defensive end Romeo Okwara broke up the next play to force the Rams into a 47-yard field goal attempt and the kick was good, 13-3 Los Angeles.
Stafford and his offense got the ball back with 43 seconds left and he quickly found Golladay for a gain of eleven. An incomplete pass and offensive penalty set things at 2nd & 15 for the Lions and Stafford connected with Riddick with 25 seconds left in the half. On 3rd & 7, Stafford fired a pass into the ground as his offensive line was whistled for yet another holding penalty on the indomitable Aaron Donald.
Detroit went into intermission down by two possessions and they were set to receive the opening kickoff of the second half.