Field Level Media
Sep 23, 2018
Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes while leading a ball-control attack, and the Detroit Lions gave former New England defensive coordinator Matt Patricia his first head coaching victory by defeating the visiting Patriots 26-10 on Sunday night.
Stafford hit on 27 of 36 passes for 262 yards with one interception. Kenny Golladay caught six passes for 53 yards and a touchdown, and Marvin Jones caught four passes for 69 yards and a score for Detroit (1-2).
Rookie Kerryon Johnson became the first Lions back to rush for at least 100 yards since Reggie Bush on Thanksgiving 2013. Johnson gained 101 yards on 16 carries as the Lions possessed the ball for more than 39 minutes. Matt Prater supplied four field goals.
Tom Brady completed 14 of 26 passes for 133 yards, one touchdown and one interception for the Patriots (1-2).
The Lions led 13-3 at halftime.
Detroit methodically drove 12 plays on its first possession but settled for a Prater 38-yard field goal.
Golladay scored on a 4-yard pass from Stafford early in the second quarter. The second-year wide receiver was originally ruled short of the goal line, but a replay review reversed the call. The Lions moved inside the 10 on a 15-yard reception by Jones.
Another long Detroit drive -- 14 plays, 71 yards -- resulted in a 25-yard Prater field goal with 4:58 left in the second quarter.
New England was unable to pick up a first down until its final possession on the first half. The Patriots drove 57 yards in 11 plays but had to settle for Stephen Gostkowski's 36-yard field goal when they failed to convert a third-and-1 situation.
Ja'Whaun Bentley picked off a Stafford pass in the opening minutes of the second half. The Patriots cashed in on Brady's 10-yard pass to James White to cut Detroit's lead to 13-10.
Detroit got those points back on its next possession. Jones beat single coverage on a 33-yard scoring pass from Stafford to make it 20-10 and finish off a 75-yard drive.
Prater's 32-yard field goal with 12:48 remaining increased Detroit's lead to 13.
Cornerback Darius Slay picked off a Brady pass with 7:23 left, and Prater tacked on a 30-yard field goal with two minutes remaining.
--Field Level Media